The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1877-11-28


door. Deacon Tibbs sprang ont, Offered
his hand to Mr.. Fuirwcather, and then
catching sight Of light-bluc dress, he
called out :
"Hcre, Mclindy, come here and take
care of the parson, while unhitch Paul
NY ,lartcr, Mr.. Fairwcathcr
At the same time that Mr. Fairwcathe1
is shaking the small red hand in his thin
white one, I will introduce Miss Melinda
Tibhs to my readers.
She is a fair specimen of smart New
England girl. She las not naturally s
large frame, but ns she has never beer
pinchcd or stunted. she has grown to ;
full size Her face is plump without
being fat, her cheeks rosy, and her eyes
bright and full of mischief. She seem!
pcrsoniication of good nature, as the
Young minister thought her, though had
he peeped into the kitchen window that
morning, as she sat by the little cherry
table pnring apples, he would have
known that even her brightness was
eclipsed by clouds. There seemed to me
just one quality lacking in her, and that
not unimportant-depth. Her rosy lips
were lightly pressed together, her brown
eyes roved carelessly from thing tc
thing; she roamed from one subject tc
another, never stopping to think on any
one of them. Evidently, if Miss
Melinda had any strength of mind OF
character, she, as well as others, had yet
to find it ont.
1t was very quiet evening the young
minister spent, and feeling tired and EN-,
barrasscd he went early to bed, to gain
what rest he could for the next days
duties. After he had closed his door he
was attracted by Melinda's voice, and
unwillingly he was made q confdant in
what seemed then to be her greatest
trial.
cts too bad, pa, but ma wouldn't
get anything but baked beans and john
ny-cake for breakfast, and | don t sup
pose Mr.. Fairweather ever heard OF
baked beans before"
Mrs. Tibb's voice chimed in: cts
time he did, then, Melinda; but agree
with you, l don't b'lieve he ever did
hear OF 'em before most like he's been
brought up on cake and custard."
"Well, don't know, Jenny" said
Deacon Tibbs, "about the cake and GUS
tmd, but it's nothing agen him if he is
not DER strong"
He isn't strong," broke in Melinda.
Il could beat him easy in good race,
and that's just the reason why say he
shouldn't be made to eat baked beans"
"Just the reason why he should, Me-
linda," rejoined Mrs. Tibbs.
"Well, that's kind" soliloqnized Mr..
Fairwcathcr. "I'm glad to know what
I'm going to have for breakfast, and as
have heard Of baked beans, III do my
best to prepare for them
But that proved hard work, for if there
was one article of diet he detested more
than another, it was baked beans. And
the amount he ate of this New England
dish was evidently to be the standard by
which his abilities rs n man and q preach
er were to be judged.
Mr.. Fairweathcr awokc in the morn
ing with weight of scarcely defined
trouble upon him, which for moment
he could not assign to any event past or
to come. Bat when his breakfast, con-
sisting entirely of baked beans, flashed
! into his head-mctaphor;cally speaking
he laughed and said to himself:
"Thc johnny,cake will be comfort
THAT'S one good thing"
As he entered the diningroom, he
glanced toward the large black pot in
front of Deacon Tibbs, but could not
see anything beyond generous slice Of
pork nicely Drowned. The beans were
evidently baked by good cook, q little
moist to snit my taste, | should judge
from Mr.. Fairwcathcr's description, but
not beyond the point to which many
good housckeepcrs aim to bring them.
The Young minister did his best, but
he found his second piece of johnny
cakc-for he took mouthful OF this
with every monthful Of beans s-rapilly
disappearing, while the generous supply
of beans on his plate was not pcrrcptibly
diminished. The worst of it WAS that
Mrs. Tibbs' eyes were from time to time
cast scrutiuzingly on his plate. Twice
he helped himself again to vinegar and
pepper, but after all he felt that, in the
eyes of the dcacDn's worthy wife, he had
made failure. For, when he rose from
the table, there wrrc some beans left On
his plate.
1t WAS more than he conld ask that a
good sermon should atone for his two
misfortuncs; of course the Tibbs family
would decide that minister who
couldn't eat baked beans, and knew a
good horse when he saw him, must be a
dandytied jockey, and not at all the min
lister for Merton.
How he got through the rest of the
day he could not tell. He tried to preach
his best, but at night he lay down with
the feeling that some way or other the
whole day hal been Il failure.
1t was IL surprise to him when he re.
ceived unanimous call to the Central
church Mt Merton. But after he had
thoroughly looked at all sides of the
questions, he decided that lie might be
better fitted for that place than any other.
SO he accepted the call, was installed,
and, firstly, having no wife TO help oc-
cupy the parsonage; secondly, there
being no parsonage, he came to board ut
my house.
After having been in our family a
short time, as we ate on the piazza
one evening, he said to me, rather
abruptly:
johnson, | wish, if it wouldn't
trouble your wife too much, you would
once and while give me baked beans. "
"No trouble" l answered, "for we
always have them every week. Are you
fond Of thcm?'
"No," said he, moarnfully, | can't
eat them. Johnson, but | mean to learn
how to-" And then the whole story OF
his breakfast at Deacon Tibbs' came
out.
"Pleasc don't think me so foolish, "
said or minister, {" as to imagine that |
must eat Just what my people dictate,
and like all their iavnritc dishes. don t
feel that way ut all, but these baked
beans seem IN indispensable dish i'll
Merton households, and Mrs. Tibbs is
not the only one who would attribute to
daintincss what is really due to taste.
"And how about the race with Miss
Melinda ~ l asked laughing.
Mr.. Fairwrathcr shook his head.
"I'll learn to eat the beans first, john
son, and then who knows what / may be
able to do
"Evcn to driving the colt?'
"Don't speak of the colt, Johnson.
It makes me feel insultcd some way to
see that beautiful animal common farm
drudge. And, yet, he added, thought
fully, 81 don't know but good. honest