Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1880-12-30
Misfrllantous. q
Miss Marigold's Thanksgiving.

NJ. Marigold.-Thai was all the sign said.
but in the window there was a box Of
plumes. half dozen rolls Of ribbon. and
two standard frames, upholding in modest
display, the one q satin, the other velvet
bonnet.
Il Is true the window was small. and the
light good deal Gu, off by the shop OF
PInkham Sisters. adjoining Miss Marigold's
and built further out into the street the
plumes were a little thin and faded. the col
ors Of the ribbons were not arranged so as
TO harmonic into any very happy effect.
and the bouquets could not be said to have
much Of an 'aiI." but such As ,hev we're
the, told the story. and invited customers
in. And when once in. there was something
abou, Miss MARY MarigoId tina, made them
pretty sure TO buv. If the stock al all ap-
preached wha; they wanted.
But the stock was so small that i, often
failed TO do so that vas the very trouble in
Mis-. Mariguld's business. and one that was
constantly rejecting its difficulty back upon
itself so that the occasions when she heard
the tnkle OF the little bell a, the door. and
put down her work TO come in from the
backroom only 10 say she had not vha, was
wanted. or that she hadn', il in the same
shade. or precisely the width. outngmbered
her sales. good many times. and we're rath-
er disoouraging 10 the customers.
But not in the least so to Mis-, Mary Mar
igold. She said good afternoon. and wha,
an unusually pleasant day it was. and went
back 10 her little room with jus; as brigh,
a smile. and began humming JUS, as serene
a tune as when she had made an extra0r-
dinary sale, or as II the trip hadn'; given her
lame knee a good deal OF pain. And the
customers went on 10 the larger shops tha,
cut of Miss Marigold's light, really regret
ting that they could not have bought Of her.
The old patrons knew very well what il was
they preferred in Miss Marigold. bu, further
than her smile. the new ones would have
found il difficult TO tell. for she hardly talked
a; all while at the next door one Of the
Pinkham Sisters no, only talked a great
deal. but the other maintained position she
was known TO have held for years.-jus, one
pace and a half behind her sisters right el-
bow, on the next breadth in the carpet
and repeated every word she said in voice
pitched just one key higher.
II was Thank ksgiving morning, and as it is
quite matter 10 get dinner properly even
for one, Miss Marigold wished TO have j,
well under way before she dressed for church
so that she might neither be late nor dis
turbed in her mind during the services.
The poet says:
..The mind of man doth move amazin
quick" and though like mos, poets he made
no allowance in his rhyme for tina, of wom-
en-, Miss Marigold's, the instant she placed
the little saucepan on the table, repassed the
space Of all the years since her girlhood
those days so long gone by were like the
very touch of things around her. and only
the present seemed far away and dim. Such
a stretching Of the table TO make room for
the scattered ones come home; such hand
some hilarious brothers, grown so manly
since the year before; such odors from the
kitchen, and ranges Of everything in the
pantries and such wandering Of thought to-
ward them before the seyenty-fve minutes
sermon in the church was done. Then
there were the endless tricks and mischief
of the brothers. and sleigh rides in the aft
ernoon, and such doings in the evenings as
no pen could describe, and somebody else
besides the brother who was sure to come,
and sweet placid face. with folds of white
muslin fastened underneath the chin, that
smiled peace and benediction over all. The
little saucepan was the talisman that had
brought them back, and Sc, Miss Marigold
in their very mids, again.
.'Such changes" she said at last, and
wiped her eyes with napkin scarcely whittier
than the snowy table where it lay.
But it wasn't at all about the changes
Miss Marigold wetted the napkin; it was
only on account of the onion she was peel
ing.
Perhaps another person would not have
chosen that vegetable for their special treat !;
but Miss Marigold had naturally quite a
weakness that way, and the one reasonable
objection to them she considered quite re-
moved by her solitary life.
$50 wonderful" she used to say to herself
show one can find bright side TO every
thing in this world. Now if one must live
quite alone, that TO be sure gives shadowy
feeling now and then, but how perfectly one
can enjoy an onion
So she vas smiling at the very moment
she was wiping her eyes; and Miss Marigold
had superb set of teeth, though everything
else about her had been growing thin for a
number of years.
'Such wonderful changes!" she went on,
"and so wonderful, the way ! have been
carried through them all So many mer-
cies! Do be surs, Miss Marigold, that you
get to church in good season, for certainly
there is no one who has more to reflect upon
to-day than you. And as you haven't much
but your feelings to make thank offerings
with, you want to be sure to get the stew
we'll OF your mind before you start. There.
if you leave that just simmering. it will be
done to bubble when you get back unless,
indeed, the minister should be more than
usually carried away BY the occasion"
In few minutes more Miss Marigold set
OF, With heart Ill in glow, and her head in
. rather unbecomine secondhand bonnet,
which she had taken from . customer in
paynsnt Sos IL vosa On nsw on.