The Washington herald., 1913-12-28
Fables of Everyday Life
what Mis-. Priscilla DID w ith Her Christina. Money

that a Christmas gift to bring happiness
to the recipient must be the thing she
most wanted. and gained her point.
And now the ladies were meeting to
report the result of their Christmas Civ
ing.
what did Miss Priscilla buy with her
money!" questioned the president inter-
estedly.
No One Knew.
There was no reply, for the fact of the
matter was that even the village gossip
had not been able to find out. but the
most practical member of the Helping
Hand Circle reiterated her belief that
they should have spent the money in
nourishing food for Miss Priscilla, and
bade her associates blame only themselves
for whatever foolhardy way the money
had taken.
II haven't forgotten that midnight last
summer when had to go for the doctor
for little Johnnie and was scared pretty
nearly out of my senses when 1 passed
Miss Prisciila's fence, for, would you be-
lieve IL, there she was in her crazy gar
den of a thousand flowers talking to them
just like they were SO many children, or
fairies, or Lord knows what, and when
called out to her that she'd take her
death o. cold out there in the dew. she
just flung me that odd smile O. hers over
the fence. and went on wandering among
all her rambling flowers" recited the
most practical woman to further prove
the sanity of her reasoning concerning
Miss Priscilla's Christmas present, but
all this did not help when IL came TO find
ing out what she had really done with her
s., so when the business Of the meeting
was at an end Mrs. Kingsley asked the
practical woman to walk along with her
to the end of the street. where, when
they Knocked on Miss Priscilla's front
door, they received no answer from with
in save the happy monologne OF the spin
ster, which was plainly not addressed to
them.
With the friendly license customary to-
small town folk they pushed open tho
front door, and walked into the tiny hall
where they stopped short, for there. in
the board house. before a small drum
stove, sat Miss Priscilla in her one rock
ing chair-rocking back and forth, and
back and forth-talking as she rocked,
in tones SO tender that one who had not
seen might have well believed il a mother
Grooming a love song TO her first-born
baby.
Craving of q Lifetime.
II can't remember the time but what
/ wanted you, you dear. beautiful little
thing. Once when 1 was 'leven / saved
enough money to buy you. but Just as ]
was a-goin' to pa died and the money
had to go. with all the rest ma could
scrape together, for the funeral. and from
that time on the chance OF your ever be-
ing mine seemed to grow simmer and
simmer every year until that day the
Helping Hand Circle came in here with
you Just held out to me. but when I
reached my hand out to take you there
were only the ladies' and when i opened
my mouth TO tell them what wanted for
Christmas l could just see -four and meal
and potatoes looking out of their eyes,
and so 1 didn't" she was saying.
The most practical woman would have
passed right in, but little Mrs Kingsley
laid a restraining hand on her arm. for
Miss Priscilla Rugged something very
tight, and sang. and laughed. and talked
acknowledgement hysterical with hap
piness.
"Lawdy me-" she exclaimed. stopping
short in her ecstacy, ''lawdy me, whatn
they say? What'n the Helping Hand Cir
Gle say? I reckon there amt a one of
them who has ever gone all through their
life wanting one thing more than any
other in all the world: wanting it when
they was just a wee bit OF a thing; want
ing it and almost gettin' IL when they was
'leven, and wanting il all the more ever
since for not gettin' II then They don't
know, they couldn't understand. could
they, honey-love"'
AS Miss Priscilla ended her sudden spec
ulation with an Interrogation, she lifted
her hand until a ray of the winters set
ting sun FURNISHED the band OF gold on
the third finger Of her left hand, where
upon she drew her long, bony finger to
her and kissed the ring with a sort of
reverence which made even the most
practical woman glad when the president
of the Helping Hand Circle drew her
away from the house before Miss Pris-
ella became aware of their brief visit
And, strange to say, the most practical
woman made no comment concerning
-four. or meal, or potatoes, as she walked
with little Mrs. Kingsley on her way
home through the village street.