Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1899-08-10


Cp few such trifes as
cretonne, small mattresses, Swiss
muslin, pink and blue ribbons, etc,
and thereby developed a gift for up
holstering that, but for the circum-
stance of going to housekeeping with
next to nothing to spend for furniture,
might have kept company with that
countless array of gems of purest ray
serene, and flowers that are born to
blush unseen.
1t was really exciting to take old
kitchen chairs and paint tden a bright
vermilion, putting in seats of broad
/ scarlet and white worsted braid; or
to convert fossil remain from some
ones great-grandmother's parlor into
an ebony affair, with a stripe of dead
| gold. But dabbling in vermilion is
almost as dangerous as tigers taste
Of blood, and we found it difficult to
refrain from giving everything a coat
of melted sealing-Wax.
Shellac, too, is delusion and
snare; and one of us was found walk
ing in her sleep, with the varnish
bottle and brush in hand, just about
to try its virtues on the countenance
Of her unsuspicious relative.
Aside from our creative faculties
our cottage may be said to have been
furnished from other peoples garrets;
and while collecting together our
household goods, we found ourselves
casting covetous eyes on every piece
of furniture that looked at all out of
| the common way. The possessive
pronoun, applied to local habitation,
was particularly fascinating to Bohe-
mians like ourselves, who had hitherto
haunted city boarding houses, until
the obliging demise of a distant rela-
tive somewhere in the western wilds
put us in possession of an elegant in
sufficiency, on the strength of which
We became landed prorrietors; for the
cottage was offered to us for "a mere
song" and we had strong hankerings
after a roof of our own.
So, after singing the song, which
meant making quite hole in our bank
stock, we set about transforming our
purchase with such womanly energy
that we were soon regarded as the espe-
cial torments of all the shiftless men
in the neighborhood, who profes3ed to
do odd jobs. They did not like being
interrupted in the amusing occupation
of twirling their thumbs to do things
right off, or not at all. "Just like
/ women" they grumbled; and with an
injured expression of countenance,
they crawled about their tasks, and ac-
complished about as much in q day as
we could have done in two hours, had
we been gifted with the physical
strength.
But things got done somehow; and
having worked like bees inside of the
house, and provided ourselves with
the traditional respectable woman,
who seems to he the indispensable APP
pendage to such households, we were
ready to stop existing and begin to live.
So delicious was that first meal under
our own roof, though it consisted of
/ bread and butter and roVnd hearts,
Yaten of packing box; aud we felt
very much like children playing "baby-
! house"
By and by visitors came; visitors
from palatial mansions, who assured
us that our little nest was charming;
$50 like things one sees abroad" But
Dne lady, an envious sort OF person, af-
ter glancing rather supercilliously at
our rockery and ferns, and other rural
belongings, asked, carelessly:
"And you don't feel afraid here, with
all these dark woods so near?"
"Afraidw We laughed at the idea.
We never thought of such thing.
Everyone told us that it was particu-
larly safe place.
every place is safe," replied the
visitor, sententiously, "until some
thing happens"
| Now, wasn't it hateful of her? We
had very little peace after that; and
although one side of the cottage was
close upon the road, we could not for
get that the other was in the shadow
OF the woods. 1t was ore-storied af-
fair, too Our sleeping-room was
downstairs, and upstairs was only an
attic, where the respectable woman en-
loyed the sound slumbers of the un-
imaginative.
On the night of the very day when
we had been aroused to a sense of
our unprotected state, our fears cul-
minated Dot pooh-poohed them,
to be sure, and pretended not to be
disturbed in the least. But the con-
Iiction that we were destined to have
our throats cut in the silence of the
night was gaining upon me. glared
about, uneasily, in the moonlight;
nut the trees only cast quiet shadows
yer the road, and the vines tremble3
! little in the night air.
1 was reused, finally, from a half
Jeep by a subdued sound of voices
under the window, and an ague-fit i'm
mediately took possession of me. /
shook and shook; the very bed was
shaken under me, and 1 wondered
that it didn't waken Dot.
The wretches outside were probably
discussing the easiest means of effect
ing an entrance, of course, with the
object of plunder, and 1 Immediately
ran over in my mind an inventory oi
our available possessions. 'sYour