The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1897-09-17
PATSEY LEVERING'S PRAYER.
DY MARY r. ROBINSON.

by MARf +. ROBINSON.
Naturally OF a sanguine' tempera-
mcnt was Aunt Patsey Levering, and
her face usually indicated patient
resignation to fate which the IN
experienced observer might have mis-
taken for checrfulness; but, low down
upon the forehead and between the
brows, there was an expression such
as Will Carleton must have seen upon
the face Of the woman OF whom he
wrote,
~ to divine a secret sorrow we're in the doc
tors art,
They would have found Il mortgage upon
that wonan's heart"
1t was not mortgage IN her case,
at least it was not bond upon any
thing tangible, unless, indeed, bond
age is tangible thing.
She took from the kitchen table a
bright tin milkpall and walked, very
deliberately, toward the grassy en-
closure where the cows were waiting
at evening, and seating herself upon
Il three. legged stool beside the oldest,
poorest cow in the lot, she drew a
long sigh, and said half aloud:
Il guess I'll milk you first tonight,
Mooley, for you look like feel, kind
o discouraged like, and I've heard
Seth say he'd take less for you than
any cow in the lot: but in Il sort of
a way you're valuable; taint for milk,
nor 'taint for butter, but you're well
behaved, you alus seem to stand low
III Jour own estimation, and he ought
to prize you for that if nUthin' else,
h0ldin' such opinions as he does OF be-
comm meeknesS in females. He's al
lus prayin' that the Lurd'll b2stow
on ne bountifully, that christian
grace, meckness-queer the Creator
gave it to you and spilled you for the
dairy, and withheld it from me and
spilled me for" here she checked her.
self and looked like guilty creature.
After moment of dreamy silence
she slid off the STOOL and knceling up.
on the green grass, with her forehead
Slightly bent toward the patient Moo
lcys side, she commenced speaking in
an earnest, confidential tone, not,
however, to the COW, though she was
scarcely conscience of the point where
her reveric turned to prayer.
She had habit of prayer peculiar
to herself. 1t could not be called sup
plicatiOn, but rather drawing upon
the Infinite Source of sympathy She
did not ask anything Of the Lord, for
it never seemed to her that she need
ed to overcome divine reluctance. nor
yet "seize upon Gods willingness"
she simply knelt there in that quiet,
grassy corner, sheltered from sight by
the cow, "lo tell him all about it," as
she would have explained had she
tried to express her frame of mind.
"Oh, Father, I'm kind o. restless
and all down at the heel as 'twcre, /
don't know what is the NATTER but
can tell the reason Of it. l know,
Lord, and You know that when the
sun has beat down and beat down till
it has parchcd the very milk o human
kindness out Of everything, even to
the stubblefcld, how the lightln' and
the thunder, and the wind and rain
comes and all natur' seems to bile
over as 'twcre, and fresllen things up.
It's the uncommon things O. life that
makes the common things worth liv-
in; monotony has sent more than one
woman's soul to perdltion, and so,
Lord, I'm like natur', chuck full and
bilin' over with thunder and lightnin'
and the moral atmosphere OF my soul
is parched and dried up worsc'n any
rubbish heap You ever see. Pm rilcd
enough to do somcthn' desperate il it
wasn't for this quiet corner to come
to and tell You all about it. There'd
be a cyclone that'd dcmolish all my
vows and good resolves, and Scth'd
have some reason to warn me of the
Vaccinations of the adversary as
Mes so fond OF doin', but You know
talnt the devil TO blame, it's meme
evcrlastlng-shut up in MYSELF me
livin' by somebody clses pattern year
after year.
"I remember when the But'rick pat.
terms first come round. how Miss Be-
miss bought short pattern for him,
aud how she Dragged that she cut
everything she made for the whole
family by that one pattern. Well,
his shirts 1T pretty good, Lord, but
how mons.rous them young ones used
to Look In clothes cut by that pattern!
To be sure, she modified 1t some, but
not enough, and their clothes fit helm
Gus. Now, Lord, I'm In the same