The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1879-12-11
A MOUNTAIN RIDE.

Anu loves cOntentmcnt more than wealth
A MOUNTAIN RIDE.
Of course We girls all piticd Rachel
Tinkham, but We never quite made he,
one of us.
She was such shy little thing, and
blushcd if you spoke to her, and acted
afraid of her own voice, ana wore print
dresses all the time, and never was invit.
ed to our parties.
She lived ia tumblc-down old house
which had been very grand mansion
+ once.
The Tlnkhams had been very great
people In my grandmother's day. Moth.
ing was left Of their grandeur now, how.
ever, for there had been wine in one gen.
GRAFTON, and whisky in the next, and de-
lirium tremens in the third.
Rays father was the third. She had
II wretchcd time keeping house for him
Fer mother was dead.
eve" were the girls of Mrs. BANDS
private school.
A dozen Of us were out upon the east
vcrandah one morning. We were all
talking at once. Some one, it seemed,
had said the high school girls were bet.
ter scholars than We We're
"Very we'll. So they are.'
This was Kate Avery, md she was
standing up by the lattice where the
morning.glory vines grew, and where a
hundred clusters OF little bells swung out
blue and purple and rose-pink. II
Kate was anything she was honest though
she was handsome too.
1--WE have music and French CONVERSE
ton, and Loua has 81 phaeton, and have
two donkcys, and Quccny has been to
Europe; butt lowering her voice, sits
anawful secret though it's the truth. The
high school girls are miles and miles be.
you'd us i'll Latin and mathematics.
"lndced they arc" SAID I. "I'm what
mademo,selle calls IN 'iagit' in arithme.
tic. l really suppose that two and two
make four, but if one of those girls were
to tell me that they made live, shouldn't
dare dispute her
'Thc fact ISL said Kate, ''littie Tink.
ham IS the only one of us who Is sure OF
her multiplication table. But then she
doesn't really belong to us. She would
not be here if it wasn't for sweeping and
busting to pay her tuition. There she i:
this minute"
a small, tired looking figure in coarse
dress came in sight round the corner. /
was Rachel with her load OF books in he]
arms.
"Shc has worn that dress every day fo
three MONTHS" said Loua Stcdman; 81
verify believe she goes to bed when it il
done up"
my dear, she can't. She has to wasl
and iron 1t herself. Oh, there is Queeny!'
cried Kate. It was such gentle, grace
iul girl who came walking fast to over
take Ray, caught step as she overlook her
and began talking pleasantly. "Doesn'
she look nice in that seal-brown suit
And isn't tjust like her to carry Ray
books for hcr2"
Queeny's real name was Alice. 70,
would have known why we called he
Queeny if you had seen her walk bcsid
little Tinkham that morning, open tn
gate, and stand still, erect, with tina
grand way of hers for the girl to pas
through. I believe we all rather wor
SHIPPED Queeny.
Kate met them with her forehead al
tied up into hard knots, and asked Ray
''tlidn't she want to be an angel and he'll
her with those dreadful fractions?"
So they two sat down ON the Doorstep
and the rest went into the school room
Then Lou called out to Ray to come an
dust her desk. She said lit wasn't hal
busted" Queeny said:
Tray is busy, will do it," aud sht
silent and prouder than ever, busted Lou
desk herself.
1t was this morning, Friday, that Mr.
Bland told us that tomorrow would
"Mountain day."
=. All the schools III our town drive t
the mountain once year. Our day al
ways comes in September.
This time Mrs. Bland couldn't 90, b
she sent along her cousin to matroniz
us. She was fidgety person, afraid G
spiders, and no good any way.
1--WE are to start at nine o'clock,
Quecny said. cray, can you be read
80 oarly?''
Quecny was new scholar. She didn
know that Ray never went with us
such places. Now she flushed and n
piled:
II don't, think can go to the moul
tain.
Certainly, you are going" Alice sal
It in her qucenlest way. "Ifyou can't e
Tomorrow we will put off going"
Saturday is my day to clean tt
school.room," Ray answered.
"We will clean it. Let's begin tn
minute" and of came Queeny's cuffs an
Rates, all the cuffs, in fact. We went
work, and had such fun scrubbing an
sweeping. just imagine Kate and Queen
washing the floor. They did it well, to
''Now, rccollect," Queeny said, the Ia
thing, "every body is to wear her olde
dress, and, Ray, would you be kin
enough to bring hard-boiled eggs for 70,
: -luncheona One apiece for US all round
Ray looked bright oil over, ana sai
! yes.
e. Now think it was Just beautiful
,Queeny to think Of that. She kne
Little. Tinkham couldn't bring frost.
cake and French rolls as the rest of
did.
= so she spoke of tho eggs. We all ,
membered that Ray had wonderful chic
ems. L am sure the word about old DIRE.
es, too, was meant to help her.
The next morning Obed Taintor car
rQund with his uncovered omnibus al
u his two great horses and picked us up.
We went for Ray last. She was stan
\ ing IN front OF the old house, beside t