The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1886-09-01

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was exactly the opposite of Miss Catln,
physically, and, he was sure, mentally
as well. lie was sorry his choice had
not come up to his mothers standard,
| for her sake. All he knew about il
! Whether she would suit his mother and
his parishioners was quite another
question. But why should ministers
have a prescribed type of wives differ
ent from other men? A good wife was
a good wife anywhere.
" Mother DEAR" said John, one
morning, when his mother was rolling
out the crust of his favorite pies, +" |
hope / shall find wife who can make
as good a pie as you can"
" Miss Catlin will make a splendid
housekeeper and just the wife for you,
John, in every particular. She can
lead the missionary meetings and the
woman's prayer-meetings and can cut
out anything at the sewing society
without any patterns, and she's the
most discreet person | ever knew"
"A high recommendation, surely
But what will you think when tell you
that l have already engaged my wife,
mother, and that she is just the opposite
of Miss Catlin, as far as can judge?"
" Why, John Gravesv' exclaimed
the astonished mother, laying down her
rolling-pin, which fell upon the floor
with tremendous noise, " when did
you have time, with all your theological
studies, to hunt up a suitable wife?'
=" | didn't spend much time hunting
for her; the Lord placed her, in his
good providence, in my way. / hope
you will love her for my sake, mother"
Pm sort of overwhelmed John,
and you must excuse me if don't say
enough in favor of it Just now," and she
stopped down and picked up her rolling
pin.
That rainy Sunday was a sort of
shadow of coming events all around, dea-
con-" she said, as John passed out of
the door and the deacon came in.
" Johns got his wife all picked out
and secured, and she is just the oppo-
site of Miss Catlin."
" Didn't l tell you, Philury, that
mothers can't pick out wives for their
my mother wanted me to, | wouldn't
have been half as well off as | am now"
" Well, deacon, | suppose you are
right. John!" she called, " it's all
right. Whoever you bring home for
my daughter I'll receive and do the
best by her | can"
81 guess Johns got judgment enough
to pick out suitable companion" said
his father. g You are wise, my son,
to make your bargain in that direction
before you get call and settle down in
your field of labor. An unmarried
minister isn't the one church wants to
settle. We never wanted one of 'em.
There will be more or less talk among
the women folks, you know"
Six months later, when Rev. John
Graves received call to settle at Bur-
banksville, he and Annie Woodruff
were married; and when he brought
her home to make visit with his father
and mother, the deacon said:
Well, Philury, let John alone for
picking out a wife. He didn't need any
help; such pretty, bright little crea-
ture as she is. To be sure she doesn't
look stout enough to hold her own
against lot of unruly sheep, pushing
and pulling against her, but may be
John won't have any such members.
Sometimes such little women get along
better than the big ones. Folks handle
'em kind of softly, and don't jostle
against 'em, because they are so small
there's danger of stepping on to 'em."
Years afterwards, when the old dea-
con and his wife visited their son John,
after he had been installed over the
largest church in Crawford City, they
heard so much of their sons wife's
popularity among her husbands parish
| oil tLnt ho
his success in great measure to his
good wife.
"The truth is, Philury," said the
deacon, a minister's wife needs to have
a plenty of good common sense-what
we call in New England good, sound
horse sense and Johns wife's got it..
That's one of the Christian graces, Just
as much as charity and long-suffering
and meekness, and all the rest of 'em
are"
81 don't see how she stands it at all, :"
said his wife. {" It's ring, ring, ring
from morning until night. That girl
doesn't more than get downstairs be-
fore she has to go up again. There
isn't many girls in our town would put
up with such sight of tramping. Half
of the callers had better stay at home
and tend to their business, such a fool
errand as some of them come on-tak-
ing her time from her housework and
the children, telling long stories with
out head or tail to 'em, making COM
plants about their neighbors and try
ing to get her name on all sorts of
society papers, and she has to be so
careful about signing them, because
she is Johns wife and her name mis-
placed would injure his cause. But
she manages them all so well, and
; doesn't even disturb John when he is in
his study to ask what he thinks about
'em all. l ask her sometimes if she
isn't tired nearly to death, but she
always looks so cheerful and says,
'Oh no, mother / don't believe Miss
Catlin would have done as well. "-Tht
Interior.
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