The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-06-24

Sdlu llG neNcT saw uO OHt 30 Dodb do lib
mother was when he told her she
shouldn't touch that money, but just as
soon as l thought him old enough he
was going to learn trade.
A tradel And what trader"
Why, carpenter and joiner, to be
sure. l love that sort of work, and
Jack Playne says I'll do well at it,"
But, my dear son, what ever made
you think of learning that trade? There
never was carpenter in our family,
and in fact don't know that they ever
amount to very much.'
Why, my dear mother" said Rash,
"you forget; wasn't our own Savior
one; and don't that make the craft hon.
orable forever"
True, my dear child. Yours is a
just reproof; and yet our Savior did not
choose his humble calling. 1t was a
lesson of obedience he was taught by
submitting to his parents necessities.
His work had been fixed and fitted for
him before the foundation of the world.
But for you, my dear boy, had hoped
to see you in the chair of the professor y
"I'm afraid, dear mother" said Rash
quite humbly, Z" that I'd rather make
the chair than sit in it. l know it is SC
great work, but it is my work, which.
after all, is the important thing. And
if make the chair strong and well
and handsome and easy, l don't see
why I'm not just as respectable as he
is. It's my work to build the pulpit for
another man to preach in; and we may
as well accept the facts. But, mother
don x,n,, ,ron+ tf, CON Gonna IF ~, xucrly
things I've done by odd spells?"
For his mother had bowed her head
on her hand, and her face was growing
set, and her lips showed a white thread
She wasn't one of the crying sort.
hate weeper; but they don't begin to
be so unmanageable as the stony-eyed
sort, that neither speak nor cry.
In minute or two Rash came down
out of the woodshed loft with his arms
full. There was a set of toy bedroom
furniture, and ship full rugged. And
best of all, was work-boX for his
mother, inlaid with different kinds OF
wood, with raised oval of apple tree
wood on the the lid, carved out into a
wreath of the finest fern leaves, enclos.
ing her initials. 1t was Just as neat
Boston men had done it, and Rash was
just a boy, and altogether self-taught in
the way of carving.
cts most a pity to show this to.
night. | was going to keep this fol
your birthday, day after tomorrow, but
somehow it seemed only right and
natural to show it now, when we were
talking the thing over"
Now, set as Mrs. Hennings was
against Rash's learning a trade, she
could not help admiring his work, fol
it was so neat-not botch anywhere.
For one day, when he was making Of
it, says l to him:
"Now, Rash, whatever you've got in
hand, don't you stop to think if yor
can afford to do it just as well for the
money you're to get for it. There's
one thing you can't afford, and that is
to buugle. 1t hurts you more thar
them you work for Don't ever dc
anything that you can't warrant 'por
honor"
And I'll never forget how his eyes
sparkled; and he told how the cathe.
drals of the middle ages were built by
men who made religion of their work
and built as if they were worshiping
and dared not cheat the Lord, ant
that in them the back of an ornamen
or statue is finished, though nobody
can see without the greatest pains
with just as much neatness as if it was
to show in the public square; and tina
was the way he meant to work an(
live. AS / said, the wilder was pleased
in spite of herself.
"And where did you get this pretty
design" said she, pointing to the ferr
wreath.
Why, I wanted a pattern of some
sort, and just then Bessie Playne came
along and she'd got just such wreatf
as this twisted around her hat.
thought it was none the worse for be
ing so near at hand; and so l jus
draughted it off, and whitfield it out
See-here is the draught."
And with that he took it out of hi
box.
Now the wilder, though she is a
proud as Lucifer, is nobody's fool; ant
she sees plain enough that there wa'
more than common jack of a carpen
ter in her boy; for she could draw ant
paint in water colors herself, and wa
called good hand at it. So the Ions
and short of it was that she gave he
consent to Rash going into my shop t.
learn my trade at the end of the schoo
term. And then she sent Rash VI
stairs with his treasures and went t.
bed.
And what a sick-headache she hat
next day. Rash got his own breakfas
and come over after Sister Eliza to sta,
with his mother, and that's how he toll
me all about the talk. She had blind
sick, stupid headache all day. She go
up when the sun went down, and sh
didn't really feel like herself for da,
or two. And | noticed her hair wa
never so black and glossy again as
had been.
Eliza Playne, my sister, went owe
and stayed with her day or two.
But how Rash did work, never slighte,
the least thing-faithful, early and late
l tell you one don't get such 'prentic
work often And such work holds GU
forever, in more senses than one.
When Rash was about eighteen an,
pretty near out of his time, Squire POI
ter came home. He'd been travelling
in Europe several years, buying world
of pictures, books, and curious thing
generally, and the next thing was to fl
up his house. had job, of course
but in his library he wanted extr
work-alcoves for his books, gothi
carving, and what not; and of course