The Evening critic. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1881-1885, 1885-05-05

help setin' an bearin' things that other
folks can't be expected to know about, a.
when see an know things like"
There was an ominous pause, and the
deacon's wife asked, excitedly:
Like what2n
"Chicken pies, with tho legs and feet of
the chicken baked In
Had a thunderbolt fallen among them IL
could not have caused greater surprise to
these tidy, thrifty New England house
keepers thansthis dreadful revelation of the
incapaclty Of tho pastors young wife.
"Are you sure Of it?" gasped one matron,
breaking the silence.
~ know 1t for fact" was solemnly re-
turned.
"Chicken legs in pie I"
"shes born fool calculated tue dea
cons wife, Indignantly, land I'm thankful,
for her poor husbands sake, that / sent her
over one Of my pies yesterday. They had
10 throw hers away, ofcourse and its lucky
that he didn't have ter go without his
Thanksgivin breakfast ON account Of her
ignorance aud shiftessness"
"How did you know about the pie 2"
asked one of the girls
Miss Patience bristled denantly. "rhat's
Iobody's bushes but my ownl' she re-
torted, tarily. 81 don't go around to hud
out things that don't concern me, I'd have
you know but when they are thrown right
nto my face as you might say, | don't
hut my eyes no moro'n other folks"
Just hero the door opened aud in walked
the subject oftheir conversation, her pretty
face glowing with the haste she had made,
and a miscbievous twinkle In her brown
eyes that nobody noticed so occupied were
they in hiding the confusion that her sud
| den entrance had created.
WoIlfiUu ~ n N tim fahia tyhara rnnqt Of
the ladies wero sitting, she saluted them
cordially, and then, holding out upon the
tip of one slender finger well-worn silver
tbimble, she said, archly:
"Where do you think l found your
thimble, Miss Patience ?"
So pleased was Miss Patience TO regain
her lost treasure that she forgot for mo-
mcnt all her assumed dignity, and ex-
claimed ioyfully: "Well, / declare, / am
| glad to see that thimble once more / told
Mary Jane that felt sure had it on my
finger when ran into your house Thanks
\ givin' mornin' arter that yeast. But when
| got home it want nowhere 10 be found.
Now, whore did you find it2"
Her shrill, high voice had attracted the
attention Of all in the room, and every
body looked up curiously as tho minister's
wife replied, with an innocent smile: "In
the chicken pie that our good friend here
| and she nodded brightly to Mrs. Farrell
-"sent me. lett the pie on the dresser
when / went down cellar after your yeast,
and as soon as l came back l put it on the
table, and when my husband cut it, there
was your thimble in 1t. How could it
have got there? 1t is certainly very mys-
terious, anyway"
Silence, dead. profound yet oh how ter
ribly significant to the deacons wife and
her spinster neighbor, fell upon the group.
This was apparently unnoticed by Mrs.
Graham, who, with playful admonition to
Miss Patience to take better care of her
thimble in future, began an animated con-
versation with the ladies nearest her that
soon restored the company to their wonted
ease and good humor.s
But poor Miss Patience She never
heard the last of that lost thimble, while
the deecon's wife, to the day of her death,
never trusted any hands but her own Co
make pies for her minister.-[T The Caterer,