Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1881-01-14

hduh maunoF ana nOn6SC voice. MIS-.
Brown did not neglect the business in
hand. After few indifferen remarks, she
| observed:
II saw you at church yesterday, Mrs.
Harwood, and hope my husband will have
the pleasure of numbering you among his
| regular parishioners.'
"Thank you!'' was the reply. "We in
tend to take measures ar once to secure a
seat.''
The minister's wife looked gratifed.
"Ours is considered benevolent con-
gregaJion. they give away a great deal:
not by any means in proportion to the de-
mands made upon us, however. 1 hope
you will join some Ct our church charita-
BILE societies.
81 am always glad to help" said Mrs.
Harwood, looking interested. ssWhat
branches OF work do you have in the par
! ,sh?''
1--WE are just beginning our Ladies' So
ciety. They made between seven and
eight hundred garments last year and dis
tributed them among the poor. Mr.. Brown
gives away great deal, too. We have
continual applications. Inever knew such
a place as this for beggars. Our door bell
rings nearly all day, and of course we new
or like to refuse ony bne in cold weather.
We have Charity Bazaar every season.
| The young people like it. They meet
around at the different houses and have a
social time, and then they finish up with
he Fair and hand over the proceeds to
| Mr.. Brown to give away. He supplied fif
| ty families with coal last winter. 1 shall
look to you for some help, Mrs HARDWOOD.
Ours is very liberal congregation, but of
course people get rather backward some
times and new person coming in will en-
courage the rest. The Sewing Society be-
gins next Thursday at the church parlor,
and hope you will be present.
And Mrs. Brown talked so fast that
neither of us observed till we were walk
ing down the drive that the new parishion-
er had given no definite reply to their in
| ,itation.
However we had not long to wait. When
| | reached the Sewing Society rather late
Thursday afternoon, found tongues bus
| Ter than needles, and several ladies with
| flushed faces in hot discussion. Some
| hing had stirred them all. aud Mrs. Brown
was ready to pour out the cause of offence
before l was fairly seated. s'Never mind
your work." she said, as put on my
thimble and began to look about for some
thing to supply my idle fingers. II want
} to hear what disappointment we are to
have about Mrs. Harwood. Iexpected her
to send donation to begin with-at least
piece of flannel or bingham. and count
| ed on her being here as an inducement to
| the ladies who had fallen off So stylish
as she is, and living IN the Porter place,
her example would be great thing; and
| now she will not even come to the Socie-
typ
mot come to the Society!'' echoed in
d smay.
"No-but you must hear it all. Mrs.
Gray, please tell us what Mrs. Harwood
said" 1t seems that Mrs. Gray, having
always been on familiar terms at the Por-
ter place through her husbands business
| relations with the family, had resumed her
intimacy after the new corners arrived and
was already quite well acquainted with
them. She was bright little woman,
rather quick to seize ideas and enthusiasts
tic in her friendships, and she had con-
ceived violent liking for Mrs. HARDWOOD.
It was she who, having learned that lady g
views on several subjects which concerned
! us deeply, had innocently retailed them
| and thereby created an unlooked-for DIS
turbance. She vehemently defended her
new friends notions, as they were con-
temptuously called, and a buzz of many
voices carried on the argument. In the
| heat of discussion Mrs. Gray let out some
of Mrs. Harwood'S sarcastic remarks,
never int ended to be repeated beyond her
own dressing room.
''Sewlng for the poor! Had the ladies
nothlng better to do than to sit down and
spend their time making garments for
women who had not enough to do them
selves? If they must meet let them make
memorial quilt, or find some other harm
less amusement. But, do in the name of
all that is sensible, let them teach the poor
women how to do their own sewing in
stead of doing it for them.''
did not Mrs. Harwood believe in Civ
ing to the poor?"
mot in giving to them unless they are
sick and helpless, but in providing them
with work if times are hard and in in
structing the children how to sew"
$780, said Mrs. Adams, shaking her
diamond earrings scornfully. ''she would
have us teach parcel of dirty, ragged
children! fancy she would thin out the
ranks of the Sewing Society if she pro-
posed such work heIe."
II have sometimes wondered" said a
quiet widow who goes about a good deal
among the poor, whether our church sew
ing societies were the .wisest thing after
all. 1 know great many parents who
send their children to Sunday school SIM
ply to get the assistance. and take them
away as soon as they are clio. he'd"
YES" chimed in little Miss Foote, 81
know that is 80; for have had charge of
giving out the clothing and have dressed
up children, again and again, and never
have seen them at Sunday school. But I
tell our pastor that shall continue to do
so; perhaps in time we may gain an infu-
ence over them, and am willing to try
every means"
"Before that time comes they will be
pretty well developed beggars and impos-
TORS" murmured Mrs. Gray, soto voice.
People respected Miss Foote because
she was so we'll meaning, but think it
had already entered the minds of several
that she was not the most judicious per-
son to distribute the clothing. I had my