St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1881-06-24


.'You shall hear,r resumed Mr.. Fish
er ''The bishop eyed his friend with
great disgust, grew red in the face, and
at length screamed out, You are n
fool. never wrote a better sermon in
with laughter, while Susan stuck her
apron in her mouth and ran laughing
out of the room.
Not so Mrs. Fisher; she had not only
IA strong affection for her good man."
but great respect also, and she now
looked him in the face with discon
tented, doubtful air, saying:
''You play into the hands of Susan,
father; don't know what has come
over you. You don't seem to have any
pride left"
Mr.. Fisher twisted his thumbs, and
at length replied:
II am beginning to think that you
and are not up to the times, wife
perhaps we are living too long, and
ought to make way for younger peo-
ple.n
''Speak and think for yourself, dear,
and not for me. If am to be robbed
of what is mine, and by my own child,
will not stay to see it. | am not too
old for many hard years work"
1--WE are too worldly, too worldly,
wife, and have laid up for the flesh III
neglect of the durable riches and right
eOusncsS to come"
Speak for yourself, Jonathan |
have lived godly life, and if | am to
lose all that has come to us by hard
work, I'll not whine and talk religious
about it. You can't make wrong
right" and she rose heavily from her
chair and went out, but, returning i'm
mediately, asked:
Jonathan, what do you think made
old Lear give away his crown and all
his Kingdoms to his children ~
~ suppose, Debby, he was tired of
ease and wanted to go hunting and
galivanting and have general good
time, as | do" he answered, sitting at
his ease, and twiTling his two thumbs
in Il manner quite provoking.
His wife eyed him sharply, saying {:
81 don't think so. | believe he was
mad, to begin with, and grew worse
from cruelty. | did not want Susan
and John to come here to live, but you
thought it best and | gave up. Now,
you are bent upon giving them all be
fore the breath is out of our bodies |
will not quarrel with you, Jonathan,
but evil will come of it," and she burst
into bitter tears and went out.
Mr.. Fisher sat long time twirling
his thumbs and musing upon some
thing at length he said, half aloud:
"fll give them a fair chance, ut any
rate. Susan is Il smart girl, but tricky
as the deuce she loves to torment
Debby by treating her like an old
woman; and the creature implies that
Pm in my dOtage, too. We will see,
we will see. Johns as keen Us a razor
thinks he can come over anybody, the
old man i'll particular"
CHAPTER IL.
In process of time, Mr.. Fisher, re-
gardless of the opposition of his wife
carried his scheme into execution, {;
thing not uncommon eighty years ago
parents being disposed to settle theil
estates by giving them up to theil
children, cOnditiOnally, upon support
being guaranteed. This measure was
more rcpugnant to the mother than tC
the father, as thereby she lost cOntro
of what had been her own, and founC
herself too often neglected, or, it may
he, abused.
Time hung heavy upon the hands o
Mrs. Fisher she who had been one %
the busiest of women, up with the SUI
making butter and cheese, cooking her
self and directing her maids, calling
upon her neighbors and having then
call upon her, found it next to impossi
BILE to pass away the time. A sense o
shame grew upon her at her own de
pendence. She had her own nice room
but, somehow, she felt herself n pris
oner there.
: Susan hustled here and there, all tn,
time on the alert, always with some
; thing on her lips about people GROWN:
, old and not knowing. Mrs. Fishe
could not complain of i'll treatment, for
indeed, she was i'll fair way of bein:
made old and helpless from being al
the time told she had become so, ant
2 being too much cOddled.
, Not so with Mr.. Fisher. He wa
more clipper than ever, Debby de
| clared. He was all about the farm
5 seeing after stock and granaries, an,
down to the village tavern talking
/ politics, and busy on matters pertain
, ing to the interest of the town. Johl
told him not to "bOther," but he di
a bother about everything.
''You know, John, | won't he pu
1 into feather bed and laid away to di
| till my time comes" he would say, "a
the time So CHEEKY and active that II
= fault could be found.
;, One day he said to John:
e ''YOu know that | did not give yo
;, the deed of the Greeley wOOdlot, an
: Pm thinking | will make it over to til
t school fund it will be help to til
town.
|, "All right" replied the son "but
r, wouldn't hurry about it-time enough
e You oughtn't to worry at your time {
II life
"True, John, true. But we ought
3" do little for the town we live III. 1t
| IL mean sort of man that does nothin
IL for the public good"
Ii 1t chanced that several Sundays wei
=. too stormy for the family to go out
e meeting, which was. nearly three mile
r distant, so that nothing transpired
draw the attention of outsiders
Il the working of this contract betwee
: the members of the Fisher famil
= Neighbors, right-minded neighbor
e. have Il repugnance to meddle with ii
20 affairs of each other, and as nothiu
was said by either John or Susan aboI
Il the matter, there was little chance f,
the public to talk.
Now, Mr.. Fisher had Il chestnut fill
u of which he was not only fond bl
Ii proud. He had raised her from ca
lt with care and tenderness, feeding h
D out of his hand, and never had a VIII
ne touched her delicate skin. On Il
is morning to which we refer, Mr.. Fish
- made his appearance dressed for NEE
~ ina, nicaIv ShaNen and neatly brusbe.