New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-09-08
AFTERNOON COMPANY.
AT THE POLLARDS.


scuse Of painful accuracy everything was perfectly
souare Tho pattern OF the carpet was red ana draD'
and what they call here wOo1-color,' arranged III
cubos that would give 10 a mathematical mlhu an
uneasy desire 10 find out Just how many cuOos tnere
were in all. The paper was OF blue ana drap Oars'
crossing each other at right angles on pale ground
II Is really astonishing where tho people living IN
remote country towns get the kind OF furniture and
house APARTMENTS they Where arc these things
manufactured
If the visitor arrived at the parlor through tho front
yard he would be well prepared for the aspect OF
tho house. You walked UP from the gate over
narrow path paved with round pebbles, which must
have come originally from some shore. lhey "eie
rather Pr prominent and very hard to the feet On each
side Of the path were two arborvitae shrubs, trimmed
to such a degree that It seemed as II they must DC
unhappy, for not twig went as It wanten 10 CO.
Between the trees, the tight hand ana on INC
left were square beds, which held some lcmafkaoS
proper looking pctunas and asters wouu IKE "
see tho person who would daro pluck one OF those
flowers. And would also like to know by what arr
the Pollarls had succeeded in making these blooms
look rs II they were artificial Tho trees were much
like those trees that come in the toy villages with
which children play.
Having passed through this yard, you were not
surprised at the paror but you would be sure 10 Ut
greatly depressed by It, Perhaps l was the moro
denressed on entering this room to find that IN my
vas too early was the very FIRST Evidently Mrs.
Benncts clock fast. Even the inmates OF inc
house were not -et prepared 10 receive their company
Mrs Pollard came to the door TO let me in wrapped
in LARGO shawl. which but imperfectly cohcealod
the fact thai she was not ready Two spare srahdS
of hair hanging each side OF her face enc
| made spasmodic attempt to be hospable; she to!d
me /" 20 como right in and take my things nght OH
and 60 right into the parlor. She would be right
! there in few minutes. mebbe Minty would be
thclc first | must make myself to homo any way
| and she was real glad / had come SO early
| She insisted on remaining With me While TOOK
! off ny hat. l tried to explain that had not IN
! tended coming early and that there must be some
| thinc the matter with the Bennett clock. But Mrs
| Pollard ralscd her thin hard hand and cried
| "Don't say a word Don't say word I'm
tests gad's can be to you. Walk right in; set
right down; Minty or Lzze'l be right there. Some
times Lizzie can't do her hair to suit the first time,
but Mnty'n come. I'll hurry her up
| Again / cssaycd to speak and to beg that no ono
would hurry could SIT by myself a few moments;
| was quito accustomed 10 sitting by myself. In my
| confusion was very saying preferred to SIT
alone But Miss Pollard would not listen she kept
waving her hand and repeating that Mnty would be
sure to come almost Immediately.
Thus l was left alone in the parlor which felt
| to be a kind of Illustration Of square and cube root.
The walls square root and the carpet was cube
root To person with what IS called mah
cmaca tnn' this might have been eXhilarating,
! but not that kind Of person. WALKED round :
looked at the engraving of Lincoln and his family
which hung over the seraphlne. ! gazed upon a
llhograph Of Tho Shepherd Boy" I wished might
| find a speck Of dust somewhere. But no; the window
glass shone thero was no kind Of dt It was, as Mrs.
| Bennett had sald "pison neat' all about me. One
| OF the windows looked from the end OF the house.
| | saw man whom felt must be Mr.. Pollard, walk
| Ing along with a basket OF apples in each hand. Ho
was large and portly, and he arrayed in a
"jumpcr7 and over-alls Of black and white check so
absolutely clean that it dazzling to look at him.
Even the pattern Of his clothes was in squares. The
line OF beauty was evidently not much considered here.
Mr. Pollard walled down a grassy slope and disap-
! pcared. Just as he had passed out of sight, sash
was thrown hastily up in a room above the parlor
and voice shouted
"Fathcrl Father Are them pig appes''
| eyes, they be- was the answer. = ~ what il they
be7'
"'Cause, you've ben m dropped two, m they'll
be Ittcrln' up the grass
There response to this. / could not help
experiencing a vivid desire 10 know how long them
apples would be allowed to litter
While was standing thus. tho door behind me
opened and there was little exclamation of surprise.
Il didn't know any one here said GIRL ad-
vancng into tho room, at the same instant hoarse
! voice somewhere on the stairs said wamlngly:
Miss Gcnuct's boardcr's come. Mnty"
Are you Mrs. Bcnnets boarlerl" inquired this
stranger who could not be moro than sixteen years
old and who furnished striking contrast 10 the room
and to the pson neatness which rampant in this
household
Are you Mlnty?7 I replied IN true Yankee custom,
by asking another question.
"Yes'm,' she said, and came forward to shake
hands.
81 guess you must be tired waiting for somo one
to come,' she remarked.
There was something in the girls face which gave
me permission TO say that l had not been tired that
[ had looked at Mr.. Lincoln and his family, had
counted a few OF the cubes in the carpet. l asked
her If she knew how many cubes there were in all.
She laughed gayly and clappci her hands. Sc
you feel Just as 1 do about the cubes1 There are
Os4 way, and 7O1 the othor way. ] have added
them up lots OF times l tell you there isn't any
thing about those cubes don't know
She appeared be ready to partlcularze as 10 the
drab and the blue but at that moment the door opened
again and there entered the eldest daughter of the
house. Lizzie the who had caught me making corn
stalk Gd1lcs when she had come to invite me to THIS
gathering She shook hands, standing great way
of, and reaching forward to do so. She said she
hadn't had no idea that anybody would early
and her hair had plagued her NORM common, and
pins wouldn't seem to hold 1t. She hoped 1 would
excuse her, but she hadn't expected very
soon after dnrcr. Again explained. almost abJecty
that Mrs. Bennets clock was probably fast. Mis-:
Pollard responded that it must have ben, for sh'
hadn't never known the day when she didn't git he
hair done, even when It plagued her. before Q.
became possessed by a strong desire to know wha
Il was that IIzzc Po!larl's hair did when II did fl
worst / looked at 1t interogavcly, but It revcale,
nothing II was drawn away with unruiied smooth
ness into French twist7 behind. That Frencl
twist was so solid, smooth, reticcn that It wa
| useless 20 look at II. The sharp features In from
of Il were sharper and more suggestive of profit
| "a. md hcpu
woman wa 50 clean. scrubbed so much az RICH
anglrs with her surroundings that all the rest Of In
world emel grimy and at loose ends IN comparison
with hcI.
Mis- Pollard hail scarcely sat down and wiped he
lirs with the exact centre OF a pocket handherchle