Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1878-06-21
OTER THE FENCE.

OVER THE FENCE.
1t was shabby old mansion in a shabby
old thoroughfare, which had been fashionn-
BILE street in its day, but was any thing else
now. Grocery shops and junk shops had in
vaded it. The square, white painted, green
| blinded dwellings, with rallied roofs and pias-
! tered front-doorS, through which decorous
worthless in ruflles and bob-wigs had once
| gone in and out, shorn Of their prestige now.
and divested Of shining knobs and knock
ers, were turned into tenement houses of the
| poorer sort. Only the magnificent double
row of elms, which had been the glory of the
| street in its prime, remained intact to deck its
| decadence. The towering splendor of their
| green masses rustled in the salt air now as
then, but a mounfulness mingled with the
rustic. Perhaps-who knows the elms were
sorry for the deserted old street 1t is not
easy always to fathom what lies at the heart
| of things, trees or men.
The shabby old mansion had belonged to
General Wesson, n Revolutionary hero. less
conspicuous in history than in the affections
| of his townsfolk, who to do him honor had
| called the street by his name-Wesson street
His residence, once the finest in the neghbor-
hood, had still this advantage over its dilapi-
| dated compeers, that it retained its old-tme
| garden, large square inclosure laid out in
formal box-edged beds and walks. This gar
den had the odd appearance of having sunk
| slightly during some conyulsion of nature, for
its surface lay some five feet below the level
of the street which had been filled in" 1t
was walled on three sides. Peeping over the
low fence which topped the wall passer-by
| could look down into the very heart of goose
berry bushes and peony clumps. The wall
itself was tangle of honeysuckle, ivy. and
brier roses, and altogether the garden had Il
sweetness still, though its paths had run to
weeds and lines of wet linen Tapped over
the rose circle which had been the pride of
Madame Wesson's heart almost Il hundred
years ago.
So long past, SO forgotten, were the tradi-
tional dignities of the old house, so poor and
decayed was its present seeming. that people
| experienced a shock of surprise almost ill.,
| ignation-whep told that the Moruyian So
ciety had bought the property for Il chapel
and parsonage. What that old thing ="
they cried. But the thrifty Momyians went
their way without minding much what people
said. They had little money to expend, and
IA righteous horror of debt. The old place
was cheap; they could make it do, they
thought. So n little army of work-people de
| ployed upon the premises, and presently all
was changed. The ground-hoor, divested of
partitions, beanie II large plain meeting room.
| The second floor was reserved for the pastors
dwelling. There was much scrubbing and
whitewashing, new paint and plaster; blinds
Were rehung, n tottering chimney rebrcked,
the fences mended Last of all arrived a
| cart-lOad of benches, and another of furniture
and Pastor LHbke and his family. The neigh
bors, watching, saw them go in first the
| grave old pastor leading little boy, then a
long file Of girls of graduated heights, all
| clad in black, worn, it was whispered in men,
DRY of their mother, who had died n few
months before. The beds, chairs and tables
seemed scanty plenishing for so many, and
lookers-on wondered how they managed but
nobody found out, for the Lubkes were quiet
and reserved, saying little or nothing of their
affairs, but simply taking things as they were,
and settling into their new home without dis.
cussion or words
All these things to watch did seriously in
cline MIR. Erasmus Stockholm young man
| who, for his misfortune, had little to do Just
| then except look out of window. His lodg-
| ing next door commanded view of the long
| south side of the "Wesson house" rs the
neighbors still called it, and of the whole gar
den, and having, rs / said, little to do except
| look out of window, while waiting the report
| of the Patent-office on his improved air
brake" he naturally looked out a great deal.
Idleness is the root of curiosity as well as of
mischief. 1t is astonishing how persistently
| he watched the Liibkes and their doings, and
| how much entertainment he found in doing
so, all the time persuading himself that he
| was studying Chfty on Sbtcidl PRtdS, which
lively work he held in his Land, to be sure,
but over the top of which his eyes were for
ever straying TO note the comings and goings
next door.
Heavens! what lot of girls :" was his
first reflection as he saw the sable clad pro-
cession deGle up the walk. And how much
| alike they are :" was his second. They We're
| .trappalv olil-a Tho fD allaF all laatua1 pf
the same age. They were of the same slen-
der build, with clouds of haXen hair flying
over their shoulders, the same blue eyes. the
| same colorless skins. For long time Eras-
| mus could fix ON no point of difference by
which to distinguish them, but after while
he learned to classify the four as Sister, 4"
The Twins, and "Hilda." The twins We're
always together insepaable as Castor and
POllux, Sister" was the central star of the
little ones They were forever clinging to
her skirts, and following to help or hinder in
her many household tasks, from washing win
dows and hanging out clothes to sweeping
| the doOrsteps in the early morning. Hour
| after hour Erasmus heard the hum of her
! wheel He had seen it carried in with other
! things-a genuine old-fashioned spinning
Wheel which an antiquarian might have COW
| eted for its quaintness, but which Sister"
! valued for its use. 1t was she who took the
| lead in reforming the garden, where dis
order and neglect were giving place to thrift
and neatness, groundsel and pursley to peas
and beets, and where pot-herbs, pinks, and
multtudinous cabbages jostled each other in
| true German fashion. Sister took the lead,
but every one helped. Even the little ones
could weed and dibble holes for the insertion
of infant roots, and in the cool of the day the
sedate old pastor himself would descend from
his study, knife in hand, to prune, not in the
most sllillful manner, the fruit trees whose
best days had gone by with the better days
of the old house round which they grew.
Hilda was the prettiest of the sisterhood.
| Her blue eyes had the advantage of fringe
of long golden lashes her hair waved natur-
ally through all its pale length there was a
! tinge of color in her fairness which deepened
at times into lovely pink. People in gener-
al might not have called her very pretty, but