Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1879-12-18

bicu lOuuu IL W Keep Tile SOl6 from nap
ping back and forth every time stepped
and to. cover big holethat let thesnow
in.
You might wear Bob's best one,
perhaps. 1t is better than that. Can't
he, Bob?n
Certain, f" said Bob, without raising
his head or looking at me. Bob couldnst
help being gloomy, because he was sick
and pumpkin didn't agree with him
but lie didn't like to have us take any
notice of it, so we didn't. I said:
"Wel, s'posed could go. The only
thanks should get would be to have
my head snapped off and get called a
Leggar, and asked what / expected to
get by coming" But I was tired OF
being cooped up at home, and should be
glad of a walk, if / could only have
something to walk in. So Bob let me
have his boot, and started. 1t was
about half mile and off the road; SO |
had to make my own path, and the snow
was pretty deep. But the sun shone
bright and rather liked the fun OF
breaking a track. | saw a smoke in
Mother Cripsey's chimney as l came
near, so knew she was all right. You
see it wasn't as ii she had been poor,
for she was the richest one for miles
around, only she was most too stingy to
keep herself alive. She cut her own
wood and carried her own grain to the
mill, and there was nothing to be afraid
of; only, as she would live there all
alone, so far from neighbors, mother
thought she might fall sick, or get hurt.
or something, and nobody find it out till
she suffered. So we had to go over once
in while. But all we got in return was
hard words and sneers. Mother often
went herself, in pleasant weather.
guess she was rather pleasanter to her.
At any rate, mother didn't seem to think
her bad sort of a woman. But, then,
mother always thinks better of folks
than they deserve.
/ broke path up to the door, and
there she was. An old black hood pulled
down over her eyes, and a nightcap
rutfle, and some kind of yellow gray
hair sticking out under the edge Of it,
round her red, bony face, redder and
bonier than ever. Her short striped
pettieoat came down just below the top
of a pair of mems boots She looked
like Jezebel. or a witch of Endor,
more than like a woman. But / went
up to her, and took off my hat, and said
" "Good-morning," as polite as you
please. I like to be rather potter than
common to her; it makes her so scorn-
full.
"Well! what do you want o. me?
S'pos'n you air all out O. breadstuff!
she began.
81 didn't say we were allout ma'ahl !''
! interrupted her, though that wasn't
polite, / know. he'd to speak pretty
loud and fast, or she wouldn't have
stopped to listen to me. g / came be-
cause mother was afraid you might need
somebody to cut wood or something.
now that the snow is so deep. She
looked sharp at me while said so much !;
but then she turned back to the wood
pile and began to chop in way that
made the chips fly, tell you. 1 sup
pose that was to show me how easy she
could cut her wood herself. After she
had worked that way awhile she turned
round and put down her axe and said ::
"Come in, will YEP" So ] went in and
sat down by the fire.
Il s'pose yer mar thought | had
hands like hern, that's jest fit for knit
tin and darnin' socks, and wanted a
man to do such dreadful hard work as
cuttin' wood enough to keep my own
fire agoin'. So she sent you along,
hey?"
It's no use to remember and repeat
all the hard words Mother Cripsey said
to me that day. She was more insulting
than ever, accusing me of every kind of
a mean motive in coming to inquire for
her. | had a great mind to tell her
Just what thought of her; and would
but for. the thought of how mother
would feel if | got downright angry and
sauced gray-headed old woman as,
do think, she deserved. But | held in
my temper and just denied all her
shameful charges. / swallowed all the
hard words / could well stand, and then
took rather hasty leave and started for
home.
On the way, as climbed over fence,
| saw something like feathers sticking
out of the snow. | went for it, and
pulled out quail, that had been buried
and frozen stiff
That's for Bob's dinnerr' I said,
with JOY, and thrust my hand down
into the snow to hunt for more.
" Here's for Lizzie!" / said, as | pulled
out another. And down dived again.
" Here's for mother. And here's for
Tom and Johnny!n as three more came
to the surface in quick succession.
'' And here's for me!" I almost screamed,
as rather anxious search brought up
another. still dug about in the snow,
and pretty soon found one more. 6 For
father, surely" l said.
Then | could find no more, and sat
down to rub my aching fingers. When
| had. got them warm, | pulled bit of
board from the fence and dug the snow
bank all over thoroughly, and found
tour more.
"A dinner fit for king! A dinner
fit for king' / cried out loud, as
looked at the plump beauties lying be-
fore me. | found bit of string in nv
pockets, and tied them all together and
slung them over my shoulder
Didn't mothers eyes shine when l
came into the house with those quails
That was i" a dinner as was dinner"
as Bob said. OF course, we had to go
back to pumpkin again next day. New
ertfieless, the change was delightful and
made the week good deal less trying.
Christmas day was Saturday, you
know.
Thursday morning mother said "It
looks like more snow. / hope father
will get here before it storms again. 81
She was a little pale that morning-poor
mother!-though she spoke Just as cheer
full as ever. / knew and Bob knew the
pumpkin wouldn't last till Christmas
Eve. But nobody talked about that.
1t began to snow at nightfall. | had
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