Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-11-28

ton at Christmas. Ought!
Unsuspicious Mrs. Graham, as she re-
| turned with the yeast, was somewhat puz-
lied by the sudden freshness of her guest,
who hurried out of the house as if some
| dreadful contagion had haunted it, but
when the minister, In carving the pie that
| the deacon wife had sent. made curious
discoveries almost simultaneously, the
reason for Patience's altered demeanor
was made plain, and the young pair had a
hearty laugh that made the old par
sonage ring like peal Of Thanksgiving
BELLS
The Tuesday following was the regular
day for the sewing circle, and seldom had
that interesting gathering proved so lively
and animated as on this occasion, well nigh
bursting with some important secret that
she was only waiting fitting opportunity
to divulge That opportunity was not
! long in coming, for Mrs. Geo. Farrell,
who was a constitutional croaker, took oc-
casion to say, In reference to the hard
times:
1.-The deacon had been tryin' ter collect
the church tax, and he says he never found
money so tight in all the years he lived
here. It's as hard to get five dollars now
as it used to be to get ten.
''And, no wonder. spoke up Miss Pa
thence, with the stony severity of sphinx
You can't expect folks to feel like pay
! In out their money when they see it fairly
thrown away and wasted
| Everybody looked curious, and some of
the younger girls began to speak defiantly
| The ministers sweet young wife was
evidently a favorite with them, at least.
''What doyou mean by that?' asked
Mrs. Farrell pOintedly. Mrs. Graham
| is young and inexperienced, to be sure;
| but as the deacon was sayIn only yes
| terday, she does very well indeed, consid-
! ering.
Patience tossed her head knowingly 4
don t want to say nothing to hurt her, but
| Twin next door. as | do. | can't always
help seem and hearin things that other
| folks can t be expected to know about, and
when | see and know things like"
There was an ominous pause, and the
! deacon's wife asked excitedly:
Like what?'
Chicken pies, with legs and feet of the
chicken baked mp
Had thunderboIt fallen it could
not have caused greater surprise to those
tidy, thrifty New England housekeepers
than this dreadful revelation of the
incapacity Of the pastors young wife.
Are you sure of it p gasped one ma
iron. breaking the ominous silence. Il
know it for a fact, was solemnly returned.
Chicken legs in pie.
''She 5 born fool, calculated the dea-
con- wife, Indignantly land m thank
| full for her poor husband sake that | sent
her over one of my pies yesterday. They
had to throw hers away, of course, and it S
| lucky that he didn't have to go without
e
her ignorance an shiftlessness.
How did you know about the pie?''
asked one of the girls.
| Miss Patience bristled defantly. That
nobodys business but my own" she re-
| torted, tartly. Il don't go around to find
out things that don t concern me, I'd have
you know, but when they re thrown right
into my face as you might say, | don t
shet my eyes no more n other folks.
Just here the door opened, and in walked
| the subject of their conversation, her pretty
| face glowing with the haste that she had
made, and mischievous twinkle in her
brown eyes that nobody noticed, 50 occu-
pied were they in hiding the confusion
! that her sudden entrance had created.
| Walking to the table where most of the
ladies were sitting she saluted them cor
daily; and then holding out upon the tip
of her slender finger well worn silver
| thimble. she said archly-
where do you think | found your
thimble, Miss Patience?"
! So pleased was Miss Patience to regain
the lost treasure that she forgot for a mo-
ment all assumed dignity and exclaimed
jOyfully:
"Well, declare, am glad to see that
thimbe once more! | told Mary Jane
that felt sure had it on my finger when
! | ran into your house Thanksgivin' morn
ing after that yeast But when l got home
1t warn t nowhere to be found. Now
where did you find it?''
Her shrill. high voice had attracted the
attention of all In the room, and every
| body looked up curiously as the minister s
wife replied, with an innocent smile:
''In the chicken pie that our good
friend here '-and she nodded brightly to
Mrs. Farrell sent me. | left the pie on
the dresser when INVENT down cellar after
your yeast and as soon as | came back |
put it on the table, and when nv husband
cut it there was your thimble In it. How
could it have got there? Ii is certainly
very mysterious anyway"
! Silence, deadly profound, yet oh, how
terribly significant to the deacon's wife
and her spinster neighbor, fell upon the
group.
This was apparently unnoticed by Mrs.
Graham, who. with a playful admonition
to Miss Patience to take better care of
her thimble in the future, began an ami
mated conversation with the ladies near
est her, that soon restored the company to
their wonted good humor
But poor Miss Patience she never heard
the last of her lost thimble While the
deacon's wife, to the day of her death,
never trusted any hands but her own to
make Thanksgiving pies for her minister.
JOSH BILLINGS PHILOSOPHY.
A man with he'd phull of branes kan
afford ew be kareless once in a while, for
even his plumbers are brilliant
4 Experience increases our wizdom, but
don t reduse our phollys.
Buty IL power; but the most treacherous
one kno ov.
The man who haz got into the habit ov
never making eny blunders, IL altogether
too good to liv in this world
Humanity is good thing tew hav, pro-
vided man IL sure he haz got the right
kind. Thare never IL a time in kat
life when she IL so humble az just before