The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1879-09-11
A MOUNTAIN RIDE.

OF course we girls all pitied Rachel
Tinkham, but we never quite made her
one Of us.
She was such shy little thing, and
bIushed if you spoke to her. and acted
AFRAID OF her own voice, and wore print
dresses ali the time, and never was in
vlted to our parties.
She lived in Il tumble-down old house
which had been very grand mansion
once.
The Tinkhams had been great people
IN my grandmOther's day. Nothing was
lett OF their grandeur now, however, for
there had been wine in one generation.
and whisky in the next, and deliriu1n
tremcaS in The third.
Rays father was the third. She had
q wretched time keeping house for him.
Her mother was dead.
I'VE" were the girls of Mrs. Bland
private school.
\ dozen of us were out upon the cast
verandah one morning. We were all
talking at once. Some one, it seemed.
had said the high school girls were bet
ter scholars than we were.
VERY well. So thcy are"
This was Kate Avery, and she was
standing up by the lattice where the
morning-glory vines grew. and where :,
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.
I'VE have music and French CONVEX
sation, and Lou has phaeton, and
have two donkeys, and Queeny has been
TO Europe; but" lowering her voice,
Its an awful secret though it's the
truth. The high school girls are miles
and miles beyond us in Latin and mathe-
matics."
" Indeed they are, said I. "l'm what
Anademoiselle calls an idgi5' in arith-
metic. L really suppose that two and
two make four, but if one of those girls
were, to tell me that they made five,
shouldn't dare dispute her."
THE fact is" said Kate, "little Tink-
ham is the only one of us who is sure oI
doesn't really belong to us She would
not be here if it wasn't for sweeping and
dusting to pay her tuition. There She is
this minute"
\ small, tired-looking figure in coarse
dress came in sight round the corner. II
was Rachel with her load of books in
her arms.
She lSa worn that dress every day
for three ronths," said Lou Stedman
II verify believe she goes to bed when
il is done up"
"My dear, she can't. She has to wash
and iron it herself. Oh, there is Queeny!' =
cried Kate. 1t was such gentle, grace.
ful girl who came walking fast to over
take Ray, caught step as she overtooE
her, and began talking pleasantly
Doesn't she look nice in that seal-browr
suit? Ard isn't it just like her to carry
Rays books for her?n
Qneeny's real name was Alice You
would have known why we called hel
Queeny if you had seen her walk beside
little Tinkham that morning, open the
gate. and stand still, erect, with that
grand way of hers, for the girl to pass
through. | believe we all rather wor.
SHIPPED Queeny.
Kate met them with her forehead al
tied up into hard knots, and asked Ray
didn't she want to be an angel and
help her with those dreadful fractionsp
So they two sat down on the door.
step, and the rest went into the school
room. Then Lou called out to Ray tc
come and dust her desk. She said "i,
wasn't half busted" Queeny said:
"Ray is busy, l will do it," and she
silent and looking prouder than ever
busted LOUIS desk herself.
1t was this morning, Friday, thai
Mrs. Bland told us that tomorrow
would be Mountain day."
All the schools in our town drive tt
the mouL tain once year. Our day
always comes in September.
This time Mrs. Bland couldn't go, sc
she sent along her cousin to matronizC
us. She was fidgety person, afraid O
spiders, and no good any way.
"We are to start at nine o'clock,
Queeny said. Ray, can you be ready
so earlyP"
Queeny was a new scholar. She
didn't know that Ray never went witt
us to such places. Now she flushed ano
replied:
II don't think can go to the noun,
tain"
Certainly, you are going" Alice
said it in her queeniest way. eff yol
can't go tomorrow we will put of
going"
Saturday is my day to clean th,
school-room." Ray answered.
1--WE will clean it. Let's begin tb;,
minute" and off came Queeny's cnff,
and Kate's, all the cuffs, In fact. II,
went to work, and had such fun sweep,