San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1891-10-17

before kinder weakened poor Mrs. Wig.
gins conscience, for. seein her OWN coops
WIS locked up, the poor soul went
around to the neighbors and stole one
chicken apiece from each of u.s. 1t was
kinder Just to 90 it that way when she
might have took EN- all from one of us,
and those of US that caught her at it
made mp our minds not to say nuthin.
but Jest to pray fur her. and we'd sent
over word that IF there wus anything we
could do ia call on ne. And perhaps she
oS0 Hrnria~ Aaisnniia Of
felt we'd be willin to spare the chickens,
but wus proud about asiin fur EN-.
Well, she got the things together some
how, and she cooked the chickens and
made the salad, and borried chany of
most of us, and got up real fust rate
supper, and sot the table with flowers
they WIS mostly marygolds and old man,
and some folks don't like the smell of
neither; but the yaller and green looked
pretty. and it was all ready for the COM
pany when they cum hum from church
We that knowed things felt that we
could see marks of innard torture on
poor Mrs. Virgins face, and we felt to
sympathize. fur she wus naturally a
been driven to sin by the meanness of
her pardner. You see. she was one of
them women that lives fur their child
rem. Ef she'd been pelican she'd hev
took all the feathers out of her buZzim
to make EN- beds, and she'd sackerficed
herself fur Melindy. She looked kinder
better when she got to church; but our
minister he wus young and hadn't mar
ried nobody before, and. bein narvous,
he commenced fur to read the burial
sarvice instead Of the marriage sarvice,
and we bein all stiff with horrer hadn't
presence of mind enough fur to stop him
until he'd actilly buried Melindy. as fur
as words could go. and Mrs. Virgins
wus in high strikes.
However, she got over EN-, and the
minister he said he didn't know after all
but it was providence to keep US from
bein too sot on the things of this world,
and reminded how short life was, and
went back and married 'em proper.
And SO we did get back to Virgins.
only Mr.. Virgins hevin been too mean
to get the wagin mended. the wheel
come off and they wus all split out and
eenamost drownded goin over Slabside
bridge that amt got no railin. Mrs.
Virgins, poor dear, was soaked, and
when we Tux her into our wagin she
kept sayin, Observation-Disclosures
Judgments is cominl' We knowed what
she was thnkin of. and we tried to cheer
her up.
Well, when the folks wus dried and
dressed over we all went to supper, and
we praised it up as much as we could,
but Mrs. Virgins sot down in her place
like ghost, and folks began to talk and
laugh and help everything. But she
didn't smile.
She passed the chicken salad plates to
the help, and the help gave EN- to the
folks, and we all tasted it, but it didn't
relish. Still we tried to eat it fur her
sake Most of us done it, too, and the
coffee WIS good, and we cheered up
some. Mrs. Virgins didn't eat no salad
herself, SO aIe didn't know how it tasted
After supp"r w" all went into the parlor
and sot AROUND and 81 Barker wus tryin
to git up daucln, and did hope things
would erl happy, Wien all Of a suddin
folks began to look pale and say they
wus p'isoned So they seemed to be.
One arter the other wus took sick, and
they all said the same thing-it wus the
salad felt very poorly myself, and
50 did my Obidlah. The minister had
gone home sick, and there wus regular
panic. There wus one doctor there and
he sent fur another; and old Miss Pee
bles said it wus like old cholera times.
1t wus awful, anyway; but jest as we
wus at the wust, we ladies lyin about in
the up stairs rooms expectin to die and
feelin sure it WIS arsenic. Mrs. Virgins
appeared amongst us.
Friends and Teller sinners" she said,
I'VE air all on the pint of death, and
here, before you all, | make confession.
am thief and a robber, and | shall
never be pardoned. 1t wus me that
robbed my husband, and, more than
that, / stole the chickens to make the
sallad-one of EN- from each of my good
friends and ueighbors. Judgments has
fallenr
You wus driv to it, Mrs. Virgins"
SEE |, "by your partners meanness. We
all knowed it, and none of Us blame you"
"You don't know all, said Mrs. Wig
gins. "More'n that: went to the store
and tux my chances and stole bottle of
ile-the recipe said to make the salad
dressin with lie. I'd never made none
| stole the bottle. Oh! fsha'n't never be
forgiven-l sha'n't never be forgiveni
I've TUX bottle of p'ison of some sort,
fin. il WIS in the drn@ denartment where