The midland journal., 1898-07-29

an exceedingly pleasant place to live.
Syringa was now running all about
the place. She was very pretty, with
delicate fairness, though she was ap-
parently perfectly strong. Her father
was good, honest young farmer; and
If Sophie Ann, her mother, had always
been allowed to have her own way, the
result did not seem to have been unfor-
tunate. since she was as pleasant and
capable young woman as could have
been imagined.
That winter l went abroad and re-
manned four years. The first summer
after came back 1 thought of my old
friends at Pebbly Center, and decided
that 1 would like to go among them
| once more. l had heard nothing from
| them in all this time, however; and as
/ learned that Pebbly Center was now
something of summer town, thought
| best to go, at first, directly to the hotel
| which had been built there, and then,
| if l wished to do so, change my stop
ping-place later.
Five years had brought many
| changes in the town, which noticed
when, otter supper, walked over to the
| Fosdick farm.
found Mrs. Fosdick just washing
up the supper dishes in the sink in the
back kitchen. When she heard my
step on the wooden floor, she turned
around and peered at me a moment
through her glasses.
"Wall, I do declared" she cried IF
it amt you. Where in the world did
you come from, an how be you? Do
come right into the house an set
down." drying her hands on her apron,
as she led the way into the sitting
room. Il don't know of anybody in
the world but what I'd sooner expected
to see than you, or that I'd ruther see,
too. Josiah'll be SO glad to see you
ag'in, an surprised, too; an SOIL Sophie
Ann an Edward. You hain't seen
them, have you"
"No," l said; don't they live here
now?"
''Oh, you don't know, do you?" said
she, "bein' that you've been gone so
long, an so far away. Mis- Jehoram
Fennel told me that you had gone to
foreign parts. Wall, we've had sore
trouble since you was here. Twas
pretty hard for US to bear it, at the
time; but we try to think that it was
all for the best. Providence a-workin'
for the good of the many through the
trouble of us few"
"Was it Syringa?" asked.
"Yes, it was Syringa. 1t happened
the next summer after you was here
That must have been four year ago, for
Sophie Ann an Edward have been at
the home three years now. There come
the awfullest run of dipthery here that
you ever hearn of. There had been
hot spell, an then freshet that cov-
cred all the flats with water, an then
another awful hot spell. A good many
folks thought it come from that, an
a good many others said one thing,
an some another. Anyways it was the
worst time ] ever see In my life. or ever
hearn tell of, sense my father used to
talk about the big erysipelas epidemic
when he was a boy. Lots of folks
wouldn't leave their farms except it
was to 60 to the post office, or to the
store for something they'd got to have;
an even then they'd carry birthstone in
the wagon, and pot of tar to burn
when they was goin' past q house where
anyone was sick, SO as to smell the
smoke. We tried to do what we could
to help, in spite of bein' worried to
death about Syringa, only right in the
middle of 1t l slipped up on the back
steps, on soft soap that Josiah had
split there, and broke my right arm,
sot ! want no kind of use for the next
three months.
wall, along in the worst of it Syrin-
ga come down with the sickness. Some
said it was the doctor brought it, COM
in to see me, an some said we hadn't
been careful enough ourselves about
goin' where there was sick; but I've al
ways said l want goln' to look at it in
that light. We hadn't any of us done
nothin' but what we felt was right, an
what we ought to do. She was right
hard sick for a few days; but Edward
and Sophie Ann tended right to her,
day an night, an SO did the doctor
The way that man worked through all
them weeks was something cruel-on
the go all the time, daylight an dark.
| never could see when he took time to
eat an sleep-an' 1 guess he didn't
sleep much. An he with two little chill
dren of his own at home, too, with
nothin' but the housekeeper to take
care of them, because he'd buried his
wife the year before.
"Wal, Syringa got along first-rate,
an had got SOS to walk little, though
mighty pindIin' lookin', when one even
in the doctors man brought letter
over from him to ask Edward if he'd
go to Bolton for a doctor, an to try an
git a nurse. His little boy, he said,
was down with the dipthery, an he
was afraid that the little girl was
agoin' to have it too. Wal, Edward
hitched right up an went, an Dr.
Bostwick come back with him; but as
for nurse, my land. you couldn't git
one for love nor money. In the first
place, there want many folks there
that did such work, an there want
one of 'em that would come to this
place then. When he come back, an
; told us what luck he'd had, Sophie
Ann stood up, with her face kinder
white, at first, an she says: Mother
I'm agoin' over to help the doctor
He's stood by us when we needed help
an now I'm agoin' to stan by him.
} sorter tried to dispersuade her; but her
mind was made up. If could have
gone myself would; but with my arm
In a sling, | was worSe'n no one round