St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1878-12-20
Tramp, Vag," and Mine Enemy.
BY MARY E. C. wYETH.

when you set your sponge who it may
be that is to eat your bread. Now, last
Thanksgiving, no mortal ever could
have imagined that things would take
the turn they did when our folks set out
to have family gathering at our house.
You see, grandpa always would insist
upon il that as long as the old home
) stead stood, and the grandparents lived
and had their home i'll it, that it was the
proper thing for all the children and
their families to keep the day together,
and feast around the old fireside Oh
every Thanksgiving day. OF course it
was pleasant, and | won't say but what
we all enjoyed the custom, but folks
can't always be of the same mind; and
last fall our folks felt us if we'd like
better to have the family gathering at
our house. You know we'd built on the
new wing, and furnished considerably,
and things were all in fresh tim. So
: Nathan told grandpa away along in Oc-
tober. Grandpa never opposed word
to the contrary, more than to smile and
say in his sober fashion:
''You know what the homestead Gus
tom is, son Nathan" And Nathan an
swered: ''Yes, father, but customs can
be changed, you know and we'd like
to vary this one for this once, and to
have you and mother and all the rela-
tives under my roof OH the coming
Thanksgiving day"
And there it ended, and we supposed
it was a settled thing, and gave it out so
to all the kinsfolks. We prepared for the
: entertainment of thirty one people, help
and all. | think we made a good half
barrel of prime mince- meat. ''While
D we are at it, said Mandy, ''do let's put
down enough to last till pie-plant comes
round" And guess we did, 1t was
i. just SO about everything else. The week
before Thanksgiving, such il cooking bee
as we did hold in our big kitchen,
never want to take Il hand in again, un
less Pm surer than | ever expect to be,
that things are going to come out as
i they're desi igned to. We roasted two
pigs, and we dressed three turkeys, and
: a dozen chickens, and baked no end of
pies, and by the time Wednesday night
5 came, and the weekly prayer meeting,
tagged out enough were we, for as you
may suppose, the main part of all the
t labor came on Mandy and me. But we
chirked ourselves up and went to the
> meeting Ills usual and there, To-, and
y. behold, was Amos Scranton, grandpa's
hired man. After meeting he told us
= grandpa'd sent him in to say that he
l. expected all the children and kinsfolks
! according to custom to dine at the old
homestead tomorrow.
Well, we held council right on the
spot. Nathan had Il mind to be veXed
n at his father, and to stand out for his
. own way, but la there wasn't one OF
all our tribe of dutiful relations who
had the mind to hold out against the
. old custom and grandpa's wishes, and
so with one accord they concluded that
they'd better not disappoint grandpa.
Well there we were And that stock of
provisions on hand. Mandy and l, lis
said, had had the most part of the
bother, and of course were most put
about, as you may say. For my part, |
was vexed, and didn't hesitate to say
50. | rather think l went to bed that
, night feeling in my bones that | would
wake up with desperate headache
next morning. | know | was firmly
grounded in the determination not to go
out of my own house on Thanksgiving
day, let what would come to pass. And
| woke up with the headache, us | in
tended to dO-and didn't go to meet
ing, nor to grandpa's. Mandy went TO
meeting, but she said she shouldn't 90
off to any dinner-party and leave me
alone i'll the house. Fve raised Mandy
from baby, you know, and she's Il
faithful servant us any ybody need to ask.
So they all went off to meeting, and
thence five miles out in the country to
grandpa's.
After they were fairly off and the
house tidied, L sat down by Il cheerful
wood fire in the small sitting-room, and
tried to compose my mind by reading
Baxter's Holy War. think must have
succeeded to the extent of falling asleep,
for just about twenty minutes before
noon | started up hearing Towser give
loud, sharp bark-he always growls
and grOwls before barking, so us | had
not heard him growl, | knew | must
have dropped asleep-and | started to
my feet and looked toward the porch
window, and there l beheld the most
dilapidated specimen of mankind that
ever my eyes had seen. Blind of one
eye, and barely able to see out of the
other, ragged aud dirty, with the wild
est mop of hair bristling out in all di.
rections over his head, the poor creature
stood there, holding his ridiculous piece
of a hat in his hand, and made ME az
respectful bow as ever had from any
man.
"Well 2" said, so curtly that have
S to laugh now to think what contrast
was my manner t. that of the pOOr-look
ing object before me-and l am afraid
had very tOrbidding countenance-;
mercy it was the man could only hal
see.
"Well," ,"-he responded with a tOnt
that said us plain as words, you shall sool
hear about this case, at least. "Fm only
a tramp, ma'am, and Il hungry one. Bu
Pm no beggar. Not yet. L will work. |
7 you can spare me a piece of cast-Ot
clothing, or bite to eat, l will gladl!
pay you in any work you may have fO
me to do. rve only the rags have ol
me, and I've neither home nor friends.
questioned him pretty sharply, ant
- satisfied myself of one thing at least
and that was that the man was poor
"Whensoever ye will ye may do then
good" were the good Lords words tina
came into my mind, and L concluded
'd do him what good | could, in tn
way of victuals and clothes, and so
was just turning over in my min'
ry whether or no l couldn't rig him out il
some of NatlIan's half worn things, whel
Mandy come stepping along as brisk a
bee from meeting.
s, $50 you've got Thanksgiving CUES
for the feast after ALL" says she, glanc
ing up at the poor fellow, still standing
in the porch, for / hadn't asked him in
The truth of it was, he was so unkemp
and dirty. But at that a bright though
struck me, and l made up my mind t