Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1885-05-08

like giving piece OF her own heart one
inspected the neat appointments OF poor
Mrs. Stevens's funeral with feelings not
wholly OF grief at her own deprivation OF
similar honors, nor yet of honest benevo-
lence. There was a grand though half
smothered consciousness of her own giving
Ia her heart. She felt for herself the respect
which she would have felt for an old Pin.
gree 10 his palmiest days.
As time went on she lost this, however
then the humiliating consciousness OF her
own condition came uppermost She dread
ed to tell Mrs. Holmes OF the change in her
resources, and now no vanity over her own
benevoence rendered the task easier She
simply felt intense humiliation at having to
confess her loss Of independence.
However, she never regretted what she had
| done. She grew very fond OF Jenny in.
deed the two had much in common. They
generally ate their simple meals together
Jenny had plenty Of work to do now Mrs
Holmes gave her a great deal Of sewing
She often told Nancy how she was saving up
money TO pay her debt she never suspected
| the real state of the case. She had taken to
thinking that Miss Pingree must have wider
resources than she had known.
| Nancy would have died rather than let her
| know of the moagre sum in that consecrated
corner Of the bureau drawer. It seemed to
her sometimes that she would rather die than
have Mrs Holmes know, but that was neces-
sary. Suppose she should be taken away
suddenly, what surprise, and perhaps even
dislrust would be oceasioned by the scant-
ness OF the burial hoard However, she had
not told her when spring came.
At length she set out after tea one night.
She had resolved to put it of no longer.
The cemetery was on the way. She lin
gered and looked in. Finally she entered.
| I'm Jest look around a minute, she said.
81 dare say Mis- Holmes amt through sup
per-"
The Pingree lot WAS almost in sight from
the street. Nancy went straight there. The
cemetery was itself spring garden, blue and
white with Houstonas and violets. The old
graves were green, and many little bushes
were Towering around them. The gold green
leaf buds on the weeping willows were un-
folding.
The Pingree lot, however, psrtoOk Of none
OF the general lighiness and lOveliness. No
blessing Of spring had fallen on that long
rank of dead Pingrees. There they lay, in
the order of their deaths, men and women
and children, each covered with fat white
stone above the grave mould.
Tall, thickly set evergreen trees fenced in
closely the line Of graves. In the midst of
the cemetery, where gloom was now render
ed tender by the infinite promise of the
spring, the whole was ghastly parallelogram
Of hopeless death.
Nancy Pingree, looking through the mar
| row entrance gap in the evergreens on the
dark, tomb.ike Enclosure, had, however, no
such impression. She regarded this as the
most attractive lot in the cemetery. Its
singularity had been in subtle accordance
with the Pingree character, and she was a
Pingree. At one end of the long row of
PROSTATE stones there was vacant place ;
enough for another.
Nancy began with this topic when she was
seated, little later, in Mrs Holiness Brus-
sels. .carpeted, velvet-upholstered parlor Il
looked in the graveyard minute on my way
here" said she, IAN went over to the Pin
gree lot I'd alters calculated to have a stone
like the others when | was laid at the end
there but now l don know. You remem-
Der that money showed you, Mis- Holmes
Well it amt there now I've had to use it.
l thought I'd better tell You, in case you
wouldn't know what to make of it, If any
thing happened"
Mrs. Holmes stared at her, with look
first OF amazement, then of intelligence.
Nancy Pingree, You gave the money to
bury that woman upstairs"
Hush don't you say anything about it.,
Mis- Holmes. Jenny don't know the hull of
it, She took on 80 l couldn't help it. 1t come
over me that l hadn't got anybody to feel
wouldn't make 20 much difference"
How much money was there ?"
Eighty dollars" ga d Nancy, in tone in
which she would have said million.
Mrs. Holmes was a woman who was seldom
governed by hasty impulse but she was now.
She disregarded the strict regulations attach
ed to giving in Nancy's case, and boldly of
fered to replace the money out Of her own
pocket She could well afford to do it.
| L., l-rI aNaa mill anptu
mo" said she, ''if it's got to be done by
anybody, I'd enough sight rather 'twould be
done by the town. The Pingrees have paid
taxes enough in times gone by TO make il
nothin' more'n fair, after all. Thank you,
Mis- Holmes, but amt quite come to takin
money out an out from folks yet"
"Well, l didn't mean to hurt your feelings.
81 know you didn't, Mis- Holmes. You
meant it kind enough. We won't say no
more about it,"
Don't you believe Jenny will be able to
pay you back, sometime ?"
II don know. She says she's goin to, anG
know she means o-she's awful proud; bu
she can't save up much, poor child an
shouldn't wonder ef died first. Well, neve
mind. How's the deacon p
Hes we'll, thank you. He's gone to the
railroad meeting. Somebody was telling me
the other day that Benny Field was waiting
, on Jenny"
"Weli, believe he's come home with he
, from meetin some lately; but don know.
When Nancy reached home that night, sh'
wondered if Benny Field was not really wait
ing on Jenny" She found him sitting will
her on the front doorstep.
, She knew that he was before long. jenny
, came to her one afternoon and told her sh'
/ was going to marry Benny Field Nancy hsC
previously received another piece of intelli
gence on the same day.
, Early that morning Mrs. Holmes had COM
, over with an important look on her face, AM
, announced to Nancy that the new railroad
was indeed going to be laid through the Pin
! gree land.
They are going to build the depot dow
on the corner, too" said she ''And-the dea
con thinks, seeing the property has come NJ
80 much in value, that it isn't any more'n fai
r he should make you little present"
/ 81 don't want any present.
|, "Well, didn't mean to put it that way
' isn't present it's no more than your jus
due. don't think the deacon would eve
feel just right in his conscience if he didn'
pay you little something. You know tn
/. property wasn't considered worth so muc
r when he forecosed.
n what did he think of payin' ?"
a ~ believe he sRid-about two hundred do
lars"
n 1.-TWO hundred dollarsl"
Nancy had been full of the bliss OF it a
q day, but she had said nothing about it I
Jenny.
II When the girl told her she was going to
married, Nancy looked at her half in awe.
"Well, am glad, Pm sure" said she, hne
ly. II hope yOu'll be happy II you reall
!. think it's wise thing to do TO git married.
a Her tone was almost shamefaced. This ol
woman, who had never had q lover, regarde
n this young woman with awe, half as il sh
n had stepped on to another level, where
A would be ndecorous for her to follow even
II thought
~ suppose 1 am happy" said Jenny. :
never thought anything of this kind wou
happen TO me. There's one thing, Miss Pi
II gree wouldn't think of getting married, l
never consent to getting married, If didn
think could pay up what owe you, II an
q. thing, quicker. Benny says (Pve told hi
'. about it ; at first said wouldn't be marie
h anyway till you were paid that shall have
"a sewing machine, and can have some bel
\; aud set up little dressmaking shop. ain
going TO buy a single new thing to wear wh'
/ get marred-I told him 1 wasn't. I've g
h. a little money for you now, Miss Pingree.
le "Oh," said Nancy, looking at her with Il
r. ecstatic consciousness of her new wealth
"A