The Republican journal., 1898-08-25

drivin', Alvira, tor m afraid of my life
with horse.
Mrs. Thompson did not enjoy driving.
She often remarked that she d ''ruther
walk than ride any time. She was large
and tleshy, and the springs sagged heavily
on her side OF the carriage. When old
jerry walked slowly and stitfiy up hill she
trembed for fear Z; tug might give way or
the king bolt break. If he trotted down
| hill she was in terror lest he should
stumble and when he ''held back she
momentarily expected the hold backs to
snap and precipitate them, horse and all,
| III the gutter.
J s'Isn't this nice, Mariette.H exclaimed
i Miss Alvira delighuedly, urging old Jerry
| into dog trot. 81 haven't had ride
before for more than a year.
| Miss Alvira was small and slight, and
! she sat on the extreme edge of the seat
with a line in either hand like happy
child
Yes assented Mrs. Thompson eau
| tiously, as they jolted over a stone.
Yes, | guess l should think twas real
pleasurable if l got used to it,
| Pbilander Meade had gone to live with
the Thompsons three years previous to
Mr.. Thompson's death. He had grown
from stupid little boy of seven to a
stupid big boy of seventeen. He showed
| little inclination for books and less for
any kind of work involving, as Mrs.
Thompson would have said, ''much bone
| labor
| The stock on the small farm he looked
after and attended with the faithfulness
and fidelity of a shepherd dog. He
worked a month reg lar'' in sugaring
, and haying, and the money thus earned
| amply supplied his simple wants. Now
| and then well intentioned neighbor ven
tured to expostulate with Mrs. Thomp-
son on excepting such sniff less help;'' she
invariably replied that -'Philander paid
his way, and didn't do no harm nor med
die with other folks affairs, which was
more than she could say of some.''
Once Mrs. Thompson conceived the
idea that Philander would be ''more like
folks if he mingled with young people.
| With this object in view she urged him to
90 to picnic, Offering to pay his car fare
if he would consent.
! 'What did | want to go for?'' he ex-
! claimed, eXcitedly, started out of his
usual dIawi. WHAT'S the use o my
spendin' two dollars and goin sixty miles
! jest to eat a lot of sweet stuff an Git all
tuckered ont, when | can lay in the orch
ard under the apple trees all day and hear
the bobolinks sing?'
''But you d see something new and
diff runt, = persisted Mrs. Thompson.
| Don l ev'ry day?' argued Philander
IN bet there won one of them picnic
kers hev a better time ner see more worth
seem an what | did yesterday"
''What did you see?" asked Mrs
Thompson, curiously.
''Well, he replied, slowly, pleasant
smile lighting his freckled face. Il was
out layin' under the naples by the corn
barn, and pretty soon | see a big grey
squirrel slip down tree kinder careful,
and get one of them but nuts | left by the
big rock t other day, and go back mp the
tree with it-they We got a nest in that
hollow imb-and whilst he was gone
another squirrel came running along on
the wall from the grove-most likely he d
got track of them but nuts, but afore he
could get one the first squirrel came run
MIN down the tree and his mate after him,
ard he began to frisk around and sass the
squirrel on the wall, and while they were
runnln' back and forth and jawin' each
other she took every last one of them
five but nuts and skipped up the tree with
um. Now it's plain enough" said he
convincingly, that when he carried up
that first but nut he see the squirrel on
the wall and he said to his wife, ''See
here, Mis- Squirrel, you'll hev to fly round
and help er that Teller from the grove IL
get all our but nuts" and Philarder
chuckled immoderately at the remem-
brance of this small pantomine.
In relating the incident to Miss Alvira
Mrs. Thompson remarked that she
guessed after all Philander was more
philosopher than fool and am not sure
but she is right. However stupid he
might be there was very little that escap-
ed his observation.
1t was nearly noon when Mrs. Thomp-
son and Miss Alvira finished their shop
ping and started for home. The day was
perfect. The blue sky with its feecy,
floating clouds, the surrounding hills,
distant and delicately purple, the giant
elms and grey passwords lay mirrored in
the smooth surface of the little pond like
a softly tinted picture, framed in willow
bound banks of tilmy gold.
Its real pretty to look at, amt it,
Alvira?" said Mrs. Thompson, Chamber
ing out of the carriage.
''We'll hitch old Jerry right here where
he can nibble them birch twigs, and we IL
get the cowslips. l thought likes not
we shouldn't have our dinner much afore
three o'clock, and so brought lunch.
We might fill our pals with cowslips, and
then set on the bank where the blood
root blossoms be and pick um over and
they did.
VIII n the last cowslip was replaced in
the pals ready for cooking and the re-
naming sandwiches crumbied and thrown
into the water for the fish, the two friends
prepared to return. AS Miss Alvira look
ed longingly back at the little pond with
its blossom strewn blnks, she said, 81
don't know any time when we had such
treat before, Marietta. | have every
thing need, and more than l deserve,''
she added, humbly, ''but if you and l
could ride out like this often 1 should be
just too happy to live"
Mrs. Thompson did not reply at once;
when she did she spoke carelessly, as if
the subject had been one of careful con-
sideration.
@The Easy Food
o AS} Fasv to Ruv