The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1878-09-12
OUR STORY TELLER.
MISS ASHBELL.
THarper's Weekly.I

[Harper's Weekly.
CONSERVATION was depicted on the
face of the family group assembled to
hear it, when finished reading the let
ter had Just received from aunt.
The group consisted of myself
brown, dark-eyed, tall, and eighteen;
Helen, not quite as brown, hazel-eyed,
almost as tall, and sixteen; Will,
browner, darker-eyed, head shorter,
and ten; and Carol, towering above us
all, blue-eyed, fair-haired, golden-mus-
tached, and twenty-one.
Aunt was, in fact, our great-aunt,
sister of our fathers mother, but the
only aunt, great or little, that we had
ever known. We had met her but two
or three times during our lives, as she
lived in far-away Illinois, and was too
much occupied with grains and herbs to
think of frequent visiting. and we
well, we were too poorly provided with
gold and silver to be able to take long
and expensive journeys. So what little
visiting there had been on aunt's side,
with one exception, and then 1 was the
visitor. 1t was when was about fifteen
this short and memorable visit took
place. Yielding to aunt's repeated
solicitations was her namesake-I
started from home with the intention of
spending the summer months on the
Illinois farm. / arrived there safely,
was welcomed heartily, and entertained
right royalty; but before a week had
passed away had grown so tired of the
seeming boundlessness of every thing,
and longed so for the little cottage and
Lilliputian garden where grew my three
rose-bushes L one red, one white, and
one a creamy yellow-that aunt, seeing
the longing in my eyes, said, "Child,
you must 90 back" and back ] came
before | was expected, but my dear
father and mother assured me not q
moment too soon.
We children had always heard twice
a year from aunt-once collectively al
Christmas, and once respectively on oul
birthdays-and each time the kindly
note which exhorted us to "be good, in.
dustrious, and seif-reliant," inclosed /
check larger or smaller, according tt
aunts gains of the preceding year
These notes we had been taught tt
answer with many wishes for the ole
lady's welfare, and thanks for her kind
htoDCoJ anu hORCo 1OI a oPCcuy IuCttluR
in short, in manner befitting the on1,
uieces and nephews of the Carmod,
family when replying to the friendl,
epistles of their only aunt, to say moth
ing of that aunt being the wealthies
and most influential member of tina
family.
A ew days before our father died h
called us together, and said, "My child
rem, it isn't at all likely to occur, but
ever aunt should ask favor of you
grant ii, at no matter what inconver
fence. She has been my best and deal
est friend"
Poor father! / suspect aunt had ofte
helped him out of pecuniary dificultie
He was an impractical, dreamy sort {
man, fond of birds and poetry an
flowers, and didn't succeed very well i
life. But, in spite of his dreaminet
and his want of worldly tact, and h
being so totally unlike her in moi
ways, he was great favorite of aunt
and when we telegraphed his seriou
Illness to her she left her vast posse,
sions without captain at a moment
notice, and fastened to his side, maxim
her appearance in bonnet that in
Inediately suggested the prairies, it ws
20 unlimited as to size and 80 bare {
ornament, and which grotesquely ol
truded itself into the remembrance I
that sad time forever after. F..
Since fathers death things hadn
been very bright with MS. In fact, the
hadn't been bright at all. ss.'
We found there was a good deal
money owing, and what remained of Il
two hundred dollars aunt gave us on Il
day of the funeral she bade us goo
bye" the instant the ceremonies we
over--sfter our very cheap mournir
was paid for, went to the butche
grocer, and shoemaker.
We we're all willing to do, and all di
whatever we could toward supportil
the household; but, deari deari ia
about weedsl never saw anythil
grow like bills.
Carol, who had an artistic turn
mind, struggled with that, and Hell
struggled with her books, hoping to /
come teacher in time, and little W
struggled with somebody else's bool
for he went into publishing house
errand-boy-poor fellowl
Besides the struggles, we had moth
on our minds. A few weeks after l.,
lost our father we lost our baby sists
A beautiful child she was, as bright
diamond and as fair as a pearl, al
the pride and darling of us all. Alrea,
sinking beneath the blow of her hi
bands death, when her little daught
died too my mothers heart was neal
broken. From being a sunshiny, {
ergetic, busy woman, she became listl,
and apathetic, sitting in her room d
after day gazing upon the pictures
the loved ones, or rocking back a
forth, her hands clasped before h
lookiog with dry eyes upon vacancy.
40 that she could be made to wee
that she could be reused from Il
dreadful speechless gloom into whi
she has fallenp' was our continl
prayer, for the terrible thought came
us often that we should lose our motf
IN much worse way than we had &
father and sister i that her brain wor
at last give way beneath its weight
heavy, despairing thoughts.
We'll, the exchequer was low enous
and mother had had one of her VI
bad spells; and lady customer