Louisiana capitolian. (Baton Rouge, La.) 1879-1881, 1881-01-22
A WASHERWOMAN'S CHILD.

w ~ Nb"'''l '"' WV 'h' S"h p"''p ~
magic power upon an ,mwary you'll
when its iluttering ribbons span slcn
der dainty waist and the pink-tippct
fingers of two plump little hands pla,
at hide.and-seek in It's apologies To-
pockets
Could mortal man help stopping t
speak to TIME Blair, as she stood be
hind the great album Of autographs
alert and ready to register subscription
rs fast MS they were secured'
II must have been m apron that made
her 80 radlantly charming, for no othel
table made such II stoppage in the line
Of travel, although the hall was linet
with tables, templesand stands, covered
with bats for the charitable, and pre-
sided over by the beauty and fashion O
Offport Weekly, and II newspaper II
not to be believed, then what is!
Still, in spite Of facts, most all thu
young men dld congregate around tina,
little table of TIMES. She had she'd q
small shower of tears when it was con
descendingly offered to her, but it was
that or nothing, and 1t would not even
have been that If the good rector had
not been so obsolete in his notions as to
suppose that the child of shiftless
drunkard, whose widow took in wash
ing, was fit to associate with the daugh.
ters of the upright and solid men who
sat in the body Of the church and
sotemniy put their regular contribu.
tions in the weekly plate, carefully
pushing their aims well under, that
their five cents need not he known to
men.
However having seen hislittle parish
Toner pointcdly left out in all the prepa-
ratons for the ladies' festival, he
did insist, and carried his point, that she
should have u position among the fair
amateur saleswomen.
The richest old woman in the congre-
cation had donated to the charitable en-
terpriso a huge collection Of stupcndous-
iy attintercsting autographs which were
not even genuine, but attcsted fac SINH
lies Of the signature Of every man ofnote
from Moses to Treasurer Spinner--who
had ever been rash enough to put his
hame oil paper.
The amiable first directress of the sew
ing society was Talleyrand in petit
coats. She brought the two difficulties
together, and let one take care Of the
other; that is to say, if that low, odious
little creature was to be forced upon
them, let her undertake the book, which,
of course, would never be disposed of,
but which must appear, or the offended
donor would promptly remove herself
ana der fortune to the rival church.
After the ecstacy caused by the dear
old rectors pledge that she should have
share in the delight of waiting at the
fair, it was something Of hcartbreak
when, by request, she presented herself
before the committee of arrangements, to
find herself appointed to u most uAen-
viable position.
Sic might not have known, in her in.
nsgence, that ID was u statI,a, ~ al.
1asHsl but the ilI-eoncodlcd nSth 4,
the o5hc', al lie, 4. oiasm1a. 10 il m%at
her aware Of the small esteem in which
it was held
Then thcE We're other drawbacks, and
altogether it was u sad little face that
TIME wore as she swept off the porch Of
the little tumbe-down black cottage that
she called home.
"There's no us trying" she said, as sht
Sent her lovely curly head lower and
lower to keep the tears out of sight. "Nt
use trying to be like girls who have
money and nice houses, and clothes
they're not ashamed of. declare, if i,
wasn't for mother, I'd wish ! was dead.
"What did you say, Tiniew said hel
mother, looking mp from the ironing
table.
81 don't know think | must have
been talking to myself" said the girl
looking in, with her forget-me-not blu,
eyes dewy with tears. "But, m9ther
after all, think won't go the fair" j
Mrs. Blair finished ironing a cola
before she spoke: then with u plcasan,
lighting up Of her worn face, she said
Lfyou want to stay at home be
cause you have nothing to wear, stol
worrying, dear, for I've thought it al
ont, III press out my old merino fol
you-the rustiness won't show at night
.--aud we'll cut up your little old white
dress and make fancy apron like.one
had here to do ND for the Young lady