The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1880-08-13
MY FIRST LAWSUIT.

"How is trade, Aunt LucyP" / in.
quired, with the air ofo perpetrating Q
pleasantly.
The person addressed was slow tc
take my remark in the spirit in which il
was offered. Trade with her was .
solemn reality.
"Things is n .goin' off," she replied
seriously. "Slow. But they goes"
Two or three other colored persons
present chuckled, however. To them
as TO me, there existed an incongruity
between the notions of Aunt Lucy and
commerce.
Aunt Lucy was unusually old and un.
usually black. Her blackness was SET
off by her white turban and white ker.
chief she wore about her neck. She
was heavily made, with delightful
chubby face, and delightful, cordial,
chuckling way of speaking. Only o
severe attack of rheumatism would
dampen her chronic cheerfulness, and
imbue the tones of her voice with q
touch of melancholy.
1t had been my own idea to set her up
in trade. with the expenditure of dol.
lar or so, in the first place, on needles
and thread, and tapes and pins, and SC
on; aftcrward, as these wares found q
ready market, she and l determined to
go into the confectionery line also. on a
small scale-penny cakes, penny sticks
of candy; but these latter we found to
be more useful in advertising her place
of business than lucrative. / had been
unable to buy them for less than a penny
apiece, and they sold the world over for
penny, it appeared.
can make ginger cakes an sugar
cakes fust rate" suggests the old wo.
man presently.
THAT will be the wav, then," say,
crutching at the bright idea-"the very
thing. I'll give you the money to buy
some -four and sugar and molasses, and
you'll make the cakes and then we'll
see what the profit will be-"
Aunt Lucy chuckles delightedly. She
has an active soul, despite her ninety.
eight years. Yes, ninety-eight ? She
insists that this is her age.
Have you had your roof mended p
inquire, having already left the money
with her for that purpose.
Cant git de man ter come. has
bin a-terrifyin' an a-abotherin' OBJ my
Isaiah ter git de man ter come-hain't1 ]
Isaiah ?" es at that juncture, a tall
slouchy young man entered, who did
not seem likely to be terrified by feeble
old Aunt Lucy.
He pulled front lock in courtesy To
me, and grinned. II has went, 'an
went" he averred; "an' he promises
ter come. Seems like he don't care"
myself entertain doubts of Isaiah's
zeal as a Mercury. say, persuasively
:" wish you would see to it Isaiah"
Then make my adieux.
The room contained half q dozen
persons beside Lucy. She has always o
number OF guests, and is especially
dopular since she has kept shop, and
thus established kind of neighbor-
hood rendezvous. Her shop is in the
window, across which Stats have been
nailed, against which articles of mer-
chandise have been placed, including
various penny toys, which have been
found a profitable investment, as their
value is q fictitious one.
Aunt Lucy lives in an alley within
another alley, 1t being a circuitous
route, Milly, one of the old woman's
daughters-Lucy's family is numerous,
and universally down on their luck
escorts me back to the highway, con-
versing.
"Mother was well brought up" she
responds TO some words Of praise OF
mine. De white ladies as raised her
tItbtcu ucT Wtll, hu BLU buOWo IL.
Mother can't behave no odder way. De
good manners viii come out. An she's
dat spryi"
Its pity that between you all you
are not able TO make your mother thor
oughly comfortable in her old age."I
say, slowly. In fact this view of the
subject has frequently presented itself
to my mind before.
We are all so PORE" was Milly's
excuse. "An' has. what's more, such
bad feelin's inside. Sometimes I don't
hardly expec' to see one day cotch an
odder."
In truth, now that took good look
at her, shs was little more than skin
and bones.
Its de misery In my head" she ex-
planned. It generally is this particu-
lar form of misery with colored people,
/ have found. Poor soull poor souls =
weak in body and mind and spirit.
Milly and such as she are hardly able
to take care of themselves, let alone
each other.
was in a hurry-who OF us is at all
times free from the clutches of this fa-
miliar fiend of our overcrowded ageP-
still, something in Milly's expression