Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1872-11-07
TABS TRIAL.
N PAIGE DWIGHT.

.
BS PAIGE DWIGHT.
TABITHA was her name 1t was hers
because it had been her grandmother's
for many long years, and had attained
dignity and honor by the association; and
if the name seemed old fashioned, the
cup which came with it was of the latest
pattern, and silver cup and a golden
promise may sometimes serve to make an
unmusical name very euphonious, you
know.
But Tab thought very little of her
name, or of her beautiful dark eyes, or
straight nose, or well-shaped head, or of
anything else about herself, in fact, save
of one unfortunate peculiarity, and that
was her trial. Was she lame, did she
stammer, was she freckled, brown or
sandy No, dear little questioIer, she
was afflicted by an i'll you would never
think of guessing so might as well tell
you at once. Poor Tab she was unhap-
py, and often utterly miserable, because
she was so very, very fat.
think Tab thought very little of her
self during the first five years of her pros
porous young life. The wretchedness be-
gan when Aunt Eunice came down from
the chill country" like wolf on the
fold, and calculated as she peered down
through her spectacles at the child,
"Sakss alivel Tabithy, what whopper
you bel"
TAB kept out of Aunt Eunice's sight as
much as possible after that, but for days
and days she puzzled her brain over the
new name.
"Fm sch0Pper. / wonder what that
is-it must be something dreadful" was
oil To h nnrrl1 10 of Gro 81,
went confidentially to her cousin Will, a
literary youth of fourteen, and asked
whats whoppers" answered Will,
jocosely, pinching her cheek, "why, it's
something uncomm0nly large. In short,
Tab, you're considerable of a whopper."
Tab never ventured after information
again, but she began to dread the ap-
proach of friends and neighbors, and to
fear the visit of a relative or former
friend of her mothers, as older girls do
the entrance of the examining committee
at school.
Unfortunately, Tabs father, having
been successful in business. concluded
three years later to refurnish their parlors,
and introduced two long mirrors between
the windows at either end. 1t was Tabs
first view of herself from her broad
shoulders to her round, cushiony feet,
and she gave one long stare at the double
reflection. What square, solid figure il
wasl but nothing of which to be
ashamed, if people had been polite
enough to remember that little girls have
ears, and feelings also, somewhere be
yond them. Tab looked and looked, and
finally turned about like lay figure in
the shop windows, and when she had
seen herself as she fancied others saw
her, she thought, "Hateful Aunt Eunice
was right, and Cousin Will was right,
i am whopper; and she ran to her room
and cried the whole afternoon. OF course,
she was foolish enough to wish she
might die, and after a while she gradu.
ally stopped crying, to speculate as to
whether anybody would be cory if she
did die, and to wonder if she would come
out thin, graceful little angel. Then
she went to sleep and awoke very hungry
and ate such a supper as only lean chill
dren who wish to be plump, and to hav,
good-natured dimples that come and &c
whenever they are called, ever ought tC
eat.
Not long after, Tab, who, like all peo
pie who allow themselves to get wrongly
proud and sensitive, was beginning tC
expect disagreeable things, passed round
the corner on her way to Ella Smiths.
Two naughty, idle boys stood in the
door of grocer's shop. AS she turned
up the street, one of them poked his ell
bow between his companions ribs, ex
claiming
"Look, Bill. My eyes amt she &
Juster?"
Tab bit her lips and forced back tn,
tears, and instead of going to Elias
rushed around the square, ostensibly tC
find her brother Bob, an enterprising boz
of five.
Bob was making mud pies with new
inhabitant of the Town.
That's my sister," said Bob, as Tai
approached.
"well, she's fat" said the strange boy
| with broad smile.
Eyes" answered Bob, composedly
"but mothers trying to thin her up"
To be told that she was a "buster, "anI
that her mother was endeavoring by som,
unknown process to thin her up" anC
to be told it all in the space of ten min
utes, was too much for our Tab; and whel
another street urchin, just suffering from
an acute attack of conundrums, lookeI
at her meditatively and asked h is siste
! why something on the street made hin
think of an elephant, she gave up entire
Ella for comfort or consolation.
1t was a sudden burst of confidence
and as Ella was two years older, Tab ha'
some hope of being helped in her misery
Now Ella, am sorry to say, was alway
reading very foolish stories, and whel
Tab had exhausted her sorrow she said:
Tabbie, dear, if you could only hav
fever and get well, you know, it woul
be Louely. My cousin Jane had intimGi
fever all summer, and was out of he
head, and it was ever so funny, and noy
ma says she's so interesting. But, then
you might die, you know"
st wouldn't much care" said silly Tai
"How do they get fevers and things?"
"Ohi by catching cold, / guess. M
says catching cold will do almost any
thing. I'm awful sorry for you, Table
Let me see, somebody said the other da
drinking vinegar would make one drea(
fully poor"
Theughtless, romantic Ella little kne,
what dangerous seeds her words wer
sowing; forthat very night Tab, bitterl
recalling the ridicule of the afternoon
began a raid on the vinegar jug, and eve
went so far as to expose herself to dar
gerous cold by sleeping in a stron
draught.
The natural result of an unwhoiesom
diet and temperature soon made itsel
manifest, and in few days Tab lay az
tually at the point of death, and at was
long, long time before she knew the dea
ones about her, and longer still before sh
could raise her head or realize what ha
happened during the weeks that SCENE