The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1884-06-06
THE FESTIVAL AT WILLoWDRooK.

hoS W Auh SiAooeiAy ~ NlA1oWDIOoks
A new complication has arisen since
our memorable donation party-a COM
plication which bids fair to end in the
withdrawal of the new minister, Mr..
Ormsby's successor, a staid bachelor of
a doubtful age.
1t had been decided that the church
needed painting, and to this end a
peach festival was suggested and agreed
upon with great %unanimity.
Much to my W regret, I was absent
from the village ct the time of the festi-
val, so as DOL as possible after my re-
turn 1 ran over to see Miss Melissa,
feeling confident that I should find her
as usual, a faithful chronicler, nor was
l disappointed. A few questions soon
brought out the whole story.
cit was too bad, as You say, Miss Har-
wood, that you couldn't have been here,
but law! the festival wa a terrible dis
appointment after all, for we didn't
make anything to signify. I could have
told 'em so beforehand, for I knew Jest
how it would turn out when those girls
took the management instead of lettin'
Aunt Betsy and me be at the head, as
we'd always been used to dom
cts no wonder we felt kinder hurt
about it, for I don't remember a death
or a weddin' or II christenin' in the vii
lage that we hadn't had our say about
in time past, and to see ourselves made
of no account in that way was enough to
provoke a saint.
"Of course ] knew it was all done for
Mr.. Aliens sake-that comes OF havin'
a bachelor for n minister, Miss Har-
wood-though why girls should want to
set their caps for a man old enough to
be their father l can't understand. If
Mr.. Allen wanted a wife land it's my
opinion that every minister does want a
wife to look after HIM he ought to have
had n chance to choose for himself
among those that was suitable, and
goodness knows there amt many to pick
from in this village! But instid o flet-
tim the man alone those girls have act
ed shameful from the very tirst-goin'
regular to Sunday-school and sincin'
class and what not, and stoppin' every
day to ask about Miss Bruce's sick child
jest because the minister was boardin'
there-no, I never "a sech forwardness
in my life. And lie (men is such fools)
took it all for pure goodness! Didn't /
hear him q talkin' one night at Deacon
Stiles about the sympathies of young
hearts, and the sweet mission of the
fair comforters, and all the time I was
sendin' Jelly and soft custard to the
house and Miss Bruce too ungrateful to
mention it again!
But this amt neither here nor there,
SO l must jest get back to the peach fes-
tival. 1t W s mostly settled before you
went away. Miss HARDWOOD, that we was
to hold it Ill the schooihouse, because
some of us thought that mebbe it wasn't
solemn enough to hold in the church,
but afterwards we had q meetin', and
agreed to take up the carpets and take
out the pew cushions, and SO have it in
the church after all.
1. was held on the last Thursday in
August, you know, and every one was
to send acake or ice cream or peaches,
accordin' to their ability, and we calki-
lated to make considerable on the sell
lin, as we should, if Aunt Betsy and me
had been let alone.
"But when | went over to the church
that Thursday mornin' to go to work,
there was Sally Stiles. and Lyddy Hall
and the two Davis girls, and that red
headed Mary Jones and her cousin
Mandy all there ahead of me sweepin'
and dustin and movin' things round as
if they was the head of the church
themselves. When / began to tell EN-
what to do, Lyddy Hall jest laughs and
says, says she: You needn't trouble
yourself, Miss Melissa, we young folks
will take charge, and let the old folks
rest a SPELL THAT girl thinks every
body's old but herselfD Sure enough
they wouldn't let me have q thing to
say about settin' the table, and they
each had a big rosette made to pin on
their shoulders! Great managin' they
made to be sure. However, I made 'em
know I wouldn't give up the tea and
coffee, so Lyddy says: Well then, you
a help unpack the dishes if
you like, and Aunt Betsy may
dust 'em off, That to mel
aJustthen Aunt Betsy comein, and I
can tell you, Miss Harwoodit was a lthat
we could do to keep things straight, and
get the cake cut v and the peaches
all peeled. | told Ralph that night
when l was gettin' ais supper, that l
didn't know as I'd ever done q harder
days work in my life, but for all that I
hurried and dressed myself, and was
back to the church in time to light the
lamps, for I knew we'll enough hat
those girls would prink and prink, and
SO they did.
well, by eight o'clock everybody'd
got there, and the sellin' begun very
brisk, and Us / said before, if Aunt
Betsy and me had been alone it would
have gone on brisk to the end, but
lawl those six creatures just spoiled
everything.
when Mr.. Allen come in he walked
right over to where ] was q pourin' tea
and coffee, and made as though he wa
goin' to set there q spell, and with that
Sally Stiles aud the two Davis girls jest
crowded themselvesdown into the same
corner and began to talk SO fast that no
one else could got q word in edgeways.
But when Mandy and Mlry Jones and
Lyddy Hall jined in I jest told EN-
their room was better then their com
pany, thinkin' they'd take the hint.
Now you'd hardly guess what
they dld-they went and sot on
the platform in front of the pulpit,
takin' the minister with 'em of course,
and there they kept up such o laughin'
and chattern' as You never saw. preten-
din to wait on MI. Allen, bringin' him