Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1872-02-02

eyes and her cheeks like two fresh peach
cs she was kind o. pleasant to look at, and
the moro the doctor looked at her the bet
ter ne liked her, and so things seemed to be
gOin' on quiet and comfortable eff 1t hadn't
been that Mis- Pipperidge and Mis- Doakin
Blodgett, and Mis- Sawin got their heads
together talkin' about things.
"Poor man. says Mis- Pipperidge, what
can that child bc's got there do toward TAX
ing the care of all that place? 1t takes
mature woman, she says, to tread in Mis-
| Carryls shoes.
"'That it does said Mis- Blodgett, ard
when things once gets to runnin' down
hill there aint no stoppin' on EN- says
she.
"Then Miss Sawin, she took it up. eye
| see Mis- Sawin used TO go out dress maxim,
and was sort o. jealous, cause folks sot
more by Huldy than they did by her,
WELL" says she, 'Huldy Peters is well
enough at her trade I never denied that,
though do say never did believe in her
way Of making button holes, and / must
say, if twas the dearest friend l had, that
! thought Huldy, tryin' TO fit Mis- Kit
| tridgc's plumb-colorcd silk was a clear
| piece of presumption-the silk was iist
spilled, so 'twarn't tit to come into the
meetin house. | must say that Huldy's a
| gal that's always too venturespme about
takin' 'sponsibilities she don't know moth
in about
"'Of course she don't said Mis- Deakin
Blodgett what does she know about all
the lookin' and seein' to that there ought to
be in guiding the minis cr's house? HUI
dy's well meann' and she's good at her
work, and good in the singers seat, but
but Lordy maSsy, 'she haint got no expert
ence. Parson Carryl ought TO have an ex-
| perenced woman to keep house for him.
There's the spring house cleanin', and the
fall house ceanin' to be seen to, and the
things to be put away from the moths, and
then the Gettin ready tor the association
and all the minister's meetin's and the
maxim the soap and the candles, and set
tin the hens and turkeys, watchn' the
calves and seein' after the hired men and
the garden-and there that are blessed man
iist sets there at home as serene, and has
nobody round but that gal, and don't
even know how things must be runnn' to
waster
"Wal, the upshot ont was they fused
and fuzzled and wuzzled till they'd drink
ed up all the tea in the teapot, and then
they went down and called on the parson
and wuzzed him all up talkin' about this,
that and tother that wanted lookin' 10, and
that it was no way TO leave everything to a
young chit like Huldy, and be ought
TO he lOOkin' about for an experienced wo-
man. The parson, he thanked 'cm kindly
and said he believed their motives was
good, but he didn't go no further He
didn't ask Mis- Pipperidgo to come and
stay there and help him, nor nothin' o. that
kind, but he said he'd attend to matters
himseli-the fact was the parson had got
such likin for havin' Huldy round that
he couldn't think o such Il thing as swap
pin her of or the widder Pipperidge.
"But he thought to himself, Huldy is a
good girl; and / oughtn't to be leavin
everything TO her-it's too hard on her.
ought TO be instructin and gudin and
helpin' of her, cause 'tant everybody
could be expected to know and do what
Mis- Carryl did, and so at il he went, and,
Lordy massy, didn't Huldy hev a time
|
of his study and want to tend round and
see to things? Huldy, you see, thought
| all the world of the minister, and she was
most afraid to laugh, but she told me she
couldn't for the life of her, help it when
his back was turned, for be wuzzled things
up in the most singular manner, but HUI
dy, she'd just say, yes, sir and get him
off into his study and go on her own way.
"1Iuldy,' said the minister one day,
you aint experienced outdoors, and when
you want to know anything you mus come
to me-.
"'Yes, sir says Huldy.
"'Now, IIuIdy,' says the parson, you
must be sure TO save the turkey eggs so that
we can have a lot of turkeys for Thanks
giving
"'Yes sir says Huldy, and she opened
tie pantry door and showed him nice
dislnu she'd been savin' up. Wal, the
very next day the parsons hen turkey was
found killed up to old Jim Scroggss barn
folks said Scroggs killed it, though
Scroggs stood to it he didn't-at any rate
the Scrogges they made meal ont, and
Huldy she felt bad about it, cause she'd
set her heart on raisin' the turkeys-and
says she, 'Oh, dear, | don't know what |
shall do, was just ready to set her"
"'Do, Huldy?" says the parson, why
there's the other turkey ont there by the
door, and a fne bird, too, he is
"Sure enough, there was the old Tom
turkey strutlin' and slidin' and quit
term and 1outin' his tail feathers in the
sun, like lively young widower, already
to begin life over again.
"But,' says Huldy, you know he can't
set on eggs
"Ho can't I'd like 20 know why says
the parson-'he shall set on the eggs, ard
hatch 'em too"
"Oh, DOCTOR says Huldy, all in trem-
bic, cause you know she didn't want to
contradict the minister, and she was afraid
she should laugh-'I never heard that a
Tom turkey would set on eggs.
"'Whf they ought to- said the parson
getting quite earnest; "what else are they
good for? You just bring out the eggs
now, aud put 'em in the nest, and I'll make
him set on 'em.'
$50 Huldy, she thought there wern't nc
no way to convince him but to let him try
so she took the eggs and fixed 'em all nice
in the nest, and then she came back and
found old Tom sklrmishn' with the par
son pretty lively, tell ye. Ye see olG
Tom, he didn't take the idee at all, and he
Topped and gobbed and fit the parson
and the parsons wig got round so that hi'
cue stuck straight out over his ear, but he'C
got his blood up. Ye see, the old doctor