Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1883-02-14
/" Kept Back"

A pale, thiDly-clad woman, with a shrink
ing aspect, as if half ashamed of what she
was doing, recently applied to member of
charitable society in one of our large
cities, for "relief ticket" Evidently she
was not in the habit of asking charity, and
inquiry brought out the hesitating COM
plant | should not need help if could
only get the money due me; if Mrs. b.
would only pay me regularly" How
much does she owe you 2" "Thirteen dol
lars, all for washing and ironing. have
asked for it until | am ashamed. She always
says, haven't the change now;' or, Il am
busy just now. Come another time But
my children must have clothes and food"
Does Mrs. B., living in fine brown stone
house, surrounded by every luxury, ever
imagine what misery the loss of thirteen
dollars can bring to washerwoman Or.
if not the permanent loss of it, the mere de-
lay of payment? A weary seamstress, 10
whom ill-health had come from her confn.
ing work, confessed the other day that her
hardest task was collecting her wages from
wealthy ladies who employed her. "They
never seem to think about paying me-" she
said. al have to ask for the money, and
then they hardly ever have the change
They are kind enough, or mean to be but
OlIcn Cdu Bob my pdy ioI Wccho nhu
| months. wonder how they suppose pay
for my medicines and room-rent2 Now
there's Mrs. NJ, who owes me for four
weeks sewing, but l can't get it." Aud
she added bitterly, al have no money to
draw out of the bank, and this pain in my
side is growing worse every day" Poor
| little seamstress As the binding tears
dimmed her still swiftly.hying needle, who
can tell what hard thoughts were filling
her heart towards the lady who, in her
own circle, was known as genial, kind, and
| Christian 2 Yes, Mrs. M. was a church
member; regularly in her pew on Sunday,
and seldom absent from the weekly prayer
meeting. She was prominent in various
charitable societies, and was really woman
of kindly feelings. But, always negligent
in money matters, she had grown habitually
thoughtless concerning those employed by
her. She seldom kept in mind the time
when her cooks" month was up" And
when the girl ventured to ask for her wages
she would reply with easy nonchalance: "Oh
yes, to be sure I'll get it of Mr.. M. tonight !
and most likely she gave no further thought
to the matter until another application came
which often met with no better success
Now, Mrs. M. would be amazed if she were
accused of cheating her cook, or of being
cruel 10 her seamstress. 1t never occurs tC
her that it is an insult to the faithful girl
whose wages for sewing amount to ten OF
twenty dollars, to respond to her timid
request for payment by offering, as if to {
beggar, dollar or two, with the careless
remark "That's all the change | have
now; remind me tomorrow, and I'll Civ,
you the rest" She does not even motto,
the blush of indignant shame that tinglei
on the cheek of the recipient, whose feel
ings are thus rudely wounded. If, in som,
of the strange reverses of life, Mrs. NJ
should ever taste the bitterness of poverty
she may then marvel at her present dullnes
of perception, at her cruel lack of prompt
ness, at her sinful careessness in treating
dependents. There is an army of silen
sufferers from this widespread evil. Fact
creep out now and then, revealing hov
many respected and wealthy ladies-no
are husbands, brothers, and sons guiltless-
( negligent in the payment of those whom
they employ. People who would neve
think of leaving unpaid, except by specis
arrangement, large debt to merchant
forget-to use the mildest term--to b
! equally honorable towards those who serv
, them just as faithfully on a smaller scal'
#. The poor who depend on daily earnings fo
| udlly Dftdu, WIN uhFo hothihb uP ~
emergencies, need prompt payments ia
D more than those whose happier judgmen
: has enabled them to save something for th
a future. Keep not the wages of the poo
Let all little bills as we'll as larger ones b
. settled. Pay not only the merchant, th
butcher and the grocer, but the cook an
0 the cobbler, the laundress and seamstres
' the errand boy, to whom is due, perhap
, but six pence. and the nurse-msid, frol
! whom in some emergency of neede
! "change you borrowed a "quarter." Yc
4 may be sure that the pennies which see
b of so little Importance to you have NJ
been forgotten by those TO whom the
are due. These may appear trivial matte
to some; but to a rightly sensitive CO.
y science small delinquencies of this XIII
9 must be humiliating. Forgetfulness
duty, when habitual, ceases to be me
= infirmity, and becomes sin, which brings
continual reproach upon the cause and nan
= of Christ.-Selected.