St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1882-07-22

cried. What tom-foolery is this, Ell?
Are you crazy, Pameley? All the neigh
bors II be laughing at you. Hang your
p0rtiere.'
"That just what we want to do,'
giggled Lucinda.
1.-The neighbors don't laugh at Law
yer Brownies folks, and there's portieres
and p0rtieres all over the house. l see
'em with my own eyes
"And the doors took off?' gasped
Tom.
Eyes"
BLESSED if I ever heard of such a
thing! 1t must be modern progress!
| Why not take down side of the house
and hang up curtain? What's it for,
any way? 1t amt pretty; it looks like
horse-blanket. Tell be mighty nice for
rheumatism and inhuenzy. Why not
take the roof off the house instead?'
But for all Tom Dodds disapproval
the door came off and the portierc,
brilliant with cotton-t1annel dragons,
Japanese young men and women, half
moons, and hieroglyphics reigned in its
stead. Mrs. Dodd was ready for the
neighbors.
mercy sakes alive!" calculated Mrs.
Jerry, who had come in with her
darning for a little gossip. "What on
earth have you got arranging up there?
and where's your door gone9n
THAT? 0, that's only portiere," as
if portiere in Mllvillage was the most
common thing in the world.
GA what! 1t looks like a side-show at
the circus, or a poster.''
Everybody don't take to 'em when
they first see en- Uttered Lucinda.
Father didn't. Folks have to be edu-
Gated up to 'em, like eating tomatoes
"a portiere, did you say? Where'd
you get the ideer?''
" It's French word,' said Mrs. Tom,
as if French were her daily speech. cit
came from France
Pity it hadn't stayed there. 1t
must let in sight of cold air.
ience,' returned Mrs. Tom, loftily.
at amt to be sneezed at" said
Lucinda
AS luck would have it, however,
cold snap set in about this time. Mrs.
Dodd piled on the coal and shivered
surreptitiously.
Your INTERCHANGEABLE don't
seem to keep out the cold like a door,
suggested Mrs. Jerry in another of her
neighborly calls. II don't believe
they'll be popular in Millvillage.''
They're popular at Lawyer Brownies
and in the first families to Hingham,'
returned her sister-in-law.
'.Well, pose they have a furnace
there. and the price Of coal ain t no con-
sequence to 'em. For my part, |
conscience to waste Jerry's substance in
a portiere.
If Mrs. Dodd had wished to set the
neighborhood agog she succeeded; Mill
village wasn't used to esthetic ideas.
and the report that she had taken door
off the hinges and hung up curtain in
its stead seemed to their unenlightened
minds the height Of absurdity.
''But it really does look ever so
pretty" said one genial soul at the sew
ing circle" only my teeth chartered in
my head all the time stayed at Miss
Dodd's."
"Lucindy tells me it's new-fangled
notion they got up to Hingham; she
says it's all around there, as if it was
the measles. It's what they call art
Decoration" explained Mrs. Lutte
string, the milliner.
"Art iddlesticks,'' snapped Mrs.
Jerry, "the art of taking cold, l reckon.
Pameley had the doctor last night and
a mustard plaster! l calkilate she's
decorated with blister by this time"
I'm afeared Miss Dodd's getting
dreadful worldly to be SO took up with
coffee-bagging and cotton-hannel when
there's missionary work to be DONE"
sighed old Mrs. Preacher.
'.Miss Dood's got gentility on the
BRAIN put in the village dressmaker.
"She wants to lead the fashions in Mill
village
Il thing it's our duty to get up pc
tition and ask her to hev the door hung
again, seeings the sewing society's 60
ing to meet there next week; it wouldn't
be convenient for all of us to hev the
infuenzy together,'' suggested the Pres
ident of the society.
..It's flying in the face of Provi-
dence," suggested Mrs. Jerry.
But before the week ended Aunt Han
nah dropped in from Nearield to make
Mrs. Dodd visit, as the weather had
moderated.
Il thought I'd take advantage Of the
warm SPELL" she exclaimed. ''You see
I'm going over to bingham next week
to hev Lawyer Browne make my will,
and I thought I'd stop awhile along
with you, Pameley, on my way. You
know" she continued, dropping into a
whisper as though the heirs were all at
her elbow, elf I DOM make it-and it
seems as if [ was old enough--every-
thing'n go to his folks! seeing's I'm
only your aunt-in-law, having married
your own uncle Roger Hill for my first
husband and nv goOd-for-nothing cous-