The Republican journal., 1883-08-23
A Guest at Home.
y SARAH ORNE JEwETT.

Late in the afternoon of June day,
tlred-lOoking, middle-aged woman stood
IN the low doorway of an old farm house.
shading her eyes with her hands and
watching the lane anXiously, as if she
were in a great hurry to see some one
coming. Once or twice she went into
the house to look at the fire and to make
sure that everything was in order for
supper. The table was already set and
there were signs that it was more than
an ordinary occasion in the household
IL don't suppose she'll come anyway"
called a despairing voice from an inner
room, and Mrs. Hollis looked discouraged
for minute, and then went to the door
of the bedroom and looked in.
''Oh, yes, Annie will be here, Aunt
Harriet; she wouldn't disappoint us.
think likely that the cars are late The
boys are way down to the end of the lane;
told them to be there so as to open and
shut the gate. 1t seems as if they
couldn't wait to see Annie. Poor child
DO hope she's going to be cOntented.
| expect it'll be u great change for her.
81 never did think in was any kind
ness, for my part grumbled Aunt Har-
riet. 81 don't care if Henry was your
brother, if he had given her couple of
quarters schooling to some of the acade-
mics near by, she'd a got Just as much good
exactly, and 'twouldn't have put none O
these high notions into her head. She'd
have settled down and kept school some
where near here, but now she'll always
be wanting to get back among city folks,
and all that painting of hers is all non
sense. Id like to know what good it's
going to do her, after all's said and done.
| expect she'll come home and be so high
and mighty there won't be no living with
her," and the poor old SOU, who was half
paralyzed, and who had also a temper
that was much wrapped and twisted, gave
her head an angry tWitch and fairly push
ed Il pillow Oft the bed to the floor.
"Thls hot weathers real trying for you,
Aunt Harriet ;" said Mrs. Hollis, good
naturedly, us she crossed the room to
pick it up. Al should think all these
blankets would be too heavy Don't let's
worry about Annie until we find there's
something TO make us, Pm sure she will
do the best she can, and she don't seem
to have lost her interest in home, if we
can tell anything hy her letters"
'l'm all Of a shiyer,' said the old lady,
complainingy. ~ don't see how you
can talk about its being hot. You
needn't stop with me" and Mrs. Hollis
waited for no second dismissal, but hur-
ried back to the door again to watch for
the wagon. The boys were shouting and
chasing each other up the lane, and in
the distance she could see the old red
horse trotting slowly along the crooked
byway, and her heart began to beat
very fast: she did not know whether to
hurry forward to meet her daughter, who
seemed almost like a stranger, and a
guest, in her own home. She had been
away almost three years, living with an
uncle and since he had sent her to Il city
boarding school she had spent the vaca-
tions in travelling, or at his house in New
York.
AS they drove nearer, Mrs. Hollis look
ed anXiously at her husbands face to see if
he were pleased with his daughter and
his expression was most satisfactory. He
looked almost as if be had pleasant sur
PRISE for his wife, and as if he were not
at all embarrassed or dismayed. The
girl who sat beside looked happy and eX-
pectant and as if she We're not bit sOrry
to come home again, and Mrs. Hollis said,
eagerly, ''There, / am so glad to have
you back Annie" and her daughter
sprang quickly down and hurried to meet
her, while the two boys, who had been
most enthusiastic and daring a few min
utes before went rapidly towards the
barn together, being much dismayed at
the sight of such well dressed and ele-
CANT sister.
"Look here, Jack and Lonny," she
said, after she had kissed her mother half
a dozen times, "arent you coming to
speak to me? | can't believe it's you
You have grown So" and being thus
summoned they came awkwardly back
two freckled, clumsy, great fellows Of
twelve and fourteen. N"They're a little
shy tonight said their mother Ito make
up for the coldness of their welcome),
'but they haven't been able to put their
minds to anything for day or two, they
were 50 pleased about your coming"
"I'll make friends with them fast
enough" said Annie. 90, mother, there
are so many things | want to tell you
that don't know where to begin ~
"Nou bad better 60 in and see your
Aunt Harriet, / guess, said Mrs. Hollis,
''she's been looking forward to your com
ing. | expect she'll be aggravating !;
sometimes she is to all of u.s." she added,
in an uneasy whisper. ''You can sit with
her few minutes and I'll put tea on the
table it's all ready" and they went into
the house together.
For all her pleasure in getting back to
her own family, our heroine felt little
distressed and homesck, as she entered
the low doorway. She had been living
in handsome city house for a good many
months, and somehow the ceremony and
luxury of city life had seemed always
familiar to her, and she had adapted her
| self to it without the slightest trouble.
| She had always been a little impatient
| from her childhood of the bare walls, and
| the plain, hard life Of the farm. She was
| by nature refined, and she had been deli
cate so that her father and mother had
taken great care of her, and had made
life as easy for her as they could. The
ministers wife had taken great interest
in her, and she had made some visits in
New York, and her uncle's family had
tried to make her promise to live with
them altogether. People had said that
| Is was PITY SO bright girl, Win Sucn
appreciation of the things that can be
found in better houses and in the more
artistic and cultivated society Of city,
! should be forced to live in dull farming
| town, where there would be so little COM
panlonship and sympathy.
Annie Hollis knew that these things
were said by her friends, and at first she
pitied herself very much and she dread
ed more and more going home to live.
She wished that every month Of her
school life might be a year But one
night when she could not go to sleep, she
I thought it all over, and somehow she
| began to see it in different light She
saw that there would not be very much
for her to take, but there might be a
great deal that she could give. She re-