Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-12-24
THE IIAPPIEST MOMENT.


MAS PARTY.
Honor. aged ~. and her Aunt Margaret.
aged - and unmarried, -mainained them
sclv,. 10y keeping morning >c,oo for young
ladies in Paradise row, OIc of the back
streets of Camden Town. London, which
consists of ten mean little houses. Aunt Mar
garct was the daughter of the rector of Bray
leigh, and Honor was her sisters child. Tho
sister had married an artist, and she and her
husband both died when Honor was mere
baby. Her aunt and grandfather had rdu-
Gated her Soon after the rcctor'S death the
two ladies were impoverished 10y the failure
Of the bank which contained their little store
Of wealth So tine school wa, opened and
they got on fairly well, enjoying their indie
pendence .although not in receipt Of "a very
promising income.
Honor had AN mce-her fathers brother
the rich Mr. Bryson, who, although h" gave
them no financial aid, always Invited his
niece aud her aunt to spend the holidays at
his house As the Christmas Of l',? drew
near the two impoverished Sentewonen NE
gan to fix over their bits of iinery in the ex
pectaton of the usual visit to Uncle BrN>ouS
Instead of the anticipated invitation they re
cevr' very polite note from Uncle Il say
ino~. hat "thrcuming so far must have always
been a tax upon them," and therefore he
"would not again pres, the invitation lie
softenc,l the blow with check for go. hi.
best wishes and the compliments of the sea
snu.
There was reason for this beyond what
the two disappointed ladies could dream OF
The Bry,onS had marriageable daughter,
and there was a certain Sir Edward Dusart
who, they thought, was about to prop"s" t"
her, ard Aunt Bryson had discovered that
Honor was much too handsome and attractlN"
10 have around when such an important pos
sibity was pending; and Sir Edward was t.
be a Christmas guest. Aunt Margaret had
fondy dreamed that Sir Edward cared for
Elonor. whom he had met more than once at
Wncl' Bryson's But when she heard that he
was about to propose to Uncle BilSpn p
daughter Amelia She hoped that Honor dld
not care for him.
The first impulse of Aunt Margaret and
fionor ON receiving Uncle Brysons check was
| to send It back. Second thought persuaded
tem to keep it and use every penny of it IN
| giving a Christmas party thenselVes-not u
tal'ty for the rich and prosperous, nor cNc'
for their financial equals but party for the
| good and kind among their uci-hhprs, the in
:abtants Of Paradise Row, humble souls, t.
whom all pleasure, were rare.
They took Nh Richmond, the incumbent OF
sic new church in their district, into tneir
confidence, and he was greatly interested ii
-he plan, and promised to help them all he
could He was the only friend the two ladie'
esd made since they went to Paradise row
to whom they could say anything about iheiI
past lives. He often looked in upon then
after their days work was done, and it SCENE,
| plain to Aunt Margaret that ne tool; great ia
terest in Honor Sometimes Aunt Margue
said TO herself that the match would not b.
SO undesirable, although he was "a widower
with grownup daughter, and little to.
Old for Honor y
They had a busy time preparing for tin
feast. They felt in duty bound tospend ever.
penny of the money. In addition to the sup
per, every guest was to have present, an,
several sick ones were to have presents sen
them They called in "Od Mamie" to he
the maid % all work get the feast ready, and
in her language, the house soon "Smet a
good as IA cook shop Oh Nanuie was to b
one Of the guests of the Christmas party, Sh
had been in charge Of the guardians of til
poor; but had managed to have her 60 low
ances' sent TO her lowly lodgings, and neve
got into the dreaded "house,' where the poo
are taken in the last extremity.
Among the other important guests wer
the "little tailor and his wife, '"Sallys Crane
mother Johnny and his mother and tn
poor lodger' Saly's grandmother was
the receipt Of parish relief The "Poc
lodgcr, as the neghbors called him, was
young man about whom uo ou, lmew an
more than that he did not appear To have
friend in the world, and that he had been