The Opelousas courier., 1897-04-03
WHAT HAPPENED.

Aunt Patty awoke carly with the
bright April morning, feeling sure
something was going to happen. She
had heard High Top Calvin, the king
of the flock, crow nine times at mid
night, and Lympathy Limp, the lame
white pullet, was cackling before sun
rise. As the moments passed, and
Aunt Patty began putting on the gar
ments that lay so smooth and orderly
on a high-backed chair, she felt surer
and surer her convictions would come
true. She put one stocking on wrong
side out, the right shoe OH the lett
foot, and skipped three holes in lac
ing her stays. She tried twice to put
both arms into one sleeve OF her dress,
and buttoned it by leaving two holes
at the top with 40 buttons, and two
buttons at the bottom with no holes.
She could no longer still her reason
ing, but burst out
"Patty Prentice, are you a fool?"
Just as she had got the refractory
buttons into place there came a pro-
longed knock at the porch door below.
"Oh, dear me!' she said, whats
coming now? Somebody must bd
dead" Her thoughts and tongue ran
swiftly as she tried to unite the night
cap strings that in her hurry had got
into O hard knot. "P'raps it's Deacon
Hopkins wife. Belinda johnson said
last night the doctor said she .conlln't
pull through; or maybe it's Martha
James husbands mother; she's awful
feeble. Or what if it should be Joe
Backus' boy Jim! He always throws
a stone at Sancho every time he passes
here'-Sancho is her cat-"They say
Jim's likely TO get killed any time"
Aunt Patty had conquered the
strings and hung the cap on the bed
post. She started down the narrow
stairs, still thinking OF Sancho's perse.
cntor, and repeating, "The Lord gave
and tho Lord hath taken away
blessed be the name Of the Lord
| She crossed the kitchen aud reaching
the porch moved aside from the door
the woodbox with its pile OF tin pans.
Aunt Patty had not the protection OF
a man in the house, "But tin pans
make as much noise as a man, any
time" she said, "and perhaps are as
good in protecting"
She slid back the bolt, turned the
button, and asked anxiously,-
what is it?"
"Mover wants you to come right
over, Aunt Patty" "a childish voice said.
"She's got unexpected company.
Dop't stop to get any breakfast ]
amt had none, NEWER"
"Unexpected company" repeats
Aunt Patty. II wonder if the day will
ever come when I am not at the bect
and call OF everybody's company ant
1sled-up mending basket" But shs
Peaches out, pats the child's head, and
kindly says, swell, como in, Johnnie,
and you can eat some doughnuts Will,
I'm getting ready"
Her doughnuts are known to every
child in the village; they are a gener,
GUS kind, or, as the children say, "no1
all hole" 1t is q bright CLEAN o
sunshine in her lonely life that chill
dren, love her, and many childish sor
rows and wrongs are soothed by hel
ready sympathy and the contents o
the n~ever-empty tin box in the squar,
cupboard. LOT
Aunt Patty is soon ready, for she j.
not a precise olfsmaid who must leav'
everything at an exact angle. She
often says, ''There are old maids from
compulsion, and old maids from
choice, and I am a sort of betwixt an,
between"
But many of the village people re
member the lover of Aunt Patty
girlhood, and often over the tea cup.
has the prediction been given,
They'll both get tired of living
alone, and make it all up. You see i
they don't"
Johnnie feeds the hens while Aun
Patty puts Sancho's breakfast unde
the doorstep, with the always adde,
admonition-
"Now, Saacho.if you see Jim Back
us coming, run right under the hen
house."
She closes the gate, and stops tt
look at tue lilac bush, and thinks o
the purple plumes hidden go closely il
the bright green hude.
aHow kind Nature is to all life en-
trusted 70 lis care!" she says; Fan,
it never makes a mistake"
She thinks how sweetly the bird
sing, aud how much OF life there is il
the bright spring morning. She find
herself singing