Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1905-08-25

with some O. her folks-been sick all win
ter. l amt used to drivin', but Dumphy's
their neighbor and he's down sick ana
m spelling him two-three weeks or so.
| went right out to Douglass an asked
II they'd take me on. Not till spring.
that's what everybody says. So I'm
driving this chari't o. victory. To-day's
last day."
You go right out to Douglass asainp,
exclaimed the harbinger of good fortune.
| The old lady heard you'd been there
! and she remembered you and said Won
| was lucky with some of her old fashioned
thlngs in the greenhouse. She's been
P t the word to have us all look out
| ior you. didn't know you when I first
see you, either. l guess you'n find you've
! got 1t all safe in your hand this time"
! was goin' to start tomorrow an
tramp 1t back to New York." said the
poor fellow, and then he could not speak.
ne warm color rushed into his cold,
| despairing face Il know them things
| she means, sir" he added almost eavIv
10 MS penefactor; them old daphnes and
| lemon-trees; she used to say they he
longed to her mother before her. / kind
FAVORED EN- along, and nussed EN-
INTO bloomin well. Well I've Thought
all day long l see my finish"
| The door of the house opened. the bie
| coachman made lordly gesture as he
went on duty again, and moved away 10
| ms place The funeral pomps went on in
| solemn orderliness and the street was
empty after the procession passed.
Poor little Miss Peet had been the last
| OF the funeral guests to sin into tba
| house, and she felt an odd sinking of the
heart In the warm, rich colored. familiar
OLD rooms whence her best friend had
departed. She even began to accuse
| herself for once instead of other peonie
ana wished that she had done more for
| Mr. Walton; he had been an invalid for
| some time, and she was one of the few
persons who could talk with him about
old times and early interests. She now
| felt curious nearness to him and his
| anecuonate kindness, and remembered
with an unaccustomed pang how anxiously
| she had thought of what she might ger
Tor herself, instead of thinking of what
could be done for him. But the old
sense of his affectionate kindness, all
| In the doorway.
He knew my lot was hard" she
lamented, but his lot was hard. too.
believe I've been sort of ungrateful and
seltish!" said Miss Peet. Some persons
learn great many lessons in their lives.
and others are all their lifetime learning
only one.
Miss Peet was standing in the light
Just at the doorway of the room where
the mourners sat, and before any one
hau time 10 bring her a chair and she
sat down and was lost in the indis-
| tingui3hable group, some one had time
TO notice her pale face and look of sin
cere feeling. 1t was the old friends
daughter, who lived at a great distance
and who had not seen Miss Peet for
many years; who might never have
thought Of her again. This was some
thing that brought the tears afresh into
ones eyes. Mrs. Ashton remembered
all her fathers patience and loyal inter-
est and kindness; she also felt curious
thrill Of nearness to his heart, and a
new sense of loss: she said to herself
that she would find out what he had
done Tor this old acquaintance, and con-
tinue 1t for his dear and generous sake.
Miss Peet had provoked her many a
time in earlier years, but how old she
looked now, and how lonely! She must
try to see her. and do all that could be
done. And Miss Peet little knew that,
while she let go one friendly Shand an
other was being held out to her that
would never let her fall unbefriended in
her stony and narrow little path of life.
Oddly enough, Mrs. Dartmouth could
never understand why her old friend Mrs
Douglass sent her such exquisite offerings
OF flowers from time to time after this
She had often sent some fine roses or a.
bunch OF violets. but she no longer chose
them herself, and one can hardly expect
ones gardeners to put much sentiment
into the choice OF flowers for unknown
persons. Yet now when Mrs Douglass
flowers were announced, they were always
a wonder and delight, and Fallon always
brought them himself so that they would
not get shaken, and left them with Mrs.
Douglass compliments at the door, We
all have our little superstitions; and poor
Fallon could never forget the handsome
lady who sat at the window and watched
him that hopeless afternoon, and gave him
the order for an hours work that turned
his luck.
Oddly enough, too, Miss Peet happened
to be calling upon Mrs. Dartmouth one
day when the flowers came. Her face
Hghtened at the sight of them, and she
went away with a lovely bunch in her
hand Mrs. Dartmouth could not help
noticing that she seemed better pleased
with life, and more cheerful than she used
to be, and said much less about her own
troubles.
There is always the hope that "our
unconscious benefactions may outweigh
our unconscious cruelties," but the
world moves on, and we seldom really
know how much we have to do with other
peoples lives.