McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1883-10-18

Presently Lney drove up 10 comfort
able house, with an air of plenty about
the large barn and wide porch, over
which grew white lilac. Molly found
her mistress little woman with faded,
eyes, and soft, slow voice. She looked
at the girl kindly, and held out her
hand. After giving her few direc-
tions, and telling her where to find
things, she added to her husband, "Tell
John to carry her trunk to the east
chamber Tkis apparently was some
thing unusual, for the Squire opened
his mouth as though to say something,
but being a man of few words, shut it
again, and went out.
Molly, following her trunk found her.
self in small room, V !th bright rag
carpet on the floor, white curtains
| looped away at the window, homemade
linen towels with knotted fringe on the
little table, an old fashioned chest of
drawers, and low four-posted bed
with valance and patchwork counter
pane. The room was neat, but had an
unused look, and Molly wondered if the
tribe of girls of which the Squire had
made mention had marched through it
but, too tired to think long, she I'M
packed her small wardrobe, said her
prayers, and knew nothing more till
morning, when a thrilling of birds and a
ray of sunshine on her face woke er to
her first day of service as a ''domestic. )"
While making her simple toilette she
gave many quick glances at the pillows
ofapple blossoms under her window, land
something born of the light and fra
GRANGE and music was reflected in her
face as she took her way to the kitchen.
The wood and kindlings were near at
hand, the fire started off briskly with a
cheerful air of encouragement, and then
Molly considered her bill-of-fare. There
was salt mackerel, eggs, stale bread,
the inevitable salt pork, doughnuts and
pie, and pan of cream whose yellow
wrinkled surface bore testimony to the
Squire's Jersey.
"That mackerel won't be fried" said
Molly,for the course of frying at Widow
Jackman's had been severe. The fin
gers that had measured lace and ribbon
so deity made short work of getting
breakfast, and the Squire, coming in
from his strawberry bed with pan full
of ssWilsons," found it about ready.
But somehow his table had an I'M
familiar look. The cloth was on
straight, the knives and forks were laid
with mathematical precision, an I'M
wonted air of trimness pervaded his
familiar crockery, .and-there was no
pie on the table. But there was
mackerel baked in cream, and mashed
potatoes, and nicely Drowned toast, and
the doughnuts.
s'Msss Harlow don't feel able to come
out to the table this morning, and 1
guess I'll take her a bite before I eat"
And so saying the Squire took aplate,
and commenced piling things on it in
a promiscuous way.
"Oh," said Molly, ''let me do it. I
have had a long experience with sick
people. They must be tempted, you
know"
She looked up at him with her bright
smile, and the Squire gave in at once,
and watched with wonder while tray
was brought, clean napkin spread
over it, a piece of the mackerel laid on
plate, with the cream Labeled dainty
over it (Molly had seen too much of
plates where the meat seemed to have
been launched on them by an avalanche
of gravy; then came little plate of
the potatoe, slice of brown toast,
little plate of butter, a cup of coffee,
knife, fork, spoon, etc. Then she
whisked into the pantry, and out again
with a saucer of strawberries, and add
ed them to the contents of the tray.
"Wait a minute" she said, as the
Squire lifted his burden, and in twink
ling she was out of the door and back
again with a spray of white lilac,
which, in tall glass, was given the
place of honor in the middle of the
tray.
'Sho!" said the Squire, with his slow
smile, 'sthat ill just suit my wife. She's
famous for having things fxy."
Mrs. Harlow had missed the accus-
toned smell of frying, and wondered in
a feeble way if Molly couldn't find the
pork.
"Why, Bethuel," she said, las her hus-
band set the tray down beside her,
show pretty! 1 really believe IL am
hungry"
And the Squire went back to his own
breakfast SO happy that he entirely for
got the absence of the pie.
Well, this was the beginning, and
though life afterward was not all cream
and Strawberries and white ilacs, and
though bread would sometimes burn,
and pastry fatty refuse to be faky, and
though unused muscles sometime ached
with the new work, yet the girl kept up
brave. heart. The Squire and his
wife were uniformly kind, and the lat
ter, who had suffered as much from
lack of cheerful society as from any
physical cause, gradually grew stronger
and would sit through the long summer
forenOons in the GREAT airy kitchen.