The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-09-30

a mission. You know mission means
work, and all can work some way"
''Well, Fan, as you seem to know so
much about it, let play you are mis-
sionary-sort of a woman preacher, you
know-and I'll be heathcner; and i'll
the course of your remarks inform your
benighted audience what great mission
| OF any other Brown has. Say you be-
gin at the head of the family, and take
us all in order down to the baby. There
is a lot of Browns, and maybe the con-
version or the conquering of the world
depends upon our family"
well, to begin" said Fannie, moth
ing daunted by the task assigned her,
though, like many another speaker, she
was altogether unprepared, ''there is
father and mother-but, Ben, what does
mortgage mean? | heard father tell
mother this morning that he would have
to mortgage the place to raise money to
pay off some debt, and they seemed in
so much trouble about it; and mother
said she couldn't help wishing the older
children were boys, so they could help
make a living; and there seemed to be
nothing for girls to do. I'll tell you
what it is, Ben, if / were as old and as
smart as Sue, I'd teach school, or some
thing"
Il think if you did you would have to
slick up little more than she does, and
comb your hair and put on clean col
lar once a week any way, or | wouldn't
be one of your pupils, you bet.''
For shame, Ben! Father says Sue
has more sense than all the rest of US
put together. And believe he thinks
she is the prettiest child he has, too, for
he often says she looks just like his
mother, and you know everybody's
mother is pretty"
"Well, maybe she is" said Ben; ''but
like to see girls like Nell and Dell
sort of fancy, you know-girls who
know how to comb their hair and fix
up"
"But father says Sue is filling her
head, while Nell and Dell are only orna-
menting the outside of THEIRS
''Well," began the beauty-loving Ben
again, eff had a good watch ID want
handsome case for it."
Strange revelations, all these, to the
silent girl at the window. The parents
trouble toprovide living; the probable
mortgage of the dear old home; her
father appreciation of herself; the NOR
bid selhShness with which she had shut
herself away from the family love and
sympathy, and the fact that she had
never made an effort to win the love, and,
with it, an influence over her gay young
brother-all came over her with rush,
that, had he known it, it would have
made Ben acknowledge that even that
toad had a mission, since it occasioned
the conversation that caused the tumult
in her thoughts.
Two hours later as the children stood
at the gate waiting for the family wagon,
they were joined by a tall girl, whose
long, black hair was arranged in glossy,
becoming braids, decorated with two
bright pink rosebuds, with another at
her throat, where a snowy white collar
was fastened, while her great, dark
eyes were cleaning with the light of a
new inspiration.
"Why, Sue"' exclaimed the impulslve
Ben, you look just like Mrs. Arson
this EVENING"" And the light in the
dark eyes grew brighter, for WASH Mrs.
Arson, the minister's Young wife,
known to be Ben's ideal of a queenly-
looking woman?
And two weeks later Mr. Brown lis
tened like one in dream to the gentle
manly trustee, who called to inform him
that his daughters application for the
district school had been accepted, and
the term would begin the following
Monday.
"What does it all mean?" he in
quired, turning to Sue, who had quietly
entered the room.
1T is the result of a short sermon
from a little woman preacher, named
Fanny Brown, which had the privilege
of listening to."-N Y. Observer.