Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1884-11-08
THE STORY OF A BEAN BAG.

A little fourteen-ye school girl o
this city writes the following story for girl
and boys which she wishes published anc
which rcads.-ED. EAGLE.
II was great many years ago when Ra
chel was a little girl. Her mother was very
poor, and she had no father. Rachel anC
her mother lived in an old house that be-
longed TO Rachels grandfather,
People said that Rachel's grandfather wal
miser, that he had a great deal of gold dust
hid away somewhere in the old house. Peo
pie used 10 say that, but at last they quit
saying ii, because they thought if there wa:
such a thing, Rachel's mother would find it
and she never had found 1t vet. Well, TO sc
with my story, Rachel and her mother
lived in an old housc-l say it was old, yes
ii was very old. Ii had once been n very
nice house, but that has been long time age
The roof at the back part Of the house had
fallen in, ard in another portion Of the house
the floor shook when YOU walked on it. The
window panes We're all broken out and and
Rachefs mother had to stick rags and pa
per in them TO keep out the cold. The
house had once had fine furniture in il, but
most of it was broken up, and then Rachel's
mother was sick so much that she had &c
sell everything that they could do without
The mother worked whenever she could
In the summer she pieced quilts and in the
-,,,.n H., h.. ,l-ss .,v lar
neighbors.
When Rachel WAS seven years old she
went to school and she loved to go to
school, she was bright little girl and
learned very quickly. To be sure she often
did not have the books she needed and her
clothes often looked shabby and threadbare.
But then as she was such a kind, obliging
little girl. the other scholars were perfectly
willing she should study with them, and as
TO her clothing, why nobody ever thought
about that, they were always clean. In a
certain time of the year all the little girls
played bean bag. Rachel wanted bean
bag. of course. She spoke to her mother
several times about it. but her mother
was always So. busy that she did not have
TO make it. she WAS often obliged to sew or
knit in the night, when little Rachel was in
bed and fast asleep. One morning Rachel's
mother sent her up in the garnet to get some
particular thing that She wanted. So
Rachel climbed the old ricketv stairs, that
shook with her light weight, and opened
the squeaky door and entered. and as she
did so il must be confessed that feeling of
fear came over tho little girl. Everything
seemed TO be covered with cobwebs. and
several great spiders ran up the wall when
they heard her. But Rachel never thought
of turning back, for she knew it was her
duty 10 obey her mother. She got what
she wanted and thought she would
look around her. There were old
books and chests and great hair
trunks, broken chairs. and three-legged
stools, and old, musty. moth-eaten garments
hanging on the walls. She thought she
would Lift up the lid of one of the trunks.
She did so. Oh, how large il seemed She
thoughtlessly put her hand down to the bot
tom. and as she did SO it seemed that board
in the bottom of the trunk flew mp at one
end. 1t seemed to have a false bottom, for
there was something, garments. jus, below
the board that few up. Rachel lifted up sew
eral Of the boards and took out the things that
were below them. they consisted of pair Of
old overalls, coat and vest and that WAS all
except small bag about the size Of a bean
bag. "Oh. it is just thing for bean bag"
said Rachel. Just then she heard her moth
or calling her, and she hurriedly put the