Sacramento daily record-union., 1888-11-03
FANNIE's FArLT BAG.

You're awful careless, always tearing
something"
Fannie Mills settled herself still more
comfortably in her rocking chair, as she
made this answer to her brother.
Disobliging he muttered, as he
hunted up a needle and thread, while she
went on with her reading.
''Let Aunt En- have the rocking-chair,"
her mother was obliged to say, SO deeply
absorbed in her book was she, as the two
came in from long walk few minutes
later, and Fannie got up rather ungraci-
ously and pushed the chair toward her
aunt.
"There, now you've mussed my hair all
upW was rannie's cry, as at tea-time her
brother, having forgotten all about her
'disobligingness," attempted a playful at
tack upon her, disarranging her long curls
upon which she had spent so much time
arranging and admiring them before the
mirror, for she was very proud of her hair.
"Old cross-patchp was his comment
this time.
Next morning she rushed into the
diningroom like small whirlwind.
"Where are my books ?"
High and low she rummaged, mixing
up the papers on her fathers desk, over
! turning her mothers work basket in her
frantic, hurried search for them.
Why cant you help me find them,
mother?" she fretted.
"You should have place for them, and
remember where you put them, then you
will not have this trouble" her mother re-
piled, grasping the inkstand in time to
save its contents.
=" | can't always think Ben is always
mixing mine with his and | can never
find a thing on the DESK" she snapped, as
she tumbled about the papers anew in a
search for pencil, and with half her books
she rushed for the kitchen.
Hurry up my lunch, Bridget You are
always behind time p she called out, and
out the hall door she went, leaving it
open behind her as she ran down the steps,
hoping to reach school before the bell
stopped ringing.
"Dear mew sighed the mother as she
closed the door and came back to straight
en- up the desk. " | can't see how Fannie
can be so careless and thoughtless. The
very things she sees quickly enough and
complains of most bitterly in others, she
heedlesSly keeps right on doing herself"
Aunt En- had been noting Fannie's
movements, and that night when she
returned from school with three of the
girls she was very watchful of them as
they chatted together in the dining-room.
When they left she made an excuse to draw
Fannie to her room.
Your friends seem like very pleasant
girls" she remarked, and was not at all
surprised to hear Fannies exclamation.
"Did you think so, Aunt En-? Well,
that's because you don't know them.
never saw any one like Sue Summers-so
vain of her hair How she will fuss if
you even touch it It's awfully ill-natured
in her-then it isn't half so long or curly
as mine. | can't get along with her half
| the time, she is so cross. And Katie FL
der is just as jealous as she can be, and as
disobliging as anybody you ever saw; she
wouldn't put herself out one bit to do a
thing you ask of her. Then Clara May
| WE'LL she is the biggest kind of talker;
you can't say one word before her but that
she'll go and tell it. She heard me telling
Sue to-day what Myrtle Hall had been
saying about her, and, don't you think, she
went straight to Myrtle and told her of it,
and now Myrtle is mad at me. / despise
a tattler. Myrtie's Just as bad too; she'll
talk behind your back about you every
chance she gets. The fact is, they are an
awful disagreeable lot of girls, every one of
them"
"All but your retorted her brother,
who had slipped up to ask question.
| you're just little pink Of perfection in
every one of the eyes of-Fannie Mills"
he added. "Aunt En-, lend me your shears,
please" and he slipped out again.
"Ben is always just so provoking meanw
Fannie exclaimed. II don't know what
have DONE; but she flushed little
sit isn't pleasant to have to associate
with girls who have SO many disagreeable
characteristics, 1 am sure. How deceived
| wasp her aunt replied, ignoring Ben's
innuendo. "Girls with so many faults
are never agreeable companions. But it is
quite a load to carry around, Fannie"
GA load What do you mean, Aunt
| Emp
"Why, your fault-bag."
81 don't think / understand YOU" Fan
ME faltered out
old fable that everybody carries bag
hanging before him into which he puts his
neighbor's faults. and | have been think
ing for some days what load you must
be carrying around-Sues and Katies,
| Myrties and Ben's, even mothers and
Bridgeps, while | presume you have some
of Aunt Ems slowed away there before
you, too" She laughed pleasantly as she
ended. and Fannie blushed again.
"Why, l didn't mean-that isl
didn't know that was what | was doing.
| know l must have some myself" she
stammered.
"Yes, that is it; we don't see our own
so clearly because, as the fable goes on TO
say, we carry them in bag behind us.
This is what the great poet, Shakespeare,
refers to when he says: 'Oh, that you
could turn your eyes toward the napes of
your necks and make but an interior sur
vey of your good selvesp Suppose you
turn your eyes around now," she smilingly
continued, 'sand take little peep into that
other bag for moment"
Fannie did not lack in honest truthful
ness whatever else her faults, and she
actually twisted her head over her shoul-
der and exclaimed, as if her " good SELF
had been opened up to her gaze:
| 80, Aunt En-, | know what you mean
/ can see them all | was cross and dlsa-
greeable to Ben yesterday, and thoughtless
and selfish and impolite when mamma had
to ask me to give you the rocking-chair
Then | am just as careless as Ben about
my book, and such 'put-offerr Pm
always being late or hurried to death, and
then scold because Bridget don't hurry,
when | am, the one to blame and | com
plain of mamma because she don't help
then-mercy when | come to think Of
the girls, why, Pve been doing right along
just what I've condemned in them. Nv,
how full it is, Aunt Emm
She could not help laughing. though she
wore very distressed look as she want on
81 hadn't an idea that carried such a
bag behind me. What am / going to dc
with it? It's fearfully heavy now."
"Well, DEAR" Aunt EN- suggested I"
should say, twist it around in front so you
can get at it and, as Burns says, see your.
self as ithers see you; then go to work
TO get rid of its contents, every one as fast
as possible. I've no doubt but those in the
other bag will disappear of themselves il
you change places with the two"
Fannie tried it. and as the bag before
her was lightened by her daily successful
efforts to rid herself of fault she did find
fewer in the other one when she thought
of it. and she reached conclusion that
she whispered to Aunt En- one day: