Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1879-03-21

AAANON OANAS AUles
Mary Ann was a hired girl. She
was called SHRED chiefly because
she always objected to having hel
wages lowered. Mary Ann was Of
foreign extraction, she said she wa,
descended from a line of kings. But
nobody ever saw her descend, although
they admitted that there must have
been a great descent from a king to
Mary Ann. And Mary Ann never
had any father and mother. As far
as could be ascertained, she was spon.
taneously born in an intelligence Office.
1t was called an intelligence Office be-
cause there was no intelligence about
it, excepting an intelligent way they
had of chiseling you out of two-dollar
bills. The early youth of Mary Ann
was passed in advertising for a place.
and in sitting on a hard bench, dressed
in a bonnet and speckled shawl and
three-ply carpeting, sucking the end
of her parasol. HerShose began we'll
and had evidently been conceived in
an artistic spirit, but there seemed not
to have been stuff enough, as it was
left half finished, and knocked upward
at the end. She said she would never
live anywhere where they didn't have
Brussels carpet in the kitchen, nor
with a family that wouldn't take her
to the seashOre in the summer. And as
she knew absolutely nothing, she said
she must have five dollars a week as a
slight compensation for having to take
the trouble to learn.
Mary Ann was eccentric, and she
would often boil her stockings in the
tea-kettle, and wipe the dishes with
her calico frock. Her brother was a
bricklayer, and he used to send her
letters sealed up with a dab of mortar 4;
and it was thus, perhaps, she conceived
the idea that hair was a good thing to
mix in to hold things together, and so
she introduced some of her'n into the
biscuit. But Mary Ann was fond
yes, passionately fond-of work. So
much did she love it that she dilly
dallied with it, and seemed to hate TO
get it done. She was often very much
absorbed in her work, In fact she
was an absorbing person, and many
other things were absorbed besides
Mary Ann. Butter, beef. and eggs.
were all absorbed, and nobody ever
knew where they went to. And when
ever Mary Ann had to make boned
turkey she used to bone the turkey SO
effectually that nobody could tell what
had become of it. And if she SO much
as laid her little finger on a saucer,
that identical saucer would imme-
diately fall on the floor and be shat
tered to atoms, But Mary Ann would
merely say that if the attraction of
grayitation was very powerful in that
spot she was not to blame for it, for
she had no control ever the laws Of
Uneles seem to have been one Of
Mary AIMS weaknesses-for she had
some twenty or thirty cousins, all
male. who came TO SEQ her every night,
ana thefo was q mysterious and mex.
pllcable connection between their
visits and the condition of the pantry,
which nobody could explain. There
was something shadowy and obscure
about It, for whenever Mary AIMS
cousins came there was always a
fading away in the sugar-bo and low
tide in the -four barrel, Il was strange
but true.
Mary Ann was troubled with abb
sence OF mind, but this was not AZ
strong asuit with her asabsenee ofbQdy,
Tor her Sunday out N20a 10 come twice
a week, and sometimes three times n
week. But she always went TO church,
she said, aud she thought IL was right
to neglect her work for her faith la
she believed that faith was better Chan
works.
But if the beginning Of Mary Ann
was strange, how extraordinary was
her ending She never Mary
Ann was not one Of your perishablo
kind. But she suddenly disappeared.
One day she was there full Of life and
spirits aud hope, and cooking wine,
and the next day she wasn't and tho
place that know her once knew her
no more. Where she went TO, how
sho went, by what means she went,
no one could toll, but it was regarded
~ d slggqlag coincidence chat eight
napkins, a soup.ladle, iyo silver
spoons, a bonnet, two dresses, two car
rings and a lot Of valuable grconbacks
melted away at the same time, and IL
supposed that the person who EtOlQ
Nary Ann gWgg @us! have captured
thege also.