The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1883-03-22
Miss Whittaker's Blankets

Miss Whittaker's Blankets.
BIZ MK>. c. NJ. LIVINGSTON.
Miss Rachael Whitaker, as the years
mt by, found herself sole occupant of
old family homestead Father and
rher had lived their long honored
h~ finished their work, and entered
il rest. Brothers and sisters had one
a. another made for themselves new
hes and gone their different ways.
NJ Rachel had passed safely through
thomances of youth and settled down
to per middle-aged life. she had also
reSad all persuasions OF friends to sell
thel place and make her home with
sonne Of the various families. BE
cau;here is no man in the case" said
MisN hittaker - with a Slightly con
temlous emphasis on the man ~ us
no ron Why | should not have a home
Of mWn."
Soc went on in the cid Whitaker
mans with the same ztst and order as
if theusehold numbered half dozen.
lnsteat single lone female and her
serNdl There was the same punctilious
regard times and seasons The house
cleanllpdroNysm invariably came on a
certdlny of the month, the Monday s
wash tied in the wind, and the Satur-
days Ing sent forth spicy odors as
regulars they had done for the last
forty ye The cellar continued to be
stocked ch autumn with MERGERS
and :" P-eyes," with screenings and
: Spitzergs," with - Golden Pippino'
and "Po' Sweets" The closet shelves
contalneNeir due amount Of riches !;
rows ot and glasses, filled with
/ peaches, rs, ounces and iellies. In
short, evthin& pertaining TO good
/ cheer was seralIy brimming over.
And NJ Rachel fed her chickens,
counted heggs, watered her plants,
and patterop stains and down. or sat
IN her larsunny room and read her
books and lazines, or clicked her knit
ting needle the ticking of the tall old
clock. or, gathered a few friends
about her IA social tea drinking, or.
lung vide tdoors of the house to a
troop OF necnd nephews. It was not
alone that ) Whitaker was fond Of
company, pu was pleasant to keep up
the oJd Gust 1t was a pittul at
tempt TO hllDack, as far as possible,
the OId lllneS.t was easier. when gay
chatter and ny pratte filled the
rooms, to see whitc-h haired father
and mother, as Id, in their arm chairs
bI the llIesldc. he most prosaic have
vein Of Sentm somewhere. Rachel
NhlttaKers toois form ; She guarded
Win reverence amounted to idola-
try every ohlect ! principle belonging
to those TWO. Htther's old hat occu-
pied the identical on which he him.
self hung it the time he went out.
Ana Mothef dag basket stood on
the little stand, balls and thimble
ana glasses; the NE stuck in the ball
OF blue yarn just re her own fingers
placed 1t so long And SO, house
keeping was SoInetl more than minis
teflng 10 hef own is or entertaining
lrlends; II was Ma things go Oh as
they would like t. them 90 on.
This devoted dau,r WAS Careful as
well, 70 direct the lly benevOlences
into the well-worn lnnels in which
they were accustOl to r1n. The
church subscription the contribu
tiOns to home and tCn missions. and
the various " boardSere as faithfully
attended to as if SqlWhittaker still
sat at the head Of his.
She even loved anerpetuated her
fathers prejudices, alas too ant. like
him, to have more synbv for the nm.
fortunate in B0CrObo0l4 than for those
AT ner own 200. ont5 prone to set
all these down as o diem or " shift
less However, she mot much on
portunlty 10 cultivate tface of charity
in home work, as neaaU the LITTLE
community We're Well-tC
one Of Miss Rachels Is as q GOOD
, housekeeper was to eat the laroe
: stock Of bedding, packetav in trunks
, and closets, was aired atiuent inter
!, walls. 1t was more than sdant for the
needs Of large family-.the Whitta-
ker family was large omen gather
ed in the old home at Th,ajvjne and
: the holidays. One day inv winter
'just the right sort of a for airing
l oed-clotEes, SO warm anught,' Miss
i Rachel declared : the linz the ward
were filled with blanketsjlts. com
fortables, etc, and the piaroofs were
adorned with feather beds s)illovs.
~ Among the passers- BIAS Mrs
:, Barnes. She lived in thole gray
weather beaten house justder the
. hill. She was neither sass no,
# drunken, yet she was pit. poor
and was widow as well, three
j; little children. She could "dthouoh
> to "beg" she was ashamed, anlnaged
by hard work and much pil,g and
e stintng to piece out a living hat a
s tempting sight was this goodl,ay tc
$ the half frozen woman. Nobknev
q but herself how hard she had tlo oe,
e enough bedding together for thntcr
how she had saved every old S anC
3 pieced it up and eked out the cowitl
"a newspapers that she had secufrou
Miss Rachel; and yet, with all tbt
le old house was so open it was goll bf
f. hard work to keep warm in the lool(
Te nights.
# She stood and looked at tho,ft
G double blankets and thick comtoLs
and said to berseli, "What t il
IN must be, eh, to have such lots Oh
'e clothes, to pile on as many as you h
*, so and be warm as toast all night 4
two, three, four, five, six, seven-l'
know how many blankets, double a
and ever and ever so many conn
h, tables, besides quilts and spreads.
u there she is with all them warm t
II. and nobody to keep warm but he
q and here be, with three little chi
.Ie and no warm things. Oh, dear
couldn't the two a gone together 81
re- like to know" Then she brushed
We a tear with the corner Of her shaw
went on her way.
Miss Whitaker sat near the side
rs dow and noticed that the Widow b
ed stopped and looked over the
les Somehow she didn't like to see
y" standing there, her thin dress bl'