The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-05-17

Her name was Priscilla Prodgers, and
she was very good little girl, indeed.
SO good was she, in fact, that she could
not help being aware of it herself, and
that Is stage to which very many quite
excellent persons never succeed in at
tanning She was only just child, it is
true, but she had read great many
beautiful story books, and SO she knew
what powerful reforming influence a
childish and innocent remark, or a youth
full example, or a happy combination of
both, can exert over grown up people.
And early in Ife-she was but Il at the
date Of this true history early in life
she had seen clearly that her mission
was to reform her family and relatives
E generally.
This was q heavy task for one SO
young, particularly in Priscilla's case,
for besides father, mother, brother and
sister Ia whom she could not but discern
many and serious failings, she possessed
an aunt who was addicted TO insincerity,
two female cousins whose selhshness and
siaamiability were painful to witness.
and male cousin who talked slang and
was So worldly that he habitually went
about IN yellow bootsl Nevertheless
Priscilla did not finch, although for
some reason her earnest and unremitting
efforts had hitherto failed to produce any
deep impression. At times she thought
this was owing to the fact that she tried
to reform all her family together, and
that her best plan would be to take each
one separately, and devote her whole en-
argies to improving that person alone,
but then she never could make up her
mind which member of the family to be-
gin with. It is small wonder that she
Z often felt a little disheartened, but even
that was a cheering symptom, for in the
books it is generally just when the little
heroine becomes most discouraged that
the seemingly impenitent relative ex-
hihits the first sign of softening.
SO Priscilla perSevered, sometimes
with mereiy a shocked glance of disap-
proval, which she had practiced before
the looking glass until she could do it
perfectly, sometimes with some tender,
tactfnl, little hint. Don't You think,
dear papa, she would say softly on
Sunday morning -sdon't you think you
could write your newspaper articles on
some other day? Is it work of real
necessity Or she would ask her mother,
who was certainly fond of wearing
pretty things: ssHow much bread for
poor, starving people would the price of
your new bonnet buy, mother? should
y 80 like to work 1t out on my little slater
Then she would remind her brother
\ Alick that it would be SO much better
If, instead of wasting his time in play
ing with silly little tin soldiers, he
would try to learn as much as he could
before he was sent to school; while she
was never tired Of quoting to her sister
BETTY the line,
Be good. sweet maid, and let who will be cleveri
which Betty, quite unjustly, interpreted
TO mean that Priscilla thought but poor
~ Of her sisters intellectual capacity.
Once when, as great treat, the chill
aren were allowed to read s.Ivanhoe''
aloud, Priscilla declined to participate
until she had conscientiously read up the
whole Norman period in her English his
tory, and on another occasion she cried
bitterly on hearing that her mother had
arranged for them to learn dancing and
even endured bread and water for an
entire day rather than consent to &C
quire an accomplishment which she
feared, from what she had read, would
prove o snare. On the second day-well,
I there was roast beef and Yorkshire pud-
ding for dinner, and Priscilla yielded;
4 but she made the resolution-and kept
I 1t, too that if she went to the dancing
+ class she would firmly refuse to take the
slightest pains to learn q single step.
only mention all these traits to show
that Priscilla really was an unusually
good child. which makes 1t the more sad
and strangesthat her family should have
profted SO Little by her example She
& WIS neither loved nor respected as she
ought to have been, ] am gricved to say.
Her papa, when he was not angry, made
the cruelest fun Of her mild reproofs;
4 her mother continued to spend money
on dresses and bonnets, and even allowed
the maid to say that herrnistress was
mot at home, when she was merely
unwilling to receive visitors. Ahck and
Betty, too, only grew more exasperated
when ErisczIla urged them to keep their
tezupeEA and altogether she could not
!. help feeling how wasted and thsown
\ AWAY she-uas-on such ecircie.
But sha7seur quite lost heart Her
papa was q Htsrary man and wrote tales,
\ Some Of which were mot as true as they
/ Affected TO be, while he Invariably neg
lected todnserS asmnral in amy Of them.
Frequently she dropped little remarks
before him with apparent carelessness,
Z: 81 the hope that no might put them in
Z print, but henever did. Shenever could
{ Recognize herself as character in any
Il Of bis stories, and so at last she-gave up
Z reading them at ALL
Z! Bnt one morning she came more near
y 10 giving up in utter despair than ever
before. Only the previous day she had
been 50 hopefull Her father had really
+ seemed to be beginning to appreciate bis
little daughter, and had presented her
1tiI sixf>ence In The n<w cninef,e to put
1n fler money box. This had elnboldaned
per 70 such q degree that, happening on
ll,e following morning 10 hear him eiac-
lsss onloana itr sAs had pssssiaS