Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1890-10-31
A PATCHWORK QUILT.


the most intricate patterns, over which
Mt least one pair of eyes were strained
for days and weeks before quilting
time came, and all those puffy little
diamonds were marked out, amidst
chat and laughter, by half-a-dozes
ladiesP Did you ever in childhood.
sit upon the bed and hear the history
of the various pieces of chintzP
That's a piece of your first colored
dress; that had when 1 was girl;
that was your grandmother's morning.
gown; this is piece Miss s. gave
me. / have heard such history many
a time. and little pictures used to pass
before my eyes with the words.
could see just how grandma looked in
the morning gown. | could see my
self baby, taking toddling steps in
the blue frock. 1t seemed SO funny to
have been baby-when l was an inn
portant person of five years. 1t
doesn't seem half so funny now. for
have begun TO doubt whether | shall
ever be anything else. and to know
just how many big babies there are in
this world.
Dear old patchwork quilts! We've
lost something in losing them. think,
and probably Mrs. Mumford thought
so. too, for whenever any of her chill
dren were found sitting with those lido
hands, for which Doctor Watts de-
clares that Satan always finds some
mischief, she invariably remarked:
''YOu better get your patchwork"
They always obeyed, those three lit
tie girls, Lucy Ruth and Olive, and
there were piles of quilts in the up
stairs rooms where spare bedding was
stored-quilts of many colors, quilts
of only two quits with large. square
blocks, and quilts with intricate pat
terms, like Chinese puzzle. quilts
that had been made by people in their
nineties, and quilts that had been
made by people who could not yet say:
IL am nine years old" Piecing Il
quilt was the first work and the last
of the members of the Mumford fam
ily. / think an ancestor made some
patches on board of the MayfoUer At
least it was said so.
When young person married, n
dowry of quilts had always been pro-
vided-always would be while Mrs.
Mumford lived. When Olive was fif-
teen, she had been told that the white
and Turkey red quilt which her great
grandmother had made was to be
among her share. as the eldest daugh-
ter "f ''e house. She laughed then,
and said:
Il shall always stay at home with
you, mamma. shall be the old maid
daughter"
A year afterward she did not think
this, whatever she might have said, for
the year had made her feel that she
was no longer a child, and she had
met Harry Martin, who had put an en-
gagement ring on Olives finger, and,
if all went well. her seventeenth birth
day would find her matron.
Nothing like seeing your children
settled before YOU are broken down
yourself" said the mother; and there
upon began to teach Olive the higher
mysteries of pastry. Plain cook ne.
every girl of that family quite under
stood.
A lover Always takes great interest
in his lady's handiwork. Harry re-
garded all the little pieces of sewing
which passed through Olives hands
with immense admiration, and the
homely patchwork was just as fine in
his eyes as anything else; and there
was often much talk about the pieces,
and, once or twice. he had cut them
out, after the cardboard patterns. low
ing to NEEDLE with anything that she
was busy with. in old true lovers
fashion.
One evening. when he went in, he
found the girl looking, as an artist
might look at rare old master, at a
long breadth of old-fashioned, Towering
chintz.
Mother has just given me this,
Harry" she said. 1T is like a gown
of old aunt Hepsiba's. 1t shimmers
like silk, and see how fine it is. But
fancy wearing such large pattern.
Look! Il butterfly on bough, and a
rose, and a butterfly on a bough again,
and then another rose, like wallpaper.
The difficulty will be-" said Olive,
pausing to consider, chow to get the
pattern into n patch without spelling
It."
III help v0,i," said Harry; and to
work he went, and for pleasant hour
or two he kept cutting patches. A
bud and a butterfly on one. rose on
the other, bud and butterfly, and rose
again.
And he has not spoiled one. man,
ma" said Olive, in tone of pride.
I'm sure should have cut dozen
butterflies beads off. ii had tried"
So tho young things laughed over
their exploits. and then slipped merri-
rily away to have their lovers chat
where nobody could listen.
1t was the last The next day, Har-
~ Martin was missing, and with him
a large sum of money from his en-
ployer's safe. Tie news spread
through the country town like Wild
fire. Harry was an orphan, and the
sou of an old friend of the head of the
firm. Ii was understood that they
would be merciful. but his character
was blighted forever.
No one doubted his guilt but Olive.
She steadfastly declared him innocent.
Weeks passed on, aud there was no
news of him-at least. none that
reached the Mumfords' ears; but one
night, when Mrs. Mumford went out
TO the cOw-housc TO see that Crummie
was safe for the night some one came
out of the darkness. and called to her.