The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1875-02-25

prices for Melindy's guidance, one that
che both scolded and laughed over, but
all in vain.
II should like to know, Mr.. Griffin,
how ever you're to have molasses cake
once q week for your Sunday tea, and
sweetnin' in the pies, and sass TO your
griddles" (dear reader, she meant cakes
fried on q griddle. 1t is an abstruse
figure of speech, ON o pint of molasses
| q week."
Leave off the cake, then, Melindy,"
responded the stern guardian of cents.
"And pound of butter q week. My
goodness gracious! Your mother and me
used three"
"Well, you won't here. 1t is strange
enough how little it cost you two to live
in Peterstown, and what you spend
here"
"Land alive! We jest about lived on
garden sass, md eggs, md old hens, nd
salt pork. We raised the sass in the
garden ourselves, md the chickens picked
up liven' round the lots. We killed
off oil but two hens nd a rooster long in
the fall"
"Well, we'll, well" growled Mr.. Griffin.
We've got to live; but l won't have cx-
travagance."
"And won't starve, neither" stoutly
answered Melindy. II can get places
enough where III get good vittles and
good wages, Mr.. Griffin. But calculate
to stay with you for q spell, if you treat
me halfway decent; cause liked your
mother real well, and I come here pur.
pose. But -"
Mr. Griffin stopped the incipient threat.
Melindy had cowed him. He looked
with horror at the loss of time and
money that would follow on another
overturning of his household goods.
"Wel, well, MeIindy, you sha'n't
starve; only do your best to save what
you can. Living is awful in New York.
I'm not rich man, Melindy, but I de-
pend on you to stay. You promised for
q year, you know"
Mr.. Griffin told two lies in this brief
speech; one was that he was not rich !;
the other was about Melindy's promise.
He had said: II expect you to stay with
me ono year, on trial" and, being busted
about some imminent matter, Melindy
made no answer. "Silence gives con-
sent, must be Mr.. Griffin's excuse for
this lie.
So Melindy stayed and economical
and grew thin but happy; for after the
five o'clock dinner was done her en-
ployer retired to the small parlor and
studied the newspaper, made his plans
for the next days campaign, summed up
his gains and losses, gave that which he
called his soul to the utter contemplation
OF stocks and bonds, lowered like a very
busy and anxious bee over the respective
morning glory flowers of Harlem, Erie,
Pacific, New York Central, Airline, and
so on, dd nsuseum. betaking himself to
the deafness of an over-wrought brain
which took the place of sleep with him
about ten o'clock, leaving Melindy free
for prayer-meeting or for housekeeping
the days one rest for her-when some
times good book John Perkins lent
her, sometimes the weekly paper from
Peterstown, not unfrequently the pres
ence of John Perkins himself, come for
"a dish of talk, as Melindy said, satisfied
her honest, unexacting soul and kept her
content. For it cannot be denied that at
first Melindy was bitterly homesick
York." as place of residence, had lost
all the fair aspect distance lent it.
Broadway and its tabled glories were
two good miles away from Melindy. She
had neither time nor money to explore
its magnlficence; she had not even been
to Barnum's Museum. The ways of
housekeeping in city fiat were entirely
new to her and very hard. Her outdoors
was gone, and every country house
keeper knows what refreshing margin
outdoors" is. Melindy grew pale,
sometimes listless. She began to save
her money, to turn and twist her dresses,
old and plain now, into some vague at
tempt at fashion. She would have been
spoiled, washed out and pressed down
into drudge of the me1est routine but
for John Perkins.
And there was something in Melindy
that charmed John nightly. The
rough old proverb that every Jack has
his Jill expresses, like many another
proverb. a radical truth-that in every
human being there is something at
tractive to some other of its kind-some
grain of beauty that all eyes do not see,
some inward loveliness unveiled only for
the true worshiper, some awakening Tor
the right prince, some tiny spark from
the great God shining that called US all
out of dust and quickened us to living
souls. 1t was rare to John Perkins as an
orchis on the pavement would have been
to ind fresh nature like Melindy's, q
woman of nearly his own age who
had never seen a theater, did not
know the inside of a museum, was not
even aware what a valentine was till
John, one January evening, was telling
of his last years experience in sending
valentine to little crippled girl with
whose mother he boarded. 1t was new
and bright idea to Melindy. Her life
had been one long round of duty and
work, with none of life's foliations or
blossomings; but she had keen love of
the beautiful, and yet half wakened and
unfed. She loved to watch the scrap of
sky from the kitchen windows; she had
loved the whole wide arch in her coun-
try home; and here her strongest long
ing was for the springing flowers, the
cool, fresh leaves, the glittering brook
she had left behind. And as February
drew near, and the shops glowed and
glittered with gay note-paper and envel-
opes, costly valentines and cheap ones,
john TOOK her to meeting early one
night, and persuaded her to 60 by way Of
the street cars, in order to take . walk
down Broadway and be instructed into
the art and mystery ct valentines. l
don't know if she really went to meeting
at all. do not much care. There are
other divine influences at work in this
world besides the ordinary means of
grace, and am sure more than one husk-
fed citizen that night got a refreshment
to his soul quite unawares out of Melin.
dy's simple, bright face, glowing and
smiling with child's delight at the brill
liant treasures of the windows. If she
did not get good she gave it; and that is
more blessed, we know.
But who shall paint Mr.. Grifan's dis
gust the next morning when Melindy,
still absorbed in the novel and splendid
idea of valentines, while pouring out his
coffee at breakfast, stunned him with the
innocent inquiry,
"Did you ever have valentine, Mr..
Griffin" ...-' ~ p
The man glared at her. He laid down
his knife and fork, and forgot to take the
cup she held out to him.
AZ |. Ihave a valentine !. |"
he Numbered with explosive disgust.
I'll! Do you think there is big
enourh fool in New York tn send me