Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1885-08-20
Miscellaneous.

Dotty's Lesson.

II WAS quite a new experience 10 Doity,
tins housekeeping business. Sne had tneo-
rized a good deal over "Handy Housekeep-
ers." "Comprehensive Cook Books" and
Home Guides" but she never had any
practical experience before And now up
IN these Wild woods. the helm Of domestic
affair, vas Unexpectedly, placed in her
hands, and her alone.
She liked the woods and the river the
meadows al. starred with daisies, and the
long. low farmhouse, with lis red brick
chImne, stacks; its trelli,es all bending with
the weight Of vines; the old sione-w alled
garden, whore riyenlng currants hung ike
ruby fingers. and the green goo>eberries
seemed 10 absorb the very sweetues, Of the
sunshine into their translucent hearts
TO her mind u deal nicer than the
city Hat, with the milkmsn Yelling, the hand
organ droning. the everlasting clouds Of
dust.
And ,o-da,. when Aunt Incmis wanted
TO 20 to hear her fa,orite elder hold forth at
campmeeting. Do,ty volunteered 10 stay and
get the d nner for Reuben and Rankin. her
tao tall cousins.
la. child :" ssid Aunt Thcmis, 'you
don, know nothing about cooking"
But indeed do, asseverated Dotty. Il
can make chicken fricassee as well as YOU,
Aunt lhemy, | watched the way YOU did il
sst Saturday, and know can turn out a
frst-cla.s cherry tart"
Well said Aun, lhemis, a little doubt
fully. "anyhow, there's plenty of good rye
bread and new milk, and nobody needn't
,tarve on that. And be sure. potty. YOU
keep the doors bolied, and don't let rramps
- 49, y -.f.
and don't forget that brood Of Young turkeys
in the barn chamber. and don't on no ac-
count leave the milk room door open. for
that new cat i the thievingest creeter ou
ever did see
"Oh, I'll take care :" sal! Dotty, with the
reckless audacity Of ignorance. Every
thing shall be quite-quite right You'll
see, Aunt Thems."
And after the old lady had departed, with
many ui-givings. Doity drew a long breath
Of rapture, and executed an impromptu
dance in the middle Of the kitchen floor
/ "Oniy think :" She said. addressing the
cat in the corner-''the whole house all 10
myself Won't | get superb dinner for
Reuben and Rankin II. make meriague
tart, and ice-cream. and vanilla putfs, and
chocolate cake, and I'll try my hand at
mock-turtle soup, and cream candy, and
black coffee And as for boiling the doors.
how utterly ridiculous it j, TO shut out The
( beautiful sunshine, and the butterflies, and
/ the sweet-scented air This house alwa,s
smells like blue mould when Aunt Themis
/ is around and of course nobody could get
( in while am here -
/ So Dotty skinned the pans for cream to
make ice-cream, and stirred up the vanilla
| puff, and grated chocolate for the cake, and
put two fat chickens into the pot for the
Z frcassee; ard then, feeling herself every
inch housekeeper, she frisked away up
stairs to make the beds.
| But there was no question of beds, when
once upstairs, where huge old chest Of
some dark-staiued wood stood open, near
the landing.
The old oak chest"' cried Dottv, who
was as full of romance as a white clover
/ bloom is of sweetness. "And TO think that
Aunt Themis never let me look into it be-
fore ~
There was nothing very particular, after
all, in ii. Only stuffy smelling blankets, a
motheaten gown or two, the brass -buttoned
military coat in which Uncle Amahiah =
dead these ten years-had been wont to
rally on training days.
'Pshaw !" said Dotty. There ought to
have been forgotten will there, or skele-
ton, at the very least. It's humbug, that
| old chest ~
Just as this reflection passed through her
mind. whining, nasal voice sounded at the
bottom of the little wooden stairway, which
wound up ike eorkscrew from below.
ANY old clothes to exchange for beauti-
FIT nt,i d. s.
poor man?
He was a stalwart, black -browed fellow.
with villainous slit-like eyes, and a tattered
velveteen suit; and Dotty's heart stood still
with terror for a second
! Oh, if she had only obeyed her Aunt
Thems and locked up those doors
| mo- she said shortly. $50 awavr
"Don't he hard on poor fellow, miss :"
whined the man.
And Dotty was quite certain that she saw
the spout of Aunt Themis's old solid silver
cream jug proiruding from the flaps of his
velveteen pocket. AT the same moment he
began ascending the stairs with insolent de-
liberation.
In an instant all the doubts, the breads,
the possibilities, the horrors of the situation,
glanced across Dotty's mind
Reuben and Rankin were in the distant
meadow cutting grass; the tin horn, by
means Of which she usually summoned them,
was hanging up down stairs at the back of
the kitchen door,
Not neighbor lived in sight or call.
And here she was at the stealthy-fac
brute's mercy. Would he gag her? Would
he murder her? What was to become of
Aunt Themis's gold beads and Reuben's
| new breast pin, besides all the nine old sill
yer forks which had descended to them from
Grandmother Buffet?
"No,' said Dotty to herself; s.for myself
/ do not care. But the silver shall be pro-
tected!" I"