Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-05-13
MISS PRISCILLA'S BOYS.

Hiss Priscilla wasexpecting company. Any
one could IA that from the active way IL
which she few around the kitchen, darted IL
and-out of the buttery, opened and shut The
Oren door and smiled continually, as though
abe counted on having a very good time CT it
Three boys were also counting on the very
tame thing, and about 4 o'clock that after
noon three pairs Of legs aSd arms, accom-
panied by three heads and bodies, tumhied
tumutuously out of the stage at Miss Priscil
las door with whoop Of delight and seemed
Immediately to spread themselves over every.
whore
Here you aret" said Miss Priscilla, smil
ing Hospitality as one after another imprinted
a resounding kiss on the pleasant, motiaeTly
face, 'tas large as life and twice as natural. j
''We're ever SO much largeri' shouted Ted
the middle one, VINO generally did the talk
ing, and in q voice that was sure to be heard
''Sid;s grown half head since last sum
mer, and I'm most as tall" "And nothing
fits rnep exulted Master Wally, aged 10, as
ne stood on tip toe. You're a pesfectset of
giants" laughed Miss Priscilla, "and Sid
ney's got to be quite man. But he's grown
pretty much all one way; he'll have to fill
out wllIie he's here. And that reminds me
that you'd better begin on some ginger
bread-fresh made this morning"
Nobody ever did give a fellow.such gener-
GUS hunks at once as Miss Priscilla, thought
the three hungry boys, with hands and
mouths both full. They declared, as they
always did, that it was the best ginger bread
she had ever made The next thing Miss
Priscilla gave them was towels-good big
ones-es she said, az know you of old, you
See, SO beoff with you to the lake. But don't
stay too]ong in the water. There's buckle
berry cake for supper" "Hooray!" shouted
Sidney, as he executed war dance OF de-
light, and N'Hocrayl" shouted the others, fol-
lowing his example. "Three cheers for hiss
Priscillai"
They vanishedsin cloud of dust along the
road TO the lake, and the kind hearted spin
ster declared that it did her good just TO see
them How well she remembered thatsum-
ner, five years ago, when the delicate young
mother first came there with her three boys
for quiet and comfort, she said, while her
husband wasaway on a long business jour
ney; and although Mr. Elton had not been
obliged to leave his family again, the boys
always managed to get themselves sent to
Daisybrook for the vacation. 1t was de-
licious there, they said; they had such a
lovely room to sleep inl Why couidn't the
roof of their house slope like that, till it came
down most to the roof of the bed? It was
jolly; and Just to see that bed with the set
ting sun on it in patchwork, made them feel
good. Miss Priscilla seWedit all when she
was a little girl, and she said she rernem-
bered hating it like poison, but her mother
made her do it. The bed smelled like bay,
and it had a kind of hill in the middle, where
they Sided of on each other. Wally slspt IN
a trundle bed by the window, and such q
funny little window as it was!-only two
panes of glass and a white muslin curtain
that slipped along on q string.
Out in the garnet there were punches of
herbs drying-Giss Priscilla called them
''yarbs'-a4id an ldspinning wheel and lots
of queer things. There were two or three
trunks1haS looked like the horse Miss Pris-
ella drove around, or else the horse looked
ike the trunks; they Couldn't tel which.
But that roof was jllst the nicsst. place to
hear the rain come down on, i5sounded SO
good when they werS asleep. And Miss Pris-
ella let them do just what they wanted to-
She liked the boys, and said they ought to be
made happy. And they were all engaged to
be married TO her whenthey grew up.
BLESS their hearts," thought Miss Pris-
ella, as she laughingiy accepted this numer-
Gus proposal, they're the incest bows. do
believe, that ever lived. I've half a mind to
sdopt one of 'ern, but spapai and mamma. >
as they calfiem, would usper consent" Prob
ably not; but it showed their good opinion
of the worthy woman 10 intrTISt to her the
charge Of their precious trio for a whole
mouth. Miss PrisciTla's neighbors laughed
good deal at her summer boarders,n but she
declared that they didn't laugh half as much
as she did, for the boys kept her in laughing
Tor the rest OF the year.
There is no use in talking" said Mrs FL
ton TO her husband, ''the children are never
half 50 happy anywhere else in the country
as at Miss Priscilla's, and as the good soul is
Wiling TO be troubled With them, do let them
have their wish, and you and will take a
tttbe TRIP by our two selves don't pine in
the kast after Daisyhrook; the beds are too
hard and like little more civilization gem
orally, bat 1t Is just theplace for boys to en-
JOY themselves in" So they went TO Miss
Priscilla In state of ecstatic delight, and
now they were splashing and swimming in
the large pond, which people generally called
1.-THE Lake. 10 their hearts content But they
didn't forget that there was q mile of walking
between them and their supper, snd they pre-
ssnted themselves SO promptly for that meal
that Hiss Priscilla declared they carried
clocks in their stollechs
Besides tbs mill and cream and other good
things, nos foryetti1g those wide slices of
moist brown bread which are the delight OF
boys these WAS generous plate of warm
huckieberTy cake. Of which WaIly said that
there wasn't any cake 20 1t, because it was
NIL hnokleberrisS" 1t was certainly very
good, and any one but tbs good natured lady
Who naade5t would havs bssa asto1lished 70
seefruw fast it disappeared. 1T was made
10 eat" said lns Priscilla, as Sidney, by
special Invitation, modestly took his fourth
pieos, why it's nothing at aL just 10 STIR
Up batter and make huckleberry cake.s
I'm glad OF &. replied Sidney, WHO was
very polite boy; Il was afraid we gave youa
great dssA Of trouble by sating so much OF
Il" Miss Priscilla laughed heartily at this
nes- andsald she was Wiling 10 make ell
Me hucke5err,- cake they'd want 90 ea1
There we've thirty-ons days Of delight Be.
Tore item, and the boys had what their elders
called mi swing" They could De trusted
with It, for they never did anything dis
honorable or undesAazsied ThaY contrired.
no~rver. 60 psrfeFm some astonishing ex-
pi0rss, especially Ted, who was scratched and
s'0ag and bitten until he looked like q
SoaIh Sea Islander. One Day he bald Up two