The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1872-12-12
4 HE STORY-TELLER.
L DROVE HIM AWAY.
IN, how / wish he was here :"

wish who was here, Miss Culvert p" in.
quired Suke Babbitt, the maid-of-all-work il
Squire Culvert's family, throwing an armful o.
wood into the capacious box beside the huge
cooking stove
My boy, Susan" replied the anxious mo.
ther, her eyes filling with tears. "Just two
years ago tomorrow, Thanks sgiving-day, he
walked out of his fathers house, and we have
never heard a word from him since. Just
thnk-two long drearv years, and not single
word!" And Mrs. Culvert covered her face
and wept unrestrainedy
Of course Susan knew well enough who her
mistress meantsnd only asked for the sake Of
having something to say.
Stephen Culvert had been a sort of an easy
going youngster, without any of the energy so
characteristic of the New England farmers
boy, and who of sudden, two years before,
had left home and gone no one knew whittier ;
1t surprised the neighborhood, who could moi
account for the strange freak in the never-do.
well.
When Mrs. Culvert left, Sarah broke oxt in
to one of her singing strains, making the old
home ring with her melody.
why, Suke, l never heard you sing be.
fore and Suke was startled from her kneeling
position before the oven by sweet voice at her
back.
"No, I'm not much of a singer" laughed
Suke. "But what in the world, Evy Benton,
sent you round here to the back-door this time
o day ?"
"Uh, l started to make some nice wine
jelly, Suke," replied the young lady, with the
air of one conscious of inveRtng an excuse.
land the sherry gave ont. Mother said"
and now Miss Eva's tones grew firmer, as the
truth began to reveal itself" that one of the
girls might just as well do the errand (; but l
wanted to come myself
Sorry there amt nobody to home" re-
piled Suke. " The girls have gone to the vii
lage to see about their dresses, and Miss Gull
vert has just gone out for walk"
knew Mrs. Culvert was out, and that the
girls were at the village, said Eva, boldly. II
came to see you, Suke, and no one else"
Eva Benton was the only daughter of the
wealthest landowner in C County, girl
whom up to date, money, hattery, and an i'm
proper home education had been unable to
spoil. AS she stood there before Suke, her
fne eyes dropping, her fair golden head bowed
with the better sense of something that Suke
knew was about to find vent in words, she was
indeed lovely picture; and Suke's sigh, as
she carefully scrutinized it, had as much of ap-
probation as sorrow in it.
TO see me ?" repeated Suke. claw sakes,
II I'd a knowed / was agoining to have a
caller, I'd a tried to have things in better
shape, but there's allus good deal to do the
day before Thanksgiving, Evy."
''Oh, Suke, that is Just what wanted to
talk to you about. If ! could only 60 to sleep
and not wake up till next day after tomorrow
i should be SO glad. 1t don't seem to me that
can live through another Thanksgiving day.
Oh, you don't know how lonesome and tired
am. Mother won't hear a word and / don't
think could say much to her if she would
Father is always busy over mortgages and
stone-wals and cattle and, Suke, this morn
ing grew so miserable that l thought, if
didn'L tell somebody what was troubling me,
that I should go crazy"
"It's about Stephen, suppose ?" remarked
Suke, without looking at her companion, ap-
parently very much occupied with the separa-
tion of the whites and yolks of some extremely
troublesome eggs.
"Oh, Suks, how did You know?" and the
color came back to the pale cheeks. "Who
could have told you? You haven't heard any
thing from"
"Him-no," interrupted Suke, conscious
that Evy would not hold cut much longer un-
less teRderly dealt with. ''We amt none of
us heard a word, good or bad and my motto
always has been, Miss Evy, no news is good
news, and l believe we shall hear something
course it's very hard for folks to understand
why young man should cut sticks, and leave
a good home, where there was nothing to be
done but take comfort and lay back on the
thought that he'd have snug little fortune after
a while"
'That was Just it," put in Eva. "Suke, ]
know why Stephen Calvert Left his home!"
$50 allus supposed" answered Suke, dry
ly.
81 sent him, Soke, continued Eva.
Just where you was right, responded Suke,
with heartiness that made her companions
head swim.
''What makes you think was right ?" in
qured Eva, her beautiful eyes riveted on Suke's
face. "Oh, you can't begin TO know how
miserable have been ever since about this. l
have tried hundred times to tell Mrs. Culvert
the whole story, bat she was always SO fearfully
miserable that the words some way would be
driven back into my throat and there they
would stick
II don't much wonder" said Suke, sympa-
thetically. "She's been uncommon hard to get
along with in this trouble. Still, l think, Eva,
if the words you fixed upon wouldn't come,
you ought TO a tried some others; and if they
failed you, you should a done something else
You might a writ, Evy!"
81 tried that, Suke, and twas no use"
"Wa'al, now, s'pose we let the past take
care of itself, and see what the present has
got to say" broke in Snke again. "Here
comes Miss Calvert now. Brace up to it like
a good girl, and tell her the whole story. Put
yourself outside of your story don't think any
thing about what she will think of you, bu.
how much comfort you can give her by telling
her how her boy came to leave his home"
Suke was an uncompromising philosopher.
She might have assured tho poor trembling
girl Of kind reception, but she meant she
should perform this action simply because it
was her dHty.
"Keep a stiff upper lip, Evy," she con-
tinued, "beeause i. is right Here she comes
now and poor Evy, who had been meditatng
some means of escape, stood now face TO face
with the woman whums above all others, she
dreaded 10 meet.
''Why, Eva, how do you do, dearS" and the
lady voice had strange something in it that
had bean missed for N lono lono TINA HT