Connecticut western news., 1919-02-20

hug, bdIl! 1Ou Te EEOWlu iAhS u weed-ain't ye?-ayes ye be-" my aunt said as she stood and looked at ne. "Set right down here an warm ye-ayes live done all the chores ayesp
 How warm and comfortable was the dear old room with those beloved faces in it. I wonder if paradise itself can seem more pleasant to me. I have had the best food this world can provide. in my time, but never anything that ate with a keener relish than the pudding and milk and bread and but ter and cheese and pumpkin pie which Aunt Deel gave us that night.
 Supper over, I wiped the dishