Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1892-09-22
A LITTLE RED cRuTCH.
Grandma's Rainy-Day Story OF Patient
Little Sufferer.

! Nanette was leaning on the parlor
window, pulling the lace curtains very
much awry, and looking disconsolately
out into the wet street
81 don't mind RAINY days in story
books" continued the small philoso-
pher, because there are always gar
rets in story-books, always, and little
girls find the loveliest things in them
when il rains-old laces, and skeletons,
and things
"Skeletonsr' CALCULATED the listener
at the other window. my, Mani
should you like 10 find skeleton I'm
rather glad we haven't any garrett, II
skeletons live in garrets. But tell you
what" lowering her voice mysterious
ly, and coming over TO stand on the
same long-suffering curtain that Nan
was abusing. there is little shut-up
place in this house that must have some
thing awful in it."
The 'little shut-up place was a closet
/ in the third-story back room. gabled
roof made irregularities in the room,
and one of them developed into dark
closet.
but it's locked" objected Nanette
mo, it isn't I pulled it open. one
day. just very little way"
and what was insideP"
Nothing" confessed the discoverer,
except dust and darkness. But didn't
60 in. you know. wouldn't for any
thing"
The next minute two slim little fig
ures might have been seen-they could
not be heard-stealing up the Queen
/ Anne stairway. Tiptoeing and cover
/ ing up laughing lips, and pinchlng each
other, they reached the third-story back
room. and stood before the closed door.
But it was not an obstinate door, and
the small, cunning fingers soon had il
open. Darkness and dust, indeed.
plenty Of both, and nothing else 70 be
seen.
Would you be afraid to go in, Nan?'
mo, indeed; fraid of whatP"
"Would you go back 10 the very
/ darkest end?"
Nan insisted that she would.
/ well, then do it, dared the other,
and sturdy Nan plunged into total
eclipse. She came back TO the cheer
full light Of day with great alacrity,
covered with dust of course-eyes full,
nose and mouth ditto, apron looking
! like Cinderella's, and something in her
hand Winling her dusty lashes, she
held up her discovery. II was little
/ red crutch.
Downstairs they clattered, with
noise enough to make mp for their
silent ascent. the little crutch bobbing
along each step as they flew down 10
grandmother's room.
The look that came into grandma's
eyes, when the crutch was held up, was
very much the look Anita would have
shown il the skeleton had been found
indeed, or a ghost
There was clearly something TO tell.
and as a story on this wet day would
be even more delightful than finding
skeleton, the dear old lady was at once
put in state of siege, the crutch and
two little girls sitting down obstinately
before her.
zone breezy fall day" said grandma,
surrendering IT discretion, "a little girl
went out to the barn to swing"
"What is barn, grandma?'
''This barn." she answered, twas the
most delightful place in the world.
1t was none of your fine north
ern barns, with stained-glass win
dows, but a great high-roofed, dark
raftered place. where cobwebs had
leave to sleep, where the breeze wan
dered in and out all day, and the sun
shine played about, as the children did
hunting eggs. 1t was full of sweet
odors from the bayfield, on one side
and the apple orchard on the other;
and the little Virginia girl, whose
swing dangled from one of the lower
beams, had no idea that anybody in the
world had higher claim on it than she
had"
What was her name, grandma"
Her name" said the old lady, look
ing startled. "her name was Nancy, of
course"
And she went out to swing one
day." prompted the listener.
"She went out TO swing, one day, de-
termined to work up till she touched
the beam. She was very strong and
very slxilful; she put her little bare feet
/ on the DOdTQ seat ScALcu tlt iORC
MP. gave tilt this side and that, and
was off. Do you know how to work up?'
How to bend the knees, and straighten
them again, with a jerk that sends the
obedient swing flying through the air2
Nancy came so near the beam that its
cobwebby dust sifted down in her eyes
mot the beam she was hanging to. you
know, but anotherl. So close, and yet
not to touch. Ambitious little goosel
she suddenly threw out her hand, and
struck the great log with her fist. But
the loosened rope swung away from
her. the board tilted. she hung only by
one little hand in the air, and soon the
impetus of the swing jerlSed that hold
loose and she fell"
AIR cried the little girls. with a sob
of pain-''ah, grandma was she
killed."
mo, not killed: but sometimes in the
long winter months that followed,