The Portland daily press., 1888-11-24

a,,.'si,; a,i~ "SA' An'" 'no panty ioI iIcsh
''ft sounds like calico used TO have"
she said, with great interest. sit was a
beautiful thing to wear, and laid it by once
when was called into black, and I've al, |
ways Intended to make me pretty comfort
er OF it. You couldn't tell it from one o.
them handsome old French calicoes.'
Nor this responds Tamsen, eagerly;
and then, it being busy day, she took leave
She had not spoken of it, but Brother Jo-
than bad been tempted by the lovely spring
weather to go on pilgrimage before plow
ing time. Tamsen was alone. and from past
experience did not expect him for several
days.
That evening she spread out, the calico on
the kitchen floor and held the lamp close 10
1t, and put her patterns on, and measured
off the skirt breadths, and was greatly per-
picked because there We're more faded streaks
than she had feared at first. She spent
painstaking hours over it, and turned and
making both skirt and waist of even the
simplest sort, without nearly another yard.
The old remnant was very provoking, and
Tamsen could not give it up. She even
dreamed OF it half the night, and walked up
with brain fevered by dancing visions of
polka spots and sprigs of pink.
"Therew she exclaimed, ''if ever Miss
Pelton gets out her materials for comforters,
you may have chance. to do little tradin'.
That's all the outlook there is."
just as she sat at her solitary breakfast,
the Peltons drove by with their best wagon
and both horses, going to Mrs. Pelton's sis
ter's in Foxbridge, where there was family
party, Mrs. Pelton's mother being still alive
Two brothers had come on from the West.
and there was t. be a famous dinner. Tam
sen had heard all about it, and she rushed to
the door and waved a sympathetic farewell
One of the Pelton girls was already in Fox
bridge, the father and mother, and son and
younger daughter were in the wagon. They
would not Ds at home until evening,
Il am thankful they've got such a good
day." said lonely Tamsen, as she went back
into the house. She always wished that she
belonged to large family.
The dress was looked over again by day.
light, and sadly folded up and put away.
II never did have gown Of two kinds O.
calico, and l won't now,' said Miss Spencer
proudly. There, should just like to know
If Miss Pelton's the same exactly. Like as
not it isn't"
She looked out of the window two or three
times toward the Pelton house.
There, now, you mustn't do any such
thingP she rebuked herself once; but a few
minutes later the temptation became too
great. Il promised 'em would keep an eye
ON the house," she said to herself, IAN Mrs.
Pelton wouldn't mind bit. l mean to go
over an just see II It's the same pattern, and
then I'll edge Miss Pelton on to gettin it
down some day herself, and I'll give her
some new for it, rather'n be disappointed so
after all these years. l know where she
keeps her old pieces and such things, up in
one o. them attic clusets."
Behold light-footed Miss Tamsen stepping
along the road with guilty heart, but
sense of unusual delight. She did not say
frankly to herself that good rummage
would make her happy, but as She unlocked
the door aud locked it again behind her, she
fairly reyelled in her opportunity.
1t was a somewhat innocent pleasure after
ali. Tamsen was as honest soul as ever
breathed, but she took a long look at the
picture OF Mrs. Pelton's youngest child, a
pretty little fellow who had died, and care
fully studied Susy Pelton's last summers
wrap, of which She had never quite dared to
ask pattern. She spent an hour in her
rummage, stepping softly about the rooms !;
counting Mrs. Pelton's gold-and-white cups
and sauceis to see if any were gone; and
discovering the truth, which had long puz-
zled her, aboat the hiding place of the extra
half dozen of silver spoons.
Ii took some time to get at the calico skirt
that was waiting to be made into COM
forter. bags and bundles were many in the
northwestern caves closet, and Miss TamSen
bufrowed farther and farther in, trying to
keep careful reckoning of the arrangement
OF the closets contents. She was Just re-
fiecting that Mrs. Pelton ought TO have been
making some rugs during the winter out of
some OF those things, when there was a sud-
den rush of the gusty spring breeze through
the house, the caves closet door slammed
and snapped its outside latch, and poor Miss
Tamsen was locked in.
