The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-10-02
Jennie's Happy Year.

wife, "the day that Jennie Marshall
first came to school. There were but
ten of us, and we were like other girls.
Our fathers paid our way through
school, and we thought we never could
endure it when it leaked out that Mrs.
Vance was going to take a charity
scholar, poor clergyman's orphan, to
prepare for teaching.
betty Kenneth declared she would
never see her; she would pass her as
though she were the blank wall,
which we thought q fine revenge on
the girl for being poor. We all resolv-
ed to do the same.
"Bnt when the day came. Mrs.
Vance led in a thin little cripple, with
an appealing face and hump upon her
back.
This is Jennie Marshall she said.
There was moments pause, and then
Betty marched straight up and kissed
her, and we all followed her. Mrs.
Vance looked surprised and pleased,
but she soon led the new scholar out,
and then we stared at each other.
al can't make war on cripples, ,
said the toughest girl III the class.
"Betty's face was red, and she spoke
vehemently. 4 know what we will
do! She thinks of her deformity all
the time; I see it in her face. We
must make her forget it. Do you hear,
girls? 1t is little thing for us 10 do
make her forget it! -.
"If teacher told us to do this, we
should probably have disobeyed her;
but Betty was the widest among us.
We were ready to follow her.
ave all went to work. We took
Jennie into all our clubs; we told her
all our secrets. Not a word or look
ever touched on her deformity, or
limited that there was any difference
between us.
"If she had been whining, prig-
glsh girl, our good intentions might
have been thrown away; but she was
an affectionate little soul. ready to
laugh at all our jokes. fancy she
was little used to jokes or fun. People
had kept that terrible hump in her
mind always, as though that was to be
the chief thing in life for her.
"Slie was not clever in her books,
but Betty found out that she could
embroider exquisitely. Then we ask
ed Mrs. Vance to offer prize for nee
dlework with the others, and Jennie
OF course took it.
"She had voice fine and tender as
lark's, and Betty always contrived
that people who could understand it
should hear her sing. I have seen old
men come to her with their eyes wet
with tears, and thank her for her
songs. Even when we had tableaux,
we contrived that Jennie's lovely, sad
face should be seen among the others.
"What was the end Of it? Oh, it
was not like a story or a play, with
some great blessing coming in at the
close. It was a severe winter, and
several of the girls had heavy colds,
two of them pneumonia. Jennie was
one. She was not strong enough to
fight against it. She was tn: only one
who died.
ayes, her poor little story came to a
sudden end. We all saw her on that
last day. Betty even whispered to her
great secret. You can tell the other
girls when you are well, she said, nod
ding.
"Jennie laughed; but she looked at
each of us as we kissed her in a queer,
steady way.
"'I never was so happy in my life,
girls she whispered, as here with
you. Never. 7 wish I could stay
"That was all but when we looked
at her dead face the next day, there
was quiet smile on it.
"Betty's little effort had made the
last year of the tired child's life peace
full and bright, and I thought that she
surely had carried some OF its happl-
ness up with her to the home where
her deformity could not follow her.
Tho nnfnirast MaV to condemn an