Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1883-11-07

Wolui Dul uoWn III lhS W''p Ctllui, II
minute later, she sobbed over the pota.
TO barrel as if her heart would break.
Her sisters remarks had filed her with
a vague apprehension and grief which
she could not throw OFF. And there was
something a little singular about il.
Both these women had always been OF
a deeply religious cast of mind. They
had studied the Bible faithfully, ii not
understandingly, and their religion had
strongly tinctured their daily life. They
knew almost as much about the Old
Testament prophets as they did about
their neighbors; and that was saying n
good deal of two single women in a
New England country town. Still this
religious element in their natures could
hardly have been termed spirituality.
1t deviated from that as much as any
thing of religion--which is in one way
spirituality itself-cou!d.
Both sisters were eminently practical
in all affairs of life, down to their very
dreams, and Priscilla especially so.
She had dealt in religion with the bare
facts of s.n and repentance, future pun
ishment and reward. She had dwelt
very little, probably. upon the poetic
splendors of the Eternal City, and
talked about them still less. Indeed,
she had always been reticent about her
religious convictions, and had said very
little about them even to her sister.
The two women, with God in their
thoughts every moment, seldom had
spoken His name TO each other. For
Priscilla to talk in the strain that she
had to-day, and for a week or two pre-
vious, off and on, was, from its extreme
deviation from her usual custom, GER
tainly startling.
Poor Mary, sobbing over the potato
barre, thought it was n sign of APP
preaching death. She had few super
stitious-llke gratis upon her practical,
commonplace character.
She wiped her eyes finally, and went
upstairs with her tin basin of potatoes,
which were carefully washed and put to
soak by the time her sister came in with
the empty basket.
AT twelve exactly the two sat down
to dinner in the clean kitchen, which
was one OF the two rooms the cottage
boosted The narrow entry ran from
the front door to the back. On one side
was the kitchen and liying-room; on the
other, the room where the sisters slept.
There were two. small unfinished lofts
overhead, reached by 81 slep-ladder
through little scuttlc in the entry cell
ing, and that was all besides. The sis
tiers had earned the cottage and paid
for it years before, by working as tail
dresses. They had quite snug sum in
the bank besides. which they had saved
out of their hard earnings. There was
so hard, people said but work hard they
did, and work hard they would rs long
rs they lived. The mere habit of worl;
had become as necessary to them rs
breathing.
Just as soon rs they had finished their
meal and cleared away the dishes they
put on some clean starched purple
prints, which were their afternoon
dresses, and seated themselves at the
two front windows with their work. the
house faced southwest, so the sunlight
strcamed through both. 1t was n very
wa"m day for the season, and the win.
dows were open. In the yard outside
great clumps of lilac bushes stood close
to both. They grew on the other side
of the front door, too; II little later the
low cottage would look half buried in
them. The shadows of their leaves
made dancing network over the
freshly washed yellow lloor
The two sisters sat there and scwed
on some coarse vests all the afternoon
Neither made remark often. The
room, with its glossy little cooking
stove, its eight-day clock on the mantel
its chintz-cushioned rocking-chairs, and
the dancing shadows of the lilac leave,
on its yellow floor, looked pleasant and
peaceful.
just before six o'clock neighbol
dropped in with her cream pitcher tC
borrow some milk for tea, and she sal
down for a minutes chat after she haC
got it filed. They had been talking 8
few moments on neighborhood topics
when all of sudden Priscilla let hcl
work fall and raised her hand. "HushI
whispered she.
The other two stopped talking, anC
listened, staring at her wonderingly
but they could hear nothing.
"What Is it, Miss Priscilla?n asked
the neighbor, with round blue eyes
She was pretty young thing, who haC
not been married long.
"Hush! Don't speak. Don't you heal
that beautiful music?' Her ear wa
inclined toward the open window, he
hand still raised warningly, and he
eyes fixed on the opposite wall beyond
them.
Mary turned visibly paler than he
usual dull paleness, and shudderod. a.
don't hear any music" she said. "DC
you, Miss Moore?"
MOO" replied the caller, he
simple little face beginning to put on
scared look, from vague sense of
mystery she could not fathom.
Mary Brown rose and went to tn,
door, and looked eagerly up and dow
the street. There ain no organ-ma
in sight anywhere" said she, return
ing, IAN can't hear any music an
Miss Moore can't, an we're both sharl
enough o hearin'. You're jist imagin
in it, sister"
Il never imagined anything in m
liie," returned the other, "an' it aim
likely I'm goin' to begin now. It's tn
DtuulllulcSb HUSH. ~ COHlcS lIOIll Owe
the orchard there. Can't you hear il
But it seems TO me it's CROWN littl
fainter like now. l guess it's movin
off, perhaps
Mary Brown set her lips hard. Tn
giief and anxiety she had felt latcl
turned suddenly TO unrcasoning ange
against the cause of it; through he
very love she fired with quick wrath a
the beloved object. Still she did no
say much, only; Il guess it must b
movin' off," with laugh, which ma,
an unpleasant ring in it.
After the neighbor had gone, howev
er, she said more, standing before he
sister with her arms folded SQUARED
across her bosom. "Now, Priscill
Brown" she exclaimed, II think IT,
about time to put stop to this Nv
heard about enough Of il. What d
you s'pose Miss Moore thought of you
Next thing it'll be all over town tina
you're gittin' spiritual notions. To
day it's music that nobody else ca
haor ari voetorIav vou sn,ollpI rosoe