Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1903-07-29
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she's queer sometimes. She don't like
dreams very well. had real bad
dream once when / was o little girl.
Seems rs II mother didn't have father
then, but don't know sure, for was
such little girl
"But mother an me d been hayin' 8
norfie good time In the evenin', poppt1
corn an telhn stories ap' oil that, an
she het up my feet in front OF the stove
an said Two little pigs went to mar
ket on 'em before she put me to bed,
an then afterwards / dreamt that
heard mother cry1n'. Of course
thought I'd walked up. You always do
think you've walked up, don't you, Miss
Dorothy, when you get to DREAMING
II see mother lookin' dretfe sober,
settin' down front Of the bureau an
hendlin' over some papers she took out
Of box. Then dreamt she kissed
square thing that was kinder shet up
IN her hand an cried an cried, just as
l did when cut my finger with the
chopin knife.
Il told mother about 1t the next day.
She laughed ut me am said little folks
mustn't imagine things, am then she
went into the kitchen to stir her cram
b'ry sauce, as smilin' as could be- But
just as soon as she'd got out of hearfn'
up jumped Aunt Octavia an grabbed
holt Of my shoulder an shook me as IL
wasa tablecloth, an she says, Don't
you never tell your mother that dream
again as long as you live an BREATHE
There's lots Of things makes her nerv-
Gus. Mother amt never nervous"
satisfied ripple in her voice.
AUNT Octavia an had secret
once" she went on In a gentle flow OF
"Reminiscences. II was stayin' over to
her house while Uncle Silas sugared
off,
She threw pebble into the brook
and watched the widening circles on
the water with an air of reflective spec
ulation.
what was the secret, Electra" ask
ed Miss Wagner after a moments 81
lence.
"Oh. yes" still looking ut the water
and speaking half absently. n wac
lonesome for mother one night after I
got into bed, an auptie left candle
burning, but twas q little bit Of q one,
an 1t sputtered. said, Now / lay
me- Just as If mother was there Then
the candle sputtered again, an I be-
gan to say, Our Fnther.' They heard
me then. an they came runnin' up
stairs in nortle hurry. an Aunt De-
tavia says: You little screech owl,
you'll scare me into fits! What under
the canopy are you shoutin' that way
for"
"That was worse n the candle, for ]
didn't know what she meant, but told
her that the prayer said, 'Hollered be
thy name an that was why I'd been
hollertn'.
'"Then Aunt Octavia said, 4 don't
know how 1t strikes you, 81, but do
b'lieve there's somethin' lackin' in the
upper story
4Uncle Silas said there wasn't. He
said he'd bet cooky 'twould come out
all right In course of time; better wait
an see.
u guess went to sleep after that,
but some dme-mebbe twas the next
day-auntie told me we'd have O So
cret. Then she got me to promise !
/ wouldn't tell nvin' soul about the
upper story, not even mother. I said
didn't want to tell mother, she'd feel
80 bad IL there was anything the mat
ter with nunties house. think Uncle
Silas felt bad, too, for he KEEP whistl1n'
while she was maxim me promise an
he said: I should think you'd feel like
singin' pretty small about that speech.
Tavy.' asked Aunt Octavia about 1t
once q little while ago, an she said the
upper story was oil right now. So I
s'pose tits, but can't see single bit
Of difference when go there. AuntIe
amt never been very well, mother
says, an she takes notions. I s'pose
that's why she's always tellin' me not
to talk the boarders stone blind, an I
never talked anybody blind In my life,
'cept pr'nps Tropickercancer's kittens,
an they got right over It"
The intervals Of fruit scented silence
began to grow more frequent. Had Eve
been like Electra, Adam would have
found It easy to withstand her half
hearted solicitations. Her occasional
Don't you want q maple, tooT soupd-
ed too mechanical and perfunctpry 70
elicit even refusal Afterward, when
she saw that tho long suffering canyas
bag went home empty. Miss Wagner
found It necessary to assure herself IN
o dazed sost Of way that she had, posi-
lively not eaten single apple that
morning.
1t was with a sensation akin to terror
that she detected Indications Of hunger
in Electra on the way home.
mother told me we was goin' to have
stewed chicken for dinner. an toast
with lots of gravy on It," began that
young person hopefully.
She was climbing the great stone post
under the Osborne naples now, and her
next words fluttered downward with
soft, uneven emphasis
Were goin' to have green apple pie.
too an new cheese I'M coffee Now,
look out for leapes when scrabble"
posing herself securely ON the post amd
beginning q vigorous attack upon the
lower branches OF the naples.
"Electra, !" said Miss Wagner sudden
ly a moment later
Eyes, Miss Dorothy" Her rosy little
face, with tangled curls blown across
II, became gradually visible through the
shower Of leaves that had followed the
qScrabble,n