Port Royal standard and commercial. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1874-1876, 1875-12-16
SWEET, REsTFUL HOME.

SWEET, REsTFUL HOME.
A" Cotter's Saturday Night" In Danbury
,9sIt is Saturday night-the dear close oi
q tossing, struggling, restless week,
Tomorrow is the Sabbath-when al
labor and care are held In abeyance.
Saturday night stands like rock before
the day of rest, and says to toll and
worry: ssThus far shalt thou come, and
no further" Blessed Saturday night.
The wearied husband and father ap
proaches his home. He looks ahead
and sees the light streaming in cheerful
radiance from the windows, and wonders
if that boy has got in the kindings.
He steps mp ON the stoop and opens the
door. His faithful wife meets him al
the entrance and greets him with
"Why on earth don't you clean your
feet, and not lug the house full Of mud
Don't you know I've been scrubbing all
sday9's, And thus he steps into the
bosom of his family, grateful for the
mercies he has received, and thankful
that he has home to come to when the
worry and care and toll of the week are
done. Yes, he is home now, and has set
his dinner pail on one chair and laid his
hat and coat on another, and with his
eyes full of soap from the wash is shout
ing impetuously for the towel. Saturday
night In the household What beau
tiful sight !, The bright light, the cheer
ful figured carpet, the radiant stove, the
neatly laid table, with the stean,ing tea
zpot, the pictures on the walls, the spot
less curtains, the purring cat and the
bright-eyed children rubbing the plates
with their fingers and looking hungrily
Sat the canned cherries. Even the
wearied wife is visibly affected, and, as
she steps to closet with his and coat,
she unconsciously observes to her hus-
band: - = ,
"Will you never learn to hang your
things upi or do you think I've got
nothing else to do but to chase after you
all the while you are in the house z"
He makes no reply, but IS he drops
into his seat at the table, with sigh Of
relief, he says
whats the matter with that internal
lamp2 Is the oil all out, or amt the
chimney been cleaneda It don't give
no more light than frebug."
"Turn it up, then," she retorts:
cit was right enough when I put it on
the table, but I suppose the children
have been tooling with it. They never
can keep their hands out of mischief for
an nstant.r EstEX ~ ii =
"Tl fool 'em, sae growls, eff they
don't keep their fingers ofn things"
After this sallya silence reigns, broken
only by subdued rustic of plates and
cutlery. Then comes q whisper from
one of the youths, which is promptly
met IN a loud.ke by theEother
ese" Not another nouthful, tell you.
You have had one dish already, and
that's enough. I amt going to be up
all night wrastling around with you,
young woman; and the quicker you
straighten that face the better it'll be
for you"
The offender looks with abashed in
quiry into the faces of her brothers and
sisters, and gradually steals glance
into the face of her father but finding
no sympathy there, falls to making SUR
reptitious grimaces at the mother, to
the relief of herself and the intense edi-
fication of the other children. ..-..-
The tea is finally over, that delightful
Saturday nights meal, and as the ap-
peased father stretches back In his chair,
and looks dreamily at the fame dancing
in the stove, he says to his frstborn:
Is them kindlings cut, young mana"
OF course they have not been, and the
youth replies ST.,
"Tm going right out to do it now"
and steps about lively for his hat.
"You'd better and if I come home
again and find them kindlings not cut, 1
won't leave whole bone in your body.
Do you hear met"
eyes, pa"
"Wel, then, start your boots"
They are started, and the relieved
father comes back with his eyes to the
glad fame, and watches it abstractedly,
while his thoughts are busy with the
bright anticipations of the coming day
of rest.
saint you going down street, or are
yoC going to set there all night 2" asks
his wife. He turns around and looks at
her. It's a sort of mechanical move
ment without any apparent expression.
"There's got to be something got for
dinner to morrow, and I want yon to go
to Adams an see if my hat is done, an
Thomas must have pair of shoes, an
there amt bit of blacking in the
house." resumes the mother. "You
can tell Burroughs that that last butter
he sent up amt fit for hog to eat. an
il he amt got anything better than that
we don't want it. You'd better get
small piece of pork while you are down,
an if you see Parks ask him when he's
coming here to fix that wall. He has
got the plaster of, an there it stands,
an there's no use of trying to put the
room to rights until the wall is fixed. I
don't see what the old fool is thinking of
to leave room like that"