Claiborne guardian. [volume] (Homer, La.) 1877-188?, 1880-05-12

deposit her gains in her own name,
and invest as she will. Her earn.
ings may thus he the nest.egg OF a
neat little fortune. cau't imagine
III won't believe that they will ever
become mercenary. But l am sick
OF the limpness and insipidity and
general knOw.nothingDess of the
women with whom l have business
dealings. MY dear husband never
suffered me TO be annoyed by these
matters, says the widow, her hand
kerclief to her eyes. Audit my
poor papa had foreseen this day, it
would have embittered his Liter sobs
the interesting spinster of forty.
seven, who hasn't an idea how to
make out checque,' and really
doesn't know the difference between
real and personal estate!"
"The Payne girls uttered Imo-
gen aud Blanche, in wicked glee.
"Mamma, you did Arethusa to the
lite, -
She resumed more seriously.
"Sometbing papa heard last night
caused us to lay this subject es.
pecially TO heart. Doctor Jaypes
says there is no doubt that Mr..
Sibthorpe is threatened with soft,
ening of the brain. He has been
doing extra work this winter
book keeping and copying in the
evenings, at home. as he could pick
up snch jobs, to exc out bis salary,
aud il has been too much for him.
Nothing but absolute rest and free.
dom from care can save him. Doc.
tor Jaynes told him so plainly, and
he answered, with tears, that it was
out Of the questionable must die
in harness. 1t was natural that the
news should interest aud sadden
US.
ale has very helpless family
remarked Emma, compassionately.
"Brcausc 40 many of thcn-all
who are grown np-are girls cried
Blanche, impetuously. THAT tells
the whole story. And such pitt.
iul, disgraceiHl, humiliating one it
is! could be ashamed of being n
woman. Mrs. Sibthorpe-indeed a
majority of American mothers of
the genteeler sort, ought to turn
pagans, and drown their baby girls
as soon as they ure born. That
would be better than turning them
lOOse--great, OvergrOwn babies,
forever whining, with their tugers
in their mouths, over their feeble.
ness, and timidity, and sentimental
ignorance-npon u grinning, or
grooming public!'
"But how strange that VIC have
never taken this subject into Sc
rious consideration before" said
sensible Emma. THAT other peO-
pie do not, is certain. Mother, you
won't mind if | ask you a question
or twoT
any precious child! as many as
you like. wish you TO state every
objection frankly. You are of age,
you know. could not compel You
to adopt my suggestion, if we're
disposed to do 80. Nor will CO.
cree the judgment of one of you
three. We must 60 into this enter.
prise heartily and altogether, or not
at ALL"
"Will not our action excite much
talk when it is known, give rise to
unpleasant surmises, and subject us
TO many impertinent In4niries'"
"Cndoubtedly it will. We may
as well prepare ourselves for this.
And the same kind guardians of
their neighbors' behavior and gen
eral interests would buzz and sting
yet more industriously were one of
MS to sicken with small .pox, or the
house to burn down tomorrow. Or,
il papa we're to go of in a rapid
consumption, they would bewail
the number of girls in our family
as loudly and as deIightedly as they
will soon be gossipping about poor,
distraught Mr.. Sibthorpe, and his
quartette of what Blanche calls
overgrown babies; would dole out
to us such charity of word and deed !
as falls to the share of the Payne |
girls. My darlings, if | could tell !
yon how / long to see you indcpend.
ent of such changes in fortune and
fair weather friends! each of YOU
armed in herself TO meet reyerses
and to defray them, with GoD's !
help and blessing upon those who
are trying to help themselves"
Whatever error the tender moth
er may have made in her calcula-
tons of what was to he risked,