The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1873-08-12


sleepin' ?'' ~
eyes she is, rather"
"There is nothin' so good for narvous-
ness as hop tea. Give her some every
night, the last thing before she goes to
bed, and make her a hop pillow. guess
if you follow her up thoroughly, you'll
bring her out all right. There's nothin'
like being thorough" said Aunt Deb
bic, with the emphatic air of long exper-
ience.
After much further advice Mrs. Whita-
ker set out for home, burning with zeal
to "follow up'' Susan with all Aunt Deb
bie's prescriptions. What the conse-
quences would have been to poor Susan
one shudders to think. Fortunately, fate
kindly interposed in her behalf.
A big rut at the foot of the hill-over
goes the wagon on top of Mrs Whitaker
and Deacon Foskett and his hired man
ran down the hill to find Mrs. Whitaker
with one leg broken, a sprained shoulder,
and ANY amount of bruises and wrench
ings.
What was to become of the Whitakers,
now that the main spoke of the domestic
wheel was useless? They hire girl, of
course, suggests the intelligent reader.
But hiring girl in Tully was no such
trifling matter. M
Mr.. Whitaker devoted week to driv-
ing over the hills in different directions in
pursuit Of various myths of possible girls
that vanished into thin air on closer in
spection.
81 declare" said Mr.. Whitaker to
Susan as he returned, girlless and dis
pirited, 81 believe if wanted wife l
could get six easier than l can one girl"
Don't try any more, father" said Su-
san. ~We can get along somehow. Ned
and can do the work" afn
That's So" said Ned. "Well make a
bully team" u E,ai au-
But now feeble wall was heard from
the bedroom where poor Mrs. Whitaker
lay, fevered and helpless on her restless
couch. -r .a
"You must get a girl, father" she re-
monstrated, "Susan can't do the work.
Ii will kill her. She isn't strong enough
and, besides she don't know how. Oh,
dear, if l could only get up and take hold
myself l can't be reconciled to lying here
when there's so much to dop'
To soothe his wife, MIR. Whitaker prom
ised to try once more, and finally one
night drove into the yard in triumph,
seated on small, hair trunk, the owner
Of the trunk, an actual "girl' in propria
persona, band-box in hand, sitting in state
on the seat behind HIM. 9a
The new girls rame was Luna. She
was tall and bony, wore her hair cut short
in the neck, and rejoiced ina bass voice
that was perpetual surprise in the
family. Luna soon developed ways that
if not dark" were decidedly uncomforta-
BILE. Under her administration, the appe-
tites Of the Whitakers dwindled alarming
ly. Susan who saw the most of Luna's
cookery, lived entirely ON crackers.
When Mrs. Whitaker heard that Luna
prepared the potatoes for dinner in the
wash-hand basin, and put the best tea
knives soaking in the bottom of the pan
while she did the other dishes, tea-knives
whose glossy handles were Mrs. Whita-
ker's pride, her Indignation knew no
bounds. au ~ ha s uaftla
81 won't have her in the house another
minute ! can't sleep till she is out of it !
Do get her out of the house before she
spoils everything in it, and poisons us allp'
Luna went. Susan cleaned up the house,
and prayed, whatever calamity might be
in store for them, they might at least be
spared another girl. Susan was much
better now. Her mothers illness had
taken her out Of herself, and obliged her
housework with viii, equally pleased
and surprised to find herself really good
for something. Ned helped her all he
could, and novel were some of the exper-
iments of what Ned called the "new
girls" neaA M
One day Ned astonished Sue with bona
.fde compliment ii r
I "You're growing handsome, sue,"
/ said he. s ll f..s.f sf
She thought Ned was making fun of
her, thereby, for once, doing him an in
justice. For there is no surer cosmetic
and beautiiier than housework, when not
carried to excess. No amount of dumb
bells, fiesh-brushes, constitution" walks
and drives gives the energy, the brisk cir
culation, the cheerful tone TO body and
mind that comes from the vigorous, var