The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1892-12-24
UNCLE EBEN'S MINERALS.
BY HELEN FORREST GRAVES.

Ii rOhfsESI GhANESs
"Alix! Alix! where are your"
Alexia Ames stood like some avenginc
Fate in the middle of the square room at
Amescroft Farm. She had pulled up
every tack in the well-worn ingram car
pet-the one "store carpet" that the
humble establishment afforded and had
flung it bodily out of the window, where
1t had descended with crushing weight
on the fiery-red blossoms of a monster
"burning bush"
She had opened every easement wide.
60 that the yellow light of the glorious
May morning streamed in, flood of
crystal glory.
She had tied her auburn hair up in an
old towel, and stood on a wooden chair
seat, brushing cobwebs from the ceiling
with an ancient broom, like the pro.
verbal sold woman" OF the nursery
rhyme.
At the sound of her sisters voice she
stopped abruptly.
"I'm here" said she.
"What are you doing, Alix?'
I'm trying to civilizc things little. :"
"Ail alone by yourself, Alix2"
"Ihere's no one to help me."
Cant you wait until Bridget Reir-
don comes Tomorrow"
AliX shook her towcled head.
This is one of the cases" said she,
"whcre patience has ceased to be viz
Cue. No, | can't wait a dag longer"
Ellen looked anxiously around the
room.
"Why, what have you done with
everything?" said she.
"Cleared them all out. II VIC are 90
Ing 10 have summer boarders, we must
get ready for them. Uncle Eben occu.
pies our best bedroom, and is likely to
for some time; consequently this must
be fitted up for boarders."
Ellen sighed deeply.
81 wish we weren't so poor" said
she. 81 wish we could live without
flling our house every summer with
crowd of noisy strangers"
"Why don't you wish for Aladdin's
lamp, or the Kohinoor diamond while
you are about it?" said Alix, scornfully.
''Alix. why have you grown SO bitter
OF late" pleaded the gentler of the
sisters. 81 don't hardly know you'll"
Gam / bitterl" Alix stood still and
hesitated for an instant or so. "Well,
perhaps | am. But is it not enough to
make any one bitter, this constant cur
rent of disappointment"
81 don't know that we have any more
to bear than others, Alix."
''Iou do. too" cried Alix, sprinrinQ
down from her wooden chair, with
burning checks and eyes alight. "You
know you do, Ellen Amcs! Here you
are engaged to Henry Lucas and can't
marry until he can give you a home;
here are we weighed to the very earth
with poverty and care, and this old
uncle OF ours. coming back from life
time of shiftlessness in New Mexico, to
place an additional burden on our
shoulders.
''He is old and poor, Alix."
Every well, Pm young and poor.
Where's the difference3 OF the two, /
maintain that he is the better off,"
Ellen looked at her stormy tempered
sister with troubled eyes.
Evidently she thought it best not tc
continue the subject.
"What have you done with the little
case of butterflies and birds nests?r said
she; ''and the cabinet of minerals and
the paper box of stones?"
"rumbled them back of the goose
berry bushes, y said Alix. II can't have
the room clUttered with all the trash he
brought back in that wooden chest of
his"
Couldn't you have stored them away
in the old chest itselfs"
"Nonsense! Such stuff as that2 And,
besides, it would have been quite impos-
sible, for I've had Billy chop the old ark
up into kindling wood. He'll never
know
."Oh, Alix!"
al don't care!" flashed out Alix, with
a reckless toss of her head. SITS too
bad! Everything goes wrong with US,
aud mother is utterly overworked, and
I'm clear discouraged, aud-and-" =