The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1879-03-27
THE BABYS PICTURE.

Miss ArethU5a Peppard WAS out OF
temper. She said she was "mad.' But
il must have been a mild kind Of mad
ness. for her pleasant voice had only q
dash Of sharpness, and no fire flashed
from her soft brown eyes. But she
was out of temper; no doubt about
that, and no wonder. She had left her
mite of a cottage early that April
morning. and gone over TO New York
10 shop, and in the very first store she
entered-a store crowded with people
buYing seeds and bulbs and plants
her pOcketbOOk, containing her half
monthly allowance, had been stolen,
and she had been Obliged TO return tO
Summert0Wn without the young let
tuces and cabbageS and onion sets and
parsley and raddish seeds that she had
intended the very next day TO plant in
her mite of q garden. And every day
lost in the garden in early spring, as
everybody knows, or ought TO know, is
a loss indeed, and there's nothing in
the world so exasperating TO an ANA
teuF gardener, rs cYeTybcdy also
knows, or ought To know, than 60 hear
from Il neighboring amateur gardener:
Good morning, Miss Peppard, How
backward you are this yeaTl Your
raddishes are just showing, and we've
had at least Il dozen a day for three
days past. And our parsley's up, and
our onions doing nicely. And yOU
used to be so forward!
So Miss Peppard, who was 9 dear
little sWeet-faced, YOnderfully bright
old lady, living in the neateSt and most
comfortable manner on q small in
come, with q faithful cOlored servant
woman a few years younger than her
self, a rolly-poly dog, tort0ise-Shell
cat, and three birds, had two reasons
for being sOrely YeXed, the loss of her
money and the loss of the days which
she expected would start the green
Things t-grOwing.
All the money / had,T she said to
PeteOna-called 0na for shOrt-as she
rocked nerYOusly back and forth in
her rOcking-chair, her eyes sparkling
and her cheeks flushed. Il only wished
[ could catch the thief I'd send him
TO iaiI rs sure as grass is green"
"Dat's shO' enuf, Miss Peppar' -
Peteona always dropped the "d'-"an'
it'd sarye 'em Zactly right, wen dey
was ketched, to be drug to de lookup
by de heels" Then, after a slight
| lltLunE. WHICH, " do via . ways DAAG ttltAL-
ed an after-thOught: @nOnO, dough /;
spOse dey might as well take de pore
wretch by de head"
"All The money I had" repeated
Miss PeppaTd; "hYe-and-tWenty dol
lars; and ! can't got any more for two
weeks, for borrow | never did and
never will. And there's the garden
all laid out and ready for planting, and
Mrs. Brown sets out her lettuces and
cabbage plants tomorrow morning,
and she'll be sending them here with
her cOmpliments-her compliments,
indeed before ours have begun to
head"
"If she do, III frOw 'em Ober de
fence" said Ona. Better eat them,
dough. l guess. Hercemplimen's can't
hurt EN-"
"And, OH my cOnscienceT Miss
peppard went on (she could invoke her
"conscience" thus lightly, dear old
lady, because she had nothing on it),
ababy's picture was in that pOcketbOOk.
And | can't get another. Polly said it
was the last, and the photographer
don't come that way but once a year."
well, well, you are a pore soul, y
sympathiZed PeteOna, "tO go an lose
dat ar picter-dat lubly thing jus like
horned angel. An yer sisters Onliest
chile3cept five. Wish l had dat rob
Der we're dis minnit; I'd box his ears SO
he cot int set down fur week"
"IIe Wouldn't be here long" said her
mistress. "Of all things in the wide
wOrlG, hate a thief. I'd have him
put where he'd steal nothing for ayear
or two at least"
"Might be a she; dar's she-robbers," /"
suggested Ona; AN dey's all wuss den
caterpillars. CateTpillars takes yO'
things right fore yO' eyeS-dOn't sneak
in yo' pOckit. Take Il cup of tea, Miss
peppal@. Dar@S no use frettin' no mo.
And de eats been a-settin' on yer skirt
for half an hour, wantin' you to notice
her, I nor thing. She JUS came in Off
de pOch a minnit ago
Miss Peppard took the tea, and
spoke TO the cat; but she couldn't help
fretting; and she slept but little that
night. and aWOke the next morning al
/ most as VeXed as ever, and denounced
| the thief at intervals of about half an
hour from breakfast until dinner, al-
| though PeteOna emphatically remark
ed: "Dar'S no use curSin' and sWeaTin'
Miss Peppar'; can't 90 no good.
Wish had dat robbin' debbil here,
dough-
But after dinner, for which Qna
| served a soothing little stew and cool
| ing cream custard, the old lady became
a little calmeT, and retired to her own
room to write a letter to her sister
Polly, who lived away of in Michigan
and she had lust written: And can't
make a strawberry bed this summer,
as ] intended, and I'll have to wear
nv old bonnet, and, dearl dear! how /
shall miss baby's picturep when Pete
Ona opened the door sans cerCngOnie, rs
she ALWAYS did, and walked in with a
mysterious air. "PusSOn want to see
| you, Miss Peppar-man puSsOn. Bout
| a bOy's age, ! guess.
What does he look like, and where
/ did you leave him. asked the old lady
laying down her pen, and looking a
| little alarmed.
~Out on de pO'ch. / lock de do. An.
he's a dirty, ragged feller dat looks JUS
Ike dirty, ragged felier. Shall
broom him of, Miss Peppar'? Looks
as dough he OTt to be bro0med Ofl-or
glib sUuniin to eat-p0re, body, dirty
/ SOUL
"Iil come right down. said Miss
Peppard; and down she went. And
there OF the porch stood dirty, ragged
! forlorn-loOl1ing boy Of about u years
of age, looking exceedingly ''bony" and
! half-staryeI, sure enough. He pulled
off his apology for a cap when Miss
Peppard opened the door, but said dneY-
er a word until the old lady asked hin
/ in mild vOice-she never spoke an
/ kindly to dirt and rags: well, my boy
what do you want?"
"Then you lost your pOcketb0ok, yis-
/ terday?' he blurted out.
"Yes," said she, eagerly, "Tilat Is, II
was stolen from me; for ! felt it IN my
! pocket a moment before l missed It
Do you know the thief?7
Pm him" was the answer; and he
raised pair Of dark eyes, that looked
like the eyes of a hunted animal to heI
face.
my cOnscienceI7 exclaimed the old
lady, and fell into chair that stood
near, while Peteona darted out and