ION. let me out, let me outl" she besought,
wildly, stumbling on her knees among the
buudles and piece-bags. Ii was no use to
pound the door, OF to put her strong shoulder
against it desperately. lhe screws we're
sound, and at last she sank back and felt for
the first time in her life a little faint and
| weak.
They'll never hear me, and don't want
| they should" she sobbed 'and Jothan's
being away, amt goin' to be missed. Oh,
be goin' TO die in my shame, ana starve
like mouse in a drawerw and so she
prayed and cried and prayed again, and
there was only the darkness and the shut
door.
II s'pose did need a lesson with my peek
in and harkin'," she owned aloud, but /
| amt meant no harm. i amt meant to harm
folks. Ii can be got out I'll be as dumb as
| lothian. It's too harsh to leave me here TO
| suffer" And so poor Tainsen whined and
lamsnted from one long hour to another.
What was to be done? There was no use
pounding, for who could bear? The family
would not be back until evening; there was
a moon, and they did not mean to start until
| nightfall, or even later. Tamsen understood
| plainly that she had need of patience. Her
| only hope was that John Pelton would not
| leave his cattle unfed until too late. She
tried to put the pece-bags into their places
| there in the dark, poor thing! Luckily she
had tied them up as she looked into each,
| but she had taken some of them out of their
places. ORDERLY Mrs. Pelton knew the nail
| where the brown bag hung, and the little
| ticking bag that held yarn, but there was no
| telling c0lorS apart in this darkness.
After long while few stray CLEANS of
| light came under the door, and from tiny
nail-hole in the roof, and it seemed many
hours before these rays Of the bright spring
| life began to fade, and Tamsen knew that
| night was coming. Her excitement had
kept her from feeling hungry yet. 1t was
dismal enough all day, but more dismal as
she approached the moment of her disgrace.
| Them young Peltons will tell of it from
| one end OF the town to the other" she
! sighed, and cried again, heartily. Even her
inventive mind knew how perfectly futile
would be any attempt at excuse. If she
| could only say that a shower had come up.
| and she had hurried to shut the open win
dows in this open storyl No, she could tell
| nothing but the truth.
Il am gpin' to tell the TRUTH" she reflected
at last, mechanically. IL got so beset about
my dress-pattern that ran over to see il
you did have some like it. l want you tc
laugh and despise me all you will" Pool
Tamsen! she never could hold up her head
again.
.'.I'm goin' TO count a thousand, and then
| I'm goin' 20 begin to pound" she resolved
unless hear the folks sooner; but this is
the other side from the yard and the livin'
| ROOM" The counting was slowly accom-.
| plished, and with beating heart Tamsen
| began to knock and call
1
| eayes-closet for all her exertions, and there
| were no steps on the stairs.
| Pound, pound, pound with fists on the wal
and with stout boot-heels ON the floor. She
might have been butterfly 1uttering there
| in the dark, for all the response that came
Every ten minutes seemed an hour.
| ut must be toward nine O'clock" thought
Tamsen, wnen it was hardly seven. "When
| they come up to bed it will be my time,
| said the tired woman at last, and then re-
membered that she was over the shut up and
unoccupied northwest chamber, as far as She
could be from the nearest room where any
| one slept.
But surely she could make herself heard
and at it she went again, knocking and
| pounding until her hands were too lame tC
| pound any more.
| "Oh, my sakes, IL only had good cup O
| tea, seems to me L should hold out better y
said Tamsen. sadly. The odor of cam phoI
| in the piece-bags made the air very close
| she never would wish to 90 near camphOl
| again, that she knew for certain; and by.
and-by she grew heavy-headed and could moi
| keep herself awake.
"What's that funny little noise?" .asked
one Pelton girl of the other. II keep hear
ing kind of knocking somewhere abou,
the house."
They had come home with their brother
and left the father and mother behind, fol
the long severed family was too delighted
with its reunion to agree to separate so soon.
Young john would drive over again next
day and could do the work alone in the
| meantime
Il don't hear any knockin," said tho sis
ter; "Oh, father was saying yesterday thai
hal ha.la rFs.1e el..x... Il Z.