Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1874-10-22

Portable house on the Middlesex side of
the river Thames. and on the borders OF
Tyburnia 1t is early spring, about an
hour after sunset, and little girl some
seven years of age is being put TO bed.
She is evidently an invalid. Her pretty
little face is thin and pale; her hands
are almost transparent; she totters II she
attempts to walk alone. A lady and a
maid servant are present In the room
and render the necessary assistance. The
little girl has Just had bath, to judge
from plain indications; and now she is
being arrayed in the most dainty little
night.dress, and gently laid in the
most dainty little cot, with the
most dainty appliances. Otherwise the
room, and indeed the whole house, pre-
sents an unfinished appearance;
all the furniture seems to be
huddled together in out-of-the-way
places, and there is a notable absence of
carpets from the floors. Wherever you
turn you see basins or other utensils
filled with red liquid, as if there had
been a general nose bleeding throughout
the house. Moreover, there is pervad-
ing smell as of SCOT, from which the ex-
perienced would infer disinfectants. la
the little girls own room stands table,
on which are arranged, to please the eye
and smell and taste, wall-tlowers, violets,
primroses, daffodils, jonquils, grapes and
blood-oranges. Cheap photographs and
cheap picture books, which may serve to
amuse for the moment, and may be after
ward destroyed without compunction
on the score of extravaganza, are scat
tered about in all directions. When the
little girl has been made quite comforta-
BILE, the lady sits down by the side of the
cot and prepares to coax the invalid to
sleep.
"Am well now, dear mum?" asks the
invalid
Nearly well, DEAR" replies mamma
"We are going to the seaside tomorrow,
and then you will get quite strong and
well again"
"But if I'm not well, why can't ] go
on having Candace to sleep with me?"
asks the invalid.
"Candace has gone away, darling"
"Where to, mum?"
81 don't know, darling. She was taken
away by the man when he took the other
things"
"What will he do to her, mum? Cure
herr"
II hope so. dear"
Then why can't nave her BACK Wnen
she's cured, dear mum?"
Because, though she might not do
y0u any harm, dear, it's safer, on account
of other people, that we should get rid of
her altogether"
Poor Candace! hope she'll soon get
we'll" murmured the invalid sleepily.
"And hope" she added, "that she'll
not make any other little girl as i'll as
have been"
q sincerely hope not" said the lady
fervently, but in very low voice, so as
not to disturb the little invalid, who was
doing off.
Candace, queen of the Philippians, was
the name which the little invalid had
given to her favorite plaything, black
doll 1t had been included amongst a
number of articles which the man" had
carried off to be destroyed, or "cured,"
as the little invalid would have said.
The lady knew nothing of the man"
but that he had been authoritatively rec
commended as regular practitioner in
such matters. She had paid him well
and had strongly advised him to destroy
everything, or, at any rate, to bake,
smoke, steam, boil, and disinfect every.
thing thoroughly Unless he faithfully
would see if she could not find some
other means of radiance. And "the
man had replied: "All right, ma am
don't you go for to be afraid; know all
about it," But somehow his manner was
little contemptuous; his eye twinkled,
and his mouth staggered in by no
means reassuring fashion. And so he
had gone his way; and she did not know
even his name, which was Potter.
And so the lady and the little invalid
went to the seaside; and the latter grew
strong and plump and rosy again.
And Candace and 1.-The man" were
clean forgotten.
Meanwhile, Dot had been getting on
famously with ''dear Blackie." No
doubt Candace, queen of the Ethiopians,
had fallen considerably in the social
scale; but it is a question whether she
had ever before been treated with so
much Difference. Dot never did anything
without consulting "dear Blackie." She
obtained that sable personage's permits
sion before she even dared to put into
her mouth a single piece of bread and
butter or sip of milk and water. Nay,
the maternal authority itself had to be
backed up by the influence of the late
Queen Candace. On the third evening
of Dots possession of her treasure
"Now, Dot, it's time to go to bed that's
a good gal" Mrs. Potten said.
"S'all we do to bed, dear B'ackie?"
Dot asked and then she cried exultant-
ly: "No, mother; dear Backie says we
mustn't do to bed 'et but wait for da."
You'd better ask dear Blackie again, "
Mrs Potten replied, for she was kind,
patient and judicious but firm mother.
There was short pause; and then
Dot said, with knowing laugh: Dear
B'ackie says we'd better do to bed to-
night and sit up for da some other
night"
aAh! dear Blackie's good sort" Mrs.
Potten admitted as she proceeded to un-
dress her obedient little Dot
And Dot, ere she closed her eyes in
sleep, kissed her black doll and said !:
"Dood night, dear B'ackie. bod bless 'ou."
That same evening Mr.. Potten, whose
avocations nearly always took him away
from home all day and who consequently
seldom had an opportunity of observing
Dot and her ways, was treated by her to
a little comedy, which he as father
found more laughter.moving than any
thing ever performed by Liston, Wright