The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-10-21
Miss Ruthless Charge.

take" said good Mrs. Manly, the
plump, matronly minister's wife, and
she smiled assuringly at Miss Ruthie's
grim face.
But Ruth Paul wasn't to be smiled
into anything in any such fashion.
"Why, Mrs. Manly, l don't know
any more about children than a cat
does about Sundayl' was her dry an
swer.
"Never mind that, Miss Ruthie, you
could learn. And this is just the place
for poor, tired, hungry little child.
You have big, empty house, a great,
cool, shady yard, plenty of fresh milk,
fruit, big garden, chickens, ducks,
everything a child loves! You might
take three or four"
"And they would chase the ducks,
worry the chickens, pull the flowers,
waste the fruit, spill the milk and
racket and upset all over the house! |
would as soon go to the asylum and be
done with it, Mrs. Manly"
"But, Miss Ruth" urged the minis
ter's wife, gently, eve ought to be
willing to put up with few little in
conveniences for the sake of brighten
ing one of these darkened little lives"
az didn't darken 'em," said Miss
Ruth, grimly, /" l amt responsible"
60 Inasmuch as we have done it unto
one of the least of these, we have done
it unto me, murmured Mrs. Manly,
softly.
"Can't help it," responded Miss
Ruth If took one of 'em, l should
not know what on the face of the earth
to do with it! 1 would worry it, and it
would worry me. 1t amt no use to
waste words over it,"
Mrs. Manly rose to go, with disap-
pointed air.
"Then you will not take even one,
Miss Ruth?"
"Not even one, Mrs. Manly" re-
turned the grim spinster.
"Well, am sorry, but you are the
best Judge of course"
&C I'd like to oblige you, Mrs. Manly.
But what to do with young one l
wouldn't know, Pm sure. l couldn't
do it,
Then l will not urge it, Miss Ruth.
Of course if you change your mind be-
tween now and the time the children
come, you can let the committee know.
There is always ROOM"
g All right. But 'tisn't at all likely
shall change my mind" said Miss
Ruth, grim as ever.
But, after Mrs. Manly was gone, Miss
Ruth felt uneasy. All day long her
thoughts were dwelling on the poor,
sickly children in the city, whom the
ladies' relief society were going to
for few weeks, wherever they could
E,>I n l.; nj hnoNitn h1a
ready to take in poor little waif.
Miss Ruth had plenty of means, and
not soul to fill that great old house
excepting herself, her stout maid, Betty,
and the colored boy who acted as gen
eral factotum.
But she had never had anything to
do with children in her life. She didn' It
like them. Their fingers were always
sticky, and they always got into mis-
chief, and left things lying about, and
oh, she couldn't think about it!
But it was provoking. Everything
Miss Ruth touched that day seemed
to harp on that one subject. If she
took up paper, there was picture or
poem of pretty child-life under her eyes.
She went into the kitchen, and the
first thing Betty had to say was that
the neighbors on both sides were going
to take one or two children for a month
from the relief committee, and Betty
thought it was so nice to have the dar-
Inns running around to keep a body
from getting lonesome.
She got letter from her niece that
morning, and it enclosed a picture OF
the niece's baby, and told what a dar-
ling he was and how she loved him,
and didn't see how any one could be so
hard-hearted as not to love and be kind
to little children.
Then, worst of all, in the afternoon
Betty required a certain muslin bag
for straining jelly, and it could not be
found, strange to say, in that method
ical household. Miss Ruth had to &C
up to the garnet for piece out OF
which to make another bag. And Sc
she CHANGED to open certain trunk in
the garrett, by the side of which she sat
down and sighed
For there, preserved in camphor and
lavender, through so many years, were
Miss Ruth had most loved on earth
only ten years old, and was buried down
tHeTe Ill lHc Olu graveyard uuueT lut
willow trees.
Perhaps, if she had lived, Miss
Ruthie wouldn't have been the hard
grim woman she was. Sour old maid, .
the Abbott children next door called
her. But Miss Ruth had her goo6
points, after all.
Honest and truthful to the core
strictly just, yet generous when she
found occasion, there was warm hear
hidden away under the shell which Sc
few had pierced.
1t seemed as if, while she sat on the
floor in the old garnet, she could SEE
Tilly's blue eyes looking up into hel
face, and hear Tilly's tender voice say,
ing: " Sister, remember the time wher
we played together, and do it for my
sake" Miss Ruthie got her muslin
shut the trunk and marched down stairs
to the kitchen.
"Betty," said she, " do you think W.
ought to take one of those children ?"
Law, yes, Miss Ruth! Why dom
YEP" said Betty, her plain face lighting
But children are nuisances, Betty
g Yes, Miss Ruth, but they're kim
O. comfortin' after ALL"
"Welll make your Jelly, Betty, Mine
and don't let it burn"
Miss Ruth walked out of the kitchen