Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1892-02-01
Tea With the Witches.

Kitty Bourne sat in one corner of
the large dining room sofa, looking at
the fire, and wishing that her father
and mother would come home from
their long journey. Harry, curled up
IN the green rocking chair, was slow
" moving back and forth, lazily try
ing to entice the kitten within his
reach by means of q long string.
Grandma Bourne was adding a final
touch to the ea-table, in the shape
of vase of white chrysanthemums,
the very last of the season, for a sud
den snowfall that afternoon had COW
cred the garden. Marion, the elder
sister, with her beloved whittier"
open on her knees, was halfreading,
half-reciting, in a low tone passages
from ''Snow- bound" By degrees,
Kitty became interested in the poem,
and listened while Marion read about
building OF the fire:
~sThen lowering near,
We watched the first red blaze appear,
Heard the first sharp crackle, caught the CLEAN
On whitewashed wall and sagging beam,
Until the old, rude furnished room
Burst, f1ower-like into rosy bloom;
While radiant with mimic flame,
Outside the sparkling drift became;
And through the bare-boughed llac-tree,
Our own warm hearth seemed blazing free.
The crane and pendant trammels showed,
The Turks heads on the andirons glowed,
While childish fancy, prompt to tell
The meaning of the miracle,
Whispered the old rhyme, "Under the tree,
When fire without burns merrily,
There the witches making tea.'
40, Harry" cried Kitty, pointing
TO the window where the crimson
curtains had been left apart to give
light to the expected travellers, ''see!
that is just like our housel There are
the lilac trees, and the fire, and the
andirons; and the teapot on the
hearth. Do you suppose the witches
are there making their tea?'
<ENo, you goose" said Harry. "How
girls do believe everything! That's
only a saying"
fEBut there's the fire, Harry"
"Pooh! that's nothing but a re-
fection," said Harry loftily, begin
ming to tease the kitten, which he
had just captured.
Kitty was silenced, but not convinc
ed The fire on the hearth blazed
high, and sent the sparks flying up
ward, SO did the fire under the lilac
trees. The longer Kitty looked at it,
the more real did it seem. owe a
great mind to go out to it, Harry,
what you think?'' said she at last
S'Grandma, do yot think there would
be any harm my going out just to
see?"
Nobody needed her. Harry was tip
ped back in the rocking chair fast
asleep with the kitten on his knees;
Marion had turned the leaves of her
book, and was reading "The Vanish
ers," and Grandma Bourne stood lis
tening with smiling lip, and eyes full
of tears.
"Grandma,'' said Kitty again,
Grandma?" Her grandmother did
not answer and the little girl looked
out of the window again. The fire
under the ilac-t tree was brighter than
Sk q, anu UASIS was SOH0DOuy
standing near. Kitty hesitated no long
en- She opened the French window,
stepped through it, went down the
slope of the terrace, and stood by the
fire, which was burning merrily. In
stead of cracking up a chimney, it
burned just at the mouth of cave
In the ashes stood small black tea
pot, and ON a stone not far away a
cup and saucer.
E1That teapot will certainly crack if
1T is kept SO hot,'' said Kitty. cpl
move it," She stopped to lift it from
the ashes, when the lid hoped off,
and such a delicious steam of tea blew
across her nostrils, that she could not
resist pouring little into the cup,
and tasting it. AS she did so, she
heard a laugh behind her, and turn
ing to see who was there, was so
startled by the queer figure which
met her eyes, that she dropped the