Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1874-03-06
SCANDAL.

mere is game Wnlcn young peO
pie play on winter evenings called
scandal. Everybody is familiar
with it. One of them whispers 4
secret into the ear of her ncighbor
who straighlway repeats 1t privately
to another, and so on till it has
made the tour of the circle. The
last report is often found, on com.
pairing notes, to bear not even q
family resemblance to the first.
have sometimes thought that the
story of Rebecca Gerrish was no,
unlike this interesting game of scan
dal.
"You see, had it in my lap, jus,
where you had tossed it," said Mrs
Random, speaking to her brother
81 was at work with Rebecca Ger.
rish on my gold-colored silk was
making sleeve-for, you know.
when have a dressmaker, l am al.
ways economical of the time, and do
all the easy parts Of the garment
myself, though Pm not used to work:
when poor Random was living
never put a stitch into anything
wore, so it takes me 4 great while
to do n little-wealth is 4 poor ap.
premiership for dependcnce-and
l was very careful and interested
over my sleeve, and didn't take up
the bill Immediately to put it into
my pocket, as l intended; and when
l heard Tommy fall head-frst down
the stairs, of course l forgot that
there was such thing as fifty dol
lar bill in creation, and l jumped
up, and away went my work, thin
bic, scissors, spool, and what not,
broadcast. And l had enough to
do, l promise you, for the next hour
and a half to put pank bills out Of
the head of speculator-what with
applying buttered brown paper to
Tommy's bruises, and soothing and
keeping him from falling to sleep,
which, you know, is dangerous at
ter children get blow; and then
the second girl wanted to go out to
a photographers, in order to send
a reflection of herself to Ireland;
and Mrs. Tritle called to ask about
that girl we discharged last month
for slapping Tommy, and the white
washer came in the thick of it, and
the new Swede dropping the pud-
ding she was carrying to the oven,
and was obliged to make another
for she doesn't know a cup from
milk-pan in English; and so when
l got back to the sewing-room Re-
becca had picked up my sewing
and finished it, and the gown looked
as If it was woven out of sunbeams,
and the bill never crossed my mind
till she'd put on her bonnet. 'Oh,'
said l then, wait a minute. l want
to settle with you for the work
you've done the last three months
You see, l had reckoned it up, aud
the fifty dollars would just cover it,
for Rcbccca's got conscience-at
least l used to think SO, and l put
my hand into my pocket, and it all
came over me in a flash. Dear,
dear! said |. 4 must have dropped
it when ran out to Tommy. How
l hate to look for anything on car
pet, and mistake every figure and
"'What is it?'" said she, as in
nocent as my canary.
"It's the fifty dollar bill l was
going to pay you,' l answered. 1T
was in my lap when l heard Tom
my fall. You didn't see anything
Of it when you picked up the sleeve?"
"'No,' said she; but of course it
isn't far off, And then we got down
on our hands and knees, and bur-
rowed into every hole and corner.
l don't think there's square inch
of that floor l havn't been over; and
must say that if it's as disagreea-
bic to her to look after anything on