The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1879-03-21
THE BABY'S PICTURE.

lola, /: 3 /: KANSAS.
THE BABY'S PICTURE.
Miss Arethusa Peppard was out of
temper. She said she was ssmad." But
it 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 ,vas
out of temper; no doubt about that, and
no wonder. She had left her mite of q
cottage early that April morning, and
gone over to New York to shop, and in
the very first store she entered-a store
crowded with people buying seeds and
bulbs and plants-her pocket bOok, con-
tanning her half-monthly allowance, had
been stolen, and she had been obliged
to return to Summertown without the
young lettuces and cabbages and onion
sets and parsley and radish-seeds that
she had intended the very next day to
plant in her mite of garden. And
every day lost in garden in early
spring, as every body knows, or ought
to know, is loss indeed, and there's
nothing in the world SO exasperating to
an amateur gardener, as every body also
knows, or ought to know, than to hear
from neighboring amateur-gardener,
as every body also knows, or ought to
know, than to hear from a neighboring
amateur gardener: "Good morning,
Miss Peppard. How backward you are
this year! Your radishes are Just show
ing, and we've had at least dozen a
day for three days past. And our pars-
ley's up, and our onions doing nicely.
And you used to be so forward"
So Miss Peppard, who was a dear lit
tie sweet-faced, wonderfully bright old
lady, living in the neatest and most
comfortable manner on q small income,
with a faithful colored servant-woman
a few years younger than herself, a rolly-
poly dog, a tortoise-shell cat, and three
birds, had two reasons for being sorely
vexed, the loss of her money and the
loss of her days which she had expected
would start the green things a-growing.
GAN the money had," she said to
Peteona-called Ona for short-as she
rocked nervously back and forth in her
rocking chair, her eyes sparkling AMI
her cheeks flushed. 81 only wish I
could catch the thief. I'd send him to
Jail as sure as the grass is grcen.''
"Dat's sho' enuf, Miss Peppar' ~
Peteona always dropped the sd ''-"an'
it ID sarve 'em zackly right wen dey
scar ketched. to be drug to de lookup
by de heels" Then after a slight pause,
which was Ona's way, she added an
after thought: "Dono, dough: s'pose
dey might as well take de pore wretch
by de head.'
/" AL the money! had, repeated Miss
Peppard: +" five-and-twenty dollars and
can't get any more for two weeks, for
borrow never did and never will. And
there 8 the garden all laid out and ready
for planting, and Mrs. Brown sets out
her lettuces and cabbage-plants to-
morrow morning, and she'll be sending
them here with her compliments-her
eedi-before ours have
begnn to head"
"If she do, I'll frow 'em ober de
fence" said Ona. "Better eat them,
dough, 1 guess. Her compliments can't
hurt 'em."
Sand, oh! my conscience!" Miss Pep
pard went on (she could invoke her
conscience" thus lightly, dear old lady,
because she had nothing on it), "baby's
picture was in that pocket-book. And
can't get another. Polly said it was
The last, and the photographer don't
come that way but once year"
swell, well, you are pore SOUL"
'ympatbized Peteona, "to 20 an lose
lat ar picter-dat lubly thing JUS like
Dorned angel. An yer sisters onliest
five. Wish had dat rob-
Der yere dis minnit; I'd box his ears so
he couldn't set down fur a week"
"He wouldn't be here long," said
her mistress. "Of all things in the wide
world, l hate thief. I'd have him put
where he'd steal nothing for a year or
.wo at least"
"Might be she; dar's she robbers"
Ona; "an' dey's all wuss den
Caterpillars takes yo'
,hings right fore yo' eyes-don't sneak
n yo' pockit. Take cup of tea, Miss
Peppar'. Oars no use frettin' no mo-
An de cats ben a-settin' on yer skirt
'or half an hour, wantin' you to notice
,er, pore thing. She JUS came in of
lie pooh minnit ago."
Miss Peppard took the tea, and spoke
% the cat; but she couldn't help fret
ing; and she slept but little that night,
and awoke the next morning almost as
7exed as ever, and denounced the thief
It intervals of about half an hour from
breakfast until dinner, although Peteona
,mphatically remarked: "Dar's no use
,ursin' an swearin', Miss Peppar'; can't
10 no good. Wish l had dat robbin'
lebbil here. Dough-
But, after dinner, for which Ona serv-
I'd a soothing little stew and cooling
,ream custard, the old lady became q
title calmer, and retired to her own
DOM to write a letter to her sister Polly,
Who lived away off in Michigan; and
The had just written: "And 1 can't
make a strawberry bed this summer, as
intended, and III have to wear my old
and, dear! dear! how I shall
Miss baby's pictured" when Peteona
opened the door sans cerersonie, as she |
lIways did, and walked in with a mys.
erious air. "Pusson want to see you,
Hiss Peppar'-man pusson. Bout a
,oy's age, guess"
"What does he look like, and where |
lid you leave him?" asked the old lady, |
aging down her pen, and looking lit
lie alarmed.
"Out on de pooh. I lock de do.
IN he's dirty, ragged teller dat looks
u.s. like a dirty, ragged Teller. Shall