Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1878-08-24
WAN STRAWBERRIES.

{. More strawberries % said Mrs. Wylde
with perplexed contraction OF brows.
.Yes said old Phillis. the cook. 1--we
male two short.cakes an pie. an dar
xin't near enough lett to fill the big glass
"Dc,r m" said Mrs. Wylde. "what
shall we do? IIsette is dressing, and
Maude never could endure the sun. Bar
bara'-to slender young girl, who was
curled up in one of the dcer window
seats. reading-''you'lI have to 60
Barbara Wylde reused herself ont of an
Arcadian dream of Dickens Little Nell,
and fixed a pair of blue eyes on her
mothers troubled face.
Go where, mammal"
"Down tn the south pasture lot for
wild strawberries, The ground is Grim :.
son with them there, and"
Barbara Wylde scrambled down out OF
her high perch i'm the window.
"Mamma.' said she, "what a nuisance
all this is. don't believe Capt. EllwoOd
Severn is worth all this trouble. L don
believe he will fall in love with either
Mauds or Lsette. And think preserv-
ed gooseberries are plenty good enough
for him."
"Hold your tongue. ehild!' said Mrs.
Wylde, sharply. Take the basket and
90 tor the Strawberries at once"
"But it's so hot mam:i!'
s.Put on your broad brimmed straw
fiat"
"And I haven't finished my novel;"
pleaded Barbara. with her mind levert-
ing iongingly to Little Nell.
Nonsense" lid Mrs. Wylde. "YOu
read too many novels, a deal too many,
for child of your age"
And Barbara disappeared. unwillingly
enough, into the apple orchard, across
which sInuOus path. bortlered with but
ter-cups and red clover. led direct to the
velvet slopes of the "south PASTURE"
where the ripening fruit of the wild
strawberry shOne like tiny rubies along
the course of musical little brook. all
fringed with reeds and ALTERS and tall
grown ferns.
Strawberries. indced!'' said Barbara
to herself. "I''s dreadful to he the
youngest OF Il family Of girls, and have
to pick strawberries for ones eldest Sis
ters' beaux.
And she ushed the yellow curls out
of her eyes. and went to work i'm lugu-
brious earnest. popping the largest and
sweetest OF the berries into her little
round rosebud OF a mouth, staining her
dress as she knelt down to seek the shy
treasures under the clustering green
leaves, AMI crimsoning her hands with
the haste she made.
IL wonder which of 'em he'll marry?"
said Barba to herself. rs she paused
minute to listen To robin, which perch
ell on the bow OF tree beyond the
brook, thrilled out his barcarolle of gla,l
music, Lisettc is the prettiest, OF course,
anu he can't know what dreadful tenn
per she's got. But Ma,itle is literary has
reaCi~all the new books AMI can talk so
well. Gentlemen like intellectual Ia
dies. l wish-with n sigh-that 1 was
intellectual"
And our little maid fell to work at the
strawberries again for full five minutes.
And then she shook her basket and
looked down into its depths with eyes of
azure of despair.
Not hall full sail she to herself; mot
quarter full. Oh. dear me. how l wish
some one would come and help me! And
there Is soma one stretched prOvokingly
In the shaele under Squire Dallas big
ok by the stone wall where the sweet
briers grow. People have no business to
lie in the shade when other people have
20 work hard in the sRn, And ,lo be-
lieve il is Squire Dallas new hired nun
an he Ought Jo 10, ut W ark i'm tie hay
field Instead OF lying there uu,ler the
trees with book And" Barbara adj
ell. Surveying the distant fGineant with
resOlute blue eyes from beneath her up
lifted hand, "he shall work; he shall
help me.n
Young m n" she cllled out. The
robin thrilled on. the brook made a cool
tumultous splashimg over the messy
stones that formed its bed. and no ans
wcr came back Co Barbara save the fall
ing of the leaves la the hazel cops under
the hill,
Young msn, say," she CHILLED out
again, this time with "a certain accent OF
the iInperiOus in her voice. The recum-
bent figure under the oak tree straight
enel itself up at once, and made haste
toward the stone wall that separated
Squire Dallas domains from Deacon
Wylde's south pasture lot.
Il beg yOur pardon" said he; shut did
you call me?"
"Of course 1 called," said Barbara.
thinking to herself how tall AMI straight
AMI darkly handsome Squire Dallas new
hired man was. Don't you think young
man, you Onght to be ut work."
AT work. repeated the Spanish
proved stranger. ~Well, perhaps 1
ought"
There's no perhaps about it, said
Barbara, brusquely. ''Of course you
ought. And since you don't choose to
work tor your master, you may rs well
be woi king TOR me-"
"My-ma sster?"
esquire Dallas. of course" said Bar
bara. Dear me how stupid you are.'
'And how. may l venture to ask. dill
you know who WASP" lie questioned
in an amused way.
''Oh. it didn't require any great exer-
else of brilliance for that" responded
Barba, with wise little nod OF the head.
Il know Squire Dallas has got new
hired man and if your re not he.who are
you?"
"rhat's the question: said the stranger
gravely.
'.But we mustn't stand talking here"
said Barbara. in business like sort of
way. take the basket and 60 on to
picking strawberries just as fast as ever
you can, because we are to have compa-
ny at our house-I'm Barbara Wylde.
you know, young man-and | mus; get
back with the berries for dessert rs
quickly as possible"
"All right" said the stranger, sim toll
erably quick at this sort oil thing, be-
lieve."
Il hope you are" said Barbara-in-
tent OH exfricating tlny-rOse- pricker
from the point of her stained forefingcr
-"and ut other things, too. Because, 1t
you are not, Squire Dallas wont keep
YOU"
"He won't, eh?"
Barbara shook her head. The last man
went away because he could not stand
h. S<.s rT.-1- II.