The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1885-12-26
A CHARITY GIRL.
Mary Martin, the "Incorrigible,"
and Her Christmas Eve.

''She must be a good girl; she must be
neat and quick, and tidy she must not use
bad language; and 1 like to have them
pretty, or reasonably pretty"
Such was the request made by the ex-
cellent Mrs. Shepard, as she sat, weary
from walking, in the reception room at the
Orphans Home.
Il have heard you say that before" said
Mrs. Metcalf, the good-natured matron,
land | have heard ten thousand other
people say it. So l dare say you have
heard my joke, that you had better go to
some institution where they keep young
angels"
Mrs. Shepard laughed as she had laughed
at the same joke before, and, when she was
little rested, the nine girls at that mo-
ment under the roof were brought in.
But, TO say the truth, they were not an
attractive "lot," as Mrs. Metcalf, alas,
would have classed them. She had done
her best. The frocks were clean and the
hair was prettily arranged. Mrs Metcalf
had changed all their names. There was
not q Cynthia Ann nor Bridget nor a Polly
among them all. Every child was named
Maud or Alice or Constance or by some
other name that might please a stated fancy.
They had neat stockings and tidy, even
clean, and good many of them had little
coquettish air, which intimated that neat
clothes were doing them good, and that
they were waking to the knowledge that it
is the business of at least one sex to try and
please, whatever may be said of the other
But, on the other hand, smallpox had done
its worst with some Bad beer and whisky,
alas, had had their way, with others. With
others there was q certain hang-dOg air,
which showed only too well how they had
been kicked about by such relatives as they
had, before they appeared in this Home
which was so far happy that here nobody
pretended to be a relation.
One by one the girls came into the parlor
and talked with Mrs. Shepard and one by
one they went out, and talked about her.
When the last child had gone, Mrs. Shepard
SAID, rather wistfully, to the patient official,
who had been displaying these goods as best
she could.
''They look nicely, poor little things, but
somehow, do not fancy any of them.
Where is the girl saw on the fence, as
came in?"
''On the fence?"
This was Mrs. Metcalfs exclamation, and
Mrs. Shepard knew that she had made
mistaile-that 10 climb the fence was
crime.
"Woll, DO not take me up" she said 81
should not have said on the fence-by the
fence, in the garden"
p
Mary Martin. She has only been with US
two days"
"Wiil you call her in3 | liked her face -
Mrs Metcalf coughed She even blushed
'"Why-really-dear Mrs. Shepard-she-
she-has not been well brought up. She
came back from Ashby yesterday, and she
had come back from BeTnardstOn the week
before. She is healthy, and good-natured,
and willing, and strong; but-but-they
tell me she lies, and steals, and swearS
sometimes, aud-and-that she uses bad
Language.
''rhe truth is, she never remembers her
father and mother. She never had any.
She was brought up in a poor-bouse in
Rhode Island, and they were so good to her
that she wants TO go back there. But of
course she can't go back, because she is old
enough to earn her living
Does she swear very badly!N asked poor
Mrs. Shepard, who was afraid of comprO-
missing her church membership.
''Eo tell you the truth, never heard her
say anything worse than degil, but Mrs.
Goss-she is the BernardSton lady-says she
swears all the time"
But, as the reader knows, the woman who
heSitaGes is lost Mrs Shepard had liked
the pleasant smile of the girl, who was
astTido on the wall of the Home as she went
in. She asked to have her sent for, and the
result which is all that the reader need
care for, was that in the three p. m. train
Cor Bedington Crossing Mrs Shepard and
Mary Martin went together.
''The trustees are very particular about
their going to school," said Mrs. Metcalf as
she tied the girls scarf round her neck and
babe her gOodby.
'Never fear said Mrs Shepard, "sho
shall go to school enough-whenever it's
convenient she added as a salvo to her
conscience, as she went down the steps,
Mrs Metcalf heard the first part, and il
she heard the second she never reported il
TO tho trustees.
A nice time had Mrs. Shepard with Mary
Martin through the next week. 1t was not
''convenient'' to send her to school; for the
school was two miles away, and the snow
In the road was scarcely broken, and the
men-folls were hauling wood. The girl
was accustoming herself to chop mince
meat, to feed hens, to skim milk to work a
rotary churn, to sprinkle and IRON clothes
and to do ten thousand other things in that
wOluan's work which is ''never dope'-
from which duties she did not shrink
I.She is awful spry," said Mrs Shepard tc
her husband when he asked for a verdict
But as to the trick of language, the candid
nearer had to acknowledge that her refer
ences to 1ho enemy of souls were too fire.
quant. As Co yeracity, there were occa
iSlyuj whom IL seemed as If sac had been
trained IN some school Of a very low sophis
try, It. indeed, she had not been left with
ont training in that poor house from which
she graduated. Honesty in deed however
was what Mrs. Shepherd chung to as the
center of her life. When one day at din
ner she cut through what was meant to be
a mince pie when the crust instantly fiat
tened beneath the edge of the knife, wher
it appeared thnt there was no "mince'
there, then it was revealed to Mrs, Shepard
what was meant by Mrs. Metcalf and the
lady from BernardstOn, who had said tina
Mary Martin stole
Fortunately for Mary Martin, she did no
lie whom charged with this theft" Sht
grinned and hardly said, even under press
ure. that she would try not do it again
AS for Mr.. Shepard, he only laughed
When consulted as TO whether good whip
against the whipping. Mary was shut VI
TN her own little room FOX three hours