The Republican journal., 1898-09-29
TnIrlBLEs AND COMFORT BAGS.


woman to 60 to sewing society and leave
her little girl alone at home. While the
pleasant hum of good -natured gossip went
on alou nd her Ethel silently and labom-
ouSly W Orked on her own comfort bag
The day was hot and little fingers would
get sweaty; but she struggled bravely,
thinking only in her patriotic little heart
OF the S oidleIs in Tampa, and how pleased
one OF them would be when he got her
bag. Sometimes her little white teeth
had to pull the sticky needle through the
puckered seam, and sometimes it was
showed through on the edge OF her chair
seat, but she never thought of making IA
fuss ABOUT it.
After a while Mrs. Munson, who sat be-
side Ethel, said alphabetically:
" ou're having a rather hard time of
it, aren' you, dear?'
~ es' m; this needles awful dull >
Let me take it a minute and see if |
can sharpen it,.
Ethel gave it up with a relieved sigh and
watched Mrs. Munson with lively interest
while she stabbed it through her emery
ball. Now, try that, and see il it doesn'
work better"
1t did for while, and then teeth and
chair had to help again.
III you had thimble you get on bet
ter, don't YOU think?''
Il 'spect | would. I do wish | had
one.
Ethel looked admiringly at the pretty
gold tAlnble on Mrs MunS0n's finger
and her heart was filed with longngs to
possess one like it. She meant to breach
the subject to mamma on the way home,
but Miss Harvey walked down street with
them and talked all the time. Then
mamma was busy getting supper and she
went to Uncle George who was resting in
the hammock.
''I-ucle George. do Won know how much
thimbles cost9''
'!Thimbles9 Do Won mean the kind
they nut in stove pipe holes9"
Now. Uncle Georqe' Yol; know what
mean; a lovely little gold one. like Mrs.
Munson'sn
.sOl. that, | never had one of that
kind hut | have bought the stove-pipe
fellows. How could / know what YOU
meant2"
s.Wen. Won know now. say. how much
do YOU D. Sc they costa
.;Rea1ly. INV dear | haven't the least
idea. But what of jt?'i
'.Why, you see, | wish [ had one-if
they dom cost too mnch -
NOW | begin to see the drift of your
discourse. But what would YOU do with
it if YOU had one?"
Then Ethel entered into minute ac-
count of che trials of the afternoon and
told him all about the comfort bags and
produced her own warped and deformed
specimen. and showed him where you put
the scissors and the little Testament and
the court plaster and all the other com
forts. Uncle George was full of sympa-
thy and interest. He had gone on the ex-
CURSOR to Tampa the week before, and
had told Ethel about the soldiers who had
TO sleep on the ground in their hot tents
without any mosquito bars; and the great
number of horses and mules corraled near
by which might stampede at any moment
and run over the poor boys. To Ethel's
mind ali the horrors of war were repre-
scented by this possibility. In case they
did stampede there would be immediate
need OF comfort bags. and she felt that
hels could not be finished too soon. All
this was pointed out to Uncle George as
an additional argument in favor of haste
in the matter Of a thimble. Well, when
Uncle George came home the next night
he brought a little silver thimble. Ethel
had taken lie precaution to show him the
exact size OF her finger. 50 it fitted per
fecty, and she was sure there could be no
trouble now in finishing her bag in short
or1et. Gut oh ii-9lt The fat unap-