Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1882-05-31

utterly stupid thug as cutting across
lots, vaulting the back fence aud present.
ing himself at Mr.. Lawson's back door,
at an hour when he was supposed to be
calmly eating chicken off Mrs. Martin
best china.
The Lawsons were about to partake Of
their evening meal. Mr.. Lawson, Sam,
and John, were already at their places.
Mrs. Lawson was arranging the cups
and saucers, and Mary Jane was filing
up the teapot, preparatory to sitting
down, when the double rap was heard at
the door. ''The Grimes's to borrow
something Iwish we could get through
one meal without them, said Mrs. Law
son, tucking her soiled apron aside, as
she went to open the door.
Before she gets it open, ] would like
to introduce you little more fully to the
Lawson family, that you may under
stand how matters stood on that Novem-
Der evening, when fate sent Mr.. Dent to
tAsir back door.
Mr.. Lawson was an intelligent, we'll
to-doman, honest in his dealings, social
in his relations with his fellow-men, and
OF considerable influence in the church.
Mrs. Lawson was kind and motherly, in
valuable In sick room, and an authority
on all matters relating to pickles and
preserves. Mary Jane was quite a
society leader, and her way of preparing
her dresses and doing up her hair was
always accepted as "style by her girl
friends. The boys were good natured
and fond of fun, and were decidedly
popular, as such boys are apt to be.
AS family, they would have been re-
garded as perfect, if it had not been for
bad habit which they had-too COM
mon with a great many other people-of
putting the best foot foremost.
When company was coming, they
spared themselves no labor or trouble,
that everything might be as pleasant as
possible. They scrubbed and swept and
busted with will, got down their
best glassware. and the spoons and
forks which constituted their stock of
silver, until they shone again; ransacked
their brains to invent dishes which should
please the palate, and have an abiding
place in the memory of their guests for
ever; arrayed themselves in their best,
talked their best, acted their best; in
short they did verything-cheerfull
add to the general pleasure.
But when they were alone it was differ
ent. 1t took SO much work to keep the
parlor In order, and it was such a trou-
BILE to carry everything in and out of the
dining room, and it was such a bother
to dress twice a day. So as a general
rule, they took their meals in the kitchen,
and spent their evenings. when at home,
huddled around the cheerful kitchen
stove, and their toilets were not what is
usually regarded as evening dress, and,
moreover, they were apt to betray the
manner Of work In which the wearer had
been engaged during the day; the folds,
and creases, too, gathered and retained
all the pleasant odors of the kitchen, so
that any one with the acute sense of
smell might have given the Lawson's
daily bill of fare to dot.
On this particular evening, things
were little worse than usual, for they
were saving themselves for tomorrow,
when the whole house was to be put in
order, to dc honor to the new pastor.
You can imagine, much better than I
can describe, Mrs. Lawson's feelings
when the opened door revealed to her
astonished gaze, not the familiar, dirty
visage of John Grimes, but the hand
some, smiling countenance of their new
minister. She retreated a step, then
stood smiling in silent dismay at the IN
expected visitor Mr.. Lawson and the
boys scrambled up and began to look for
their coats, while Mary Jane added to
the general interest of the scene by pour
ing stream of hot tea on the back of the
sleeping cat, who, with loud "meow,"
at being so rudely wakened, started in
straight line for the door, MIR. Dent in
voluntarily stepping aside to let it pass.
At this critical juncture Mrs. Lawsons
wits returned to her. Stepping forward,
she shook hands with Mr.. Dent. assur-
ing him that he made no difference, and
that she was real glad to see him--a
breach of truth, by the way, for which
she suffered many conscience pang.
Mr.. Lawson blundered promptly after
her, and was likewise called to account
by his conscience. Sam took his hat
and coat and deposited them on the
dusty table in the next room, while
Johnny obligingly moved along to make
room for a plate, knife and fork, which
Mary Jane had brought from the cup
board, behind whose screening doors she
had remained long enough to tear down
the row of curl papers across her fore
head, and to tuck the ends smoothly
away.
Mr.. Dent saw through it all at once.
His experience in boarding houses and
"as one of the family" had been wide
and varied and included more than one
presentation of the ''worst as well as
the "best foot" He fell sorry for them
all, especially the pretty young girl,
whose scarlet cheeks and downcast eyes
told how keenly she telt the awkwardness
of the situation in which his thoughtless-
ness had placed them. Nevertheless he
managed to make hearty meal. The
plain bread, and fresh, sweet butter, the
cold, juicy meat and simple sauce were a
great deal more to his taste than the
heavy, indigestible food to which he had
been accustomed of late.
Little it mattered to him just then.
that the tablecloth was on awry, besides
bearing the marks of several days usage,
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