The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-10-11

IT MUST BE DONE TODAY" RETURNED
AGNES.
Agnes pushed open the front door,
bleached like bone in the sun, un-
painted and harsh on its hinges from
disuse, while Burns drove the wagon
round to the back entrance, and she
heard him cackling with his wife over
the Incubator" and the probable stir it
would make on Scrabble Hill. Agnes
realized perfectly that she was far be
You'd the Littletield social standards and
the more distant perspective of the city
where she had been a distinguished light,
and would now be measuredby the Scrab-
BILE Hill foot rule, which was entirely
different from anything she had ever
known.
Fortunately there were no very near
neighbors. The farm ran up the Buck
river valley into the lonely hills, where
wild looking cattle grazed and sheep
scampered over the rocks at their own
free will. The outer door from the low
step, made of fiat. worn field stone,
opened directly in on Dame Rollins
keeping room, a three cornered, odd
shaped apartment, little askew and
"off plumb" like the rest of the house,
but with four small windows placed
curiously high up in the wall, and with
corner cupboards and wooden chimney
piece over an old fireplace that had long
been bricked up. It did not take Agnes
more than two minutes to determine
that the bricks must come out of that
fireplace forthwith if she scratched them
out with her finger nails.
A high pine wainseoting painted gray
ran entirely round the room, and above
it was quaint old landscape paper rep
resenting Diana and her nymphs at the
chase The floor was covered with a
homely rag carpet, spotted with braided
rugs, and beautiful caricatures of George
and Martha Washington in black frames
hung against the chimney back. The
furniture was delightfully."- spider legged
and quaint, and the bright sunlight came
dancing through the vines Mrs. Burns
had trained over the windows The
room was musty from long shutting up,
but Agnes. with the promptness that
distinguished her, threw open all the
windows. turned George and Martha
face to the wall, rearranged the furni-
ture and called for Burns to knock the
bricksout of the chimney
Burns was in the barn. but his wife
answered the summons, making long,
lean shadow on the wall She sat down
on the edge Of chair like parallel line
trying to conform to custom and folded
her hands in her apron, though the big
bony wrists were still conspicuous,
Burns must knock the bricks out of
the chimney | mean to use the fire.
place on cool evenings. There are plenty
of fat pine stumps on the farm that will
make a capital blaze"
"How do you know the chimbly will
dror, miss. faint been used for years,
not sence Granther Rollins time, and
its most choked up with chimbly swal-
lers.n
1T must be made to draw" returned
Agnes, slightly contracting her beauti-
full. classic brows.
Mrs. Burns looked at her with sol
emn, unwinking eye. 81 guess it will
be like the incumbater," said she mystic
riously. 'But Burns is bound to do all
he can to please you, miss; all in reason,
of course. and he'll tend to the chimbly
the first wet day"
lit must be done today" returned
Agnes in her high, girlish imperiousness
that had begun to rise under Mrs. Burns
stony gaze.
Mrs. Burns opened her thin, fshy lips
and emitted the words, ssWell, never
did; 1t beats me all holler.r and then fell
into silence Agnes, precipitancy had
confused her ideas, accustomed as she
was to the good old country rule of
never doing today what you can put off
until tomorrow.
"The world wasn't made in minnie,
miss" she put forth at last, .sbut Burns
will try and content You. He's good at
dealin with whims and fancies and I'D
dlefaddle ways. He had great-aunt
that was queer, who brought him up by
hand. She had spells Of bein out of her
head, and guess it was a pretty good
school Of patience"
Agnes turned red and choked down a
laugh. See it's done,n said she; 81
want fire on the hearth this evening.
The effort Of putting Burns and his
wife in their true place was rather ex-
hilarating on the whole.
"Mebbe you win be lonesome some
night said Mrs. Burns, beginning to
plat up the edge OF her apron. "The
winds whistle round this hill to beat all.
and every window casin ratt1es differ
ent way. The trustees of the school
deestrict are trying to find boardin
place for Miss Crab, the new teacher.
The jerks folks would take her for two
dollars week and let Eer do her own
washin and ironin. but their victuals is
pretty poor. and the trustees would be
willin to pay twenty shillins. Mebbe
she'd be company for you nights, miss
If you'd furnish q room in your part Of
the house wouldn't mind givin meals
and we'd go shares on the school money.
She's got a young man that comes Sun.
days over from Spring Village to take
her buggy ridin, but he's quiet, and
don't believe you'd mind him morn 1
chair There goes Miss Grab now on
her way to the school house, and you car
take sqniut ut her IL you choose.
Agnes glanced out Of the little win
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