Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1892-11-10
Portland Transcript
The Hemenway Girls Maxim Up.
BI lille ;. EMERY.

~ iIlsliC - tMfkf-
Yes. it does really seem like specia
act o Providence that sent Nav Hemeu
way there last summer Them two poo
ole critters d III an fretted their hui
lives out, likes not, ef it hadn't ben fn
her. Want to hear about 1t: Wall. yo,
Jest wait till | run upstairs an get my
patchwork to piecen on, an I'll tell "
the hull story
A simple question about the occupant:
of pretty Old fashioned cottage, in III.
little village where | was passing nv las
vacation, ELECTED from my garrulous. bu
good hearted. landlady the foregoing re
plv, and feeling in the mood for listening
rather than talking (Which, indeed, wa.
all one could do, in good Mrs. Parkins
society, | waited TIL down stairs sh,
came, with her apron full of many-coloret
calicoes, which were To be ''piecened" b,
her into some gorgeous and intricst.
styled bed-quilt, for some one Of her mar
ried sons and daughters.
There she exclaimed, now t I've
got somethin' to keep my hands busy.
can talk twicet as well ag'n," and settling
herself in her chair Mrs Parkins proceed
Ell to sew patchwork, and at the SAINT
time to re- ate to me the hull story" of the
AuaiItl anu liIdl vi tfc Two
maiden ladies of uncertain age, known a.
the "Hemenway girls"
II 'spose likely" she began, you've
noticed the house is painted yeller with
white Observation-Disclosures colors,
some calls 1.-THE Lord only knows wha,
fur-an' there's weller cat sets on the
front stoop cons .derable. an white roses
CROWN all over the ysrd?"
Sba
wall, time wss, when that hull place
was divided cen a most As if there was &
stun wall right through house an all, and
one half o. the house WAS painted white,
an t'other half WELLER, an that ere WELLER
cat darsn't step foot in the white side o
the house, au there want no white roses
allowed to grow in the yard to the yellei
side. An Mahala n Diademma Hemen
way. the two old maids that live there
wall, you never see anybody so csntank.
erous as they was! Nuther of em d ear
out o t'other ones dishes, nor nothn
t'other one cooked, SO they used to Sc,
their table right over the diyidin' line in
the kitchen floor, an Mahala a spread hel
side with red cloth and her mothers sill
yer, an vittles to suit her taste, an
Demma u set her side with her white
Hohttth bisAItS OH nliilt LiOll
an whatever she took notion to fol
vittles.
Twas a rale curious sight now, | tel
ye, to see 'em settin' there, takin' theil
tea together, an vet no more together, In
sperrif, than 5 ef they'd ben on opposit.
sides O. the arth. An when they come
to paint the house they couldn't noways
agree; Mahala was bound TO have it whit.
nm Tiar anna ha tusf Sas in
it yeller, an finally they each of em wen
to work and had her own side painted to
suit herself, an the house stayed that way
for nigh on to twenty years.
Neither of 'em d speak to t'othel
any oftener n she was act'lly obIeeged to
an they'd ben precious glad to hev sep
arated, only neither of 'em had means t6
go an live by herself"
What caused such hard feelings?"
Wall, | dunno's anybody knows al
the ins an outs of it, but guess car
tell We as much as the next one.
"Ye see Mahala, she had beau oncet
his name was Starbird-Tom Starbird-
an he was fust mate on a vessel that uset
to come here sometimes, an he was amaz
in devoted, an everybody thought they'C
be married right away an she thought 81
too, for she stopped goin' around with the
rest O the young folks to the huskin's an
apple parin's an sech, an took to stayin
in the house pretty stiddy, an land O
mercy! sech sights O. ouse-linen-sheet.
an pillow slips an tablecloths as sh,
made up an spread out on the grass Il
whiten out
But one time he come into port onex
pected, an she happened to be over to he
aunt's at the West village on a visit, 81
when he come up to the house he see Dia
demma a standin' in the doorway (it 81
happened he'd never seen her before, sh,
bein' away to the box factory to work
the hull time he was a courtin' her sister,
an she looked kinder O. pretty an takin'
in yeller sprigged muslin dress, (dretfu
becomin' to her, OWN to her bein' darl
complected) an he got to laughin' an
talkin' with her, an 'twasnt nigh to sup
per-time afore he'd forgotten all abou
Mshalas bein' gone, an he stayed to sup
per (bein' almost one O. the family, as yoI
might say, an after supper them tw'
took walk, an before he'd left the plac
he was twicet as deep in love with DENIM
as he'd ever been with poor Mahala.
"In day or two Mahala come home
an it didn't take her long-she was no
body's fool-to see how matters stood
for he didn't take no great pains to con
ceal his feelin's, an she up an told hin
he needn't feel bound to her, she'd no wisl
to keep him to promise that CALLED him
an he took her at her word an commence'
courtIn' Diademma in earnest. an thel
was to be married when he got back from
his next trip, down south. but he neve
come back for he ketched the cholera IN
died there. Neither of em ever married
an from the time of his leavin' Mahal'
for her sister them two haint ben friend
ly one mite, an Mahala she hates the sigh
of anything yeller, because she says 'twa
Demma's yeller dress stead of her fac
that caught Toms eye. an made him falls
to her, an Demma she loves yeller as mucl
as Mahala hates it, on account O. heviu
sech tender memories o. him connects
with that yeller dress.
Folks do say it fastened their mother
death, to see 'em SO set apart.
"She used to argify an argify fust wit
one an then t'other, but land! 'twant n
use!
"Mahala d say she never could forgiv
such duplicity on the part of her own sis
ter, and Demma she'd say she hadn't don
nothiu' that called for forgiveness-tha