Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-08-24
ALTHEA'S BIRTHDAY.
BY AMANDA T. JONES.


LET me see" said Althea Day; "there
are Mary Simpson aid Arthur, her brother.
Ellen Horton, the three King girls and
their brothers, Tommie Strang, julia Lacy,
Maria Hubbard, and Allen Bartoo; they
make twelve, and that will be about as
many as can enjoy themselves l think. l
don't want my birthday party to be a
mob"
"You have forgotten Josephine Mills"
suggested her mother quietly.
81 have no intention of inviting her.
Besides, presume she couldn't come, for
it is Saturday, and on that day she keeps
up stairs while her mother washes out all
the dress she has in the world 50 she can
90 to Sunday school. Nobody makes any
thing of Josey, though she's good enough
in her way" SO Allie Day put her bon
net over her brown curls and went to
school, thinking all the way about her
party of twelve and the grand dinner her
mother would prepare. I'VE will have
games, suppose she thought, though |
think conversation is more dignified and
I'll practice all my music tonight. Per
haps Marsh King will bring his clarionet
I'll speak TO him about il"
Just then Allie raised her eyes ard saw
Josephine Mills leading her little deformed
brother toward the school house.
How good she is To him." thought
Allie. eli he was my brother should be
80 mortified! They say his father struck
him in drunken fit with a great stick of
wood, and nearly b, oke his back. I'm sure
I'm sorry for him, but he is as iretiul as he
can be- All the same, Josey takes care OF
him by night and day. What a dull life
"A, 81, I,oI I ,Unnlar if ohio avar wan
to a party in all her life. | am sure she
never did, and very likely never will"
A little thought crcpt into Allies mind
that Josey mi ht receive an invitation TO
one party at least, but she tried to excuse
herself by thinking that the only dress
could not be possibly washed and ironed
in time for that birth day feast.
Miss Morton opened the Bible as the
last scholar settled himself in his place,
and read the fourteenth chapter of Luke.
Not line Of it all did she hear-so full
was her mind of the evening party-till by
chance she looked toward the teacher and
caught the words
"When thou makest a dinner or sup
pr call not thy friends, nor thy brethren,
nor thy kinsmon, nor thy rich neighbors
Lest they also bid thee again and recon-
pense be made.
But when thou makest a feast call the
poor, the manned, the lame, and the
| blind"
The color flew all over Allies face. at
| is true" thought she, that selected the
very girls 10 help me eat my birthday
| dinner who will be sure TO invite me to
see them when they have party That
| would be recompense, surely; and | be
\ -. ~,
| have invited Josephine if hadn't known
she could never invite me in turn. The
poor, the manned, the lame and the blind
How Ellen Horton and Julia Lacy would
laugh if should ask Josey and her de
formed brother, and Peter Henry, the one
legged Scotch boy, and Mark Livermore,
who has only one eye, and SAWS wood for
livlagl Pshaw. what birth day party
that would BET"
Allie took up her reader and went into
the clags. Josey stood next to her, and
she could not help but notice how pale
and tired the poor girl looked. know"
thought Allie, her father staggered home
last night Just as we were leaving school,
and all the boys laughed to see him. /
remember now that Josey burst out crying,
and ran home across the field, rather than
hear them ridicule him
The King girls laughed too-hateful
things | presume If / should really in.
| vito Josey all the rest would snub her Just
as they do in school that could be agreea.
bier
"The poor, the manned, the blind p
How these words followed Althea Day
from class 10 class, from study TO play,
and back again to study. For some rea.
son her invitations, which she had meant
10 give at a recess, remained untendered.
at is tour days to Saturday." she thought
land there Is really no hurry"
What It was cannot say, but the more
Allie looked at Josey that day the more
she liked her and when school was out at
| night she astonished the drunkard's
daughter by walking with her and actually
taking the other hand of Willie, the little
deiormed boy.
ut is too pleasant To go right home"
| said Allie; "lets go TO the bank of the
| creek and get some raspberries."
81 am afraid mother will need me-" said
Josey but Willie was so pleased with the
idea that che yielded, and the three
climbed fence and struck off through the
| woods, pleasantly chatting, as school girls
will. II surprised Allie 70 find how lady
| like and agreeable Josey was. All her
snyncss and timidity vanished, and she
had SO many interesting things to say
that Allie nearly forgot what they had
come for.
"Here we are at the Twenty" said viii
| lie, at last meaning the Twenty Mile
| Creek" Now / want some berries"
There was charming waterfall, thirty
feet down from where they were stand
ing, and the long rays of the evening sun
glanced over its siiyery mists and struck
them into wonderful shimmering rainbows.
All, those rainbowsl Allie had just step
ped to the edge Of the steep bank, where
two or three raspberry bushes grew out
Of cleft in the rocks; when she caught
sight Of them she leaned little farther TO
see them more clearly, slipped on the dry
moss, caught at the thorny bOughs, swung
clear Of the bank, and fell half way down
to the foot of the fall, dragging the bush
with her She just heard Josey's great
cry Of fright, and then knew nothing more
till she came to her senses, when Josey
was carrying her up the bank little way
down the creek.
A very hard struggle had Josey just
then Her small, round arms W, re strain
ed w ifh their burden and her hraath came