The Elk Mountain pilot., 1902-12-23


and silences!
But only her tongue was quiet.
Light on her feet as a thistle down,
alert as the little chipmunks which she
so dearly loved. it seemed as though
she only perched upon chair ready
to take fight on the moments notice.
There were so many things to do in
the world and it was so pleasant to
be doing!
When it seemed as though strawber-
ries must be about the only fruit she
was tall enough to reach, she would
take her little basket betimes, tuck
compact luncheon into her invaluable
pocket, and spend whole days in the
fields, juSilantly bearing her treasures
home at tea time, to be taken next
morning to the village store to help
buy the scant patterns of print and
gingham which made her own and her
mothers dresses. In winter she en-
Enthusiastically pulled hastings and
sewed on buttons to help on the tall
oring with which Esther Tubbs, an eX-
pert and tireless needle woman, filled
the short winter days and long winter
evenings. Later, as her mothers health
failed, she took the whole burden up
on her own slight, but erect shoulders.
The years went on and at length
she was left alone, and with desperate
ly lonely heart. but always CHEEKY
voice and smile, she set herself TO
raise the mortgage on the farm so dear
to her, the only home she had ever
known, though more than one had been
offered her, and refused for the loyal
love she bore her own.
Tailoring. berrying. summer board
ers and work on the farm, assisted
only by a neighbor's boy and a few
weeks help IN having and planting
times-and still the goal was far away
and Calisty's step had lost some of its
spring. though her voice and manner
were buoyant as ever. when suddenly
the unexpected happened. A small
legacy from an erratic and long-un-
heard from uncle in the West put the
farm safely into the tired and toll
worn, but unresting hands, and left
reassuring margin.
She had Uncle ST Hill come and paint
the house outside and in. had the
rooms re-papered. re-carpeted white
washed. kalsomined. curtained and
draped. as only Miss Calisty could
have done without caustic comment.
Then. when all was swept and garn-
ished. she put the capstone on our
towering amazement by boarding the
bi-weekly stage attired and equipped
for travelling.
We forbore to question or comment.
and awaited developments.
They came-two of them. They were
thin and big-eyed and distressingly
speckless and ''slicked-up." They
were twins and eleven. and Calisty got
them at a Home" and she was radi-
ant.
We soon grew to know Amos and
Janet and to like them right well. And
after Miss Calisty had shown them
where the best berries grew and they
had spent scores of long, sweet. sunny
hours gathering them, their chests filed
out and their cheeks grew rosy and
rounded, and we decided that they
were excellent well-looking children.
We agreed that Calisty might have
done worse. and we nodded approving
ly and prophesied fair things.
But jamie had well-watered regret.
1t was Panky-Panky. who lived with
people beside whom her own task mis-
tress was embodied amiability. Panky
who could sell more papers than any
other girl in the city, who knew the
most songs and could play the har-
monica. and who had clicked" a boy
much larger than herself who was tor
menting a stray cat; Panky. the inim-
table. who used rough words and got
mad" right often, but who never told
lie or did a mean thing. And Panky
was selling papers on the city streets.
There was so much room and so
much to cat at the farm and Panky
was so small and needed SO little to
eat-oh, if Aunt Calisty' would only
think to ask her.. too! But jamie
couldn't ask her to do that She only
told things about Panky and spoke of
~, r;N oil
cause she couldn't help it, and prayed
vigorously.
Barring this shadow, life at the farm
was delightsome, and the twins flour
ished like green bay trees, till all of
sudden everything went wrong, 1t
came about at the time of fall clean
ing in which they were assisting. Amos
beating rugs until his determined little
face was scarlet, and jamie mopping
and dusting and arranging and rear
ranging until their nutting was sadly
neglected.
"Chippy'll get ahead of u.s." said
Amos. somewhat regretfully. as he
rested a moment to watch the bright
eyed chipmunk who was laying in his
winters supply in the hollow trunk of
the old sweeting tree that stretched its
richly-laden arms out, almost into the
windows of the Kitchen and spare
ROOM
Never mind, We'll catch up we're big
ger" responded Janet. dangling a long
pairing from the Gravensteins which
she was pairing for pies. and then
adroitly flinging it over her shoulder
1t fell on the smooth stone step form
ing a perfect ''P" with part of an "a
attached. ''If only Panky could come!"
she sighed.
Miss Calisfy, hurrying through the
sitting room to attend to her stewed
ounces, heard with sigh. Three
wouldn't be so bad now-but by-an'-by
the education an ALL d'no' No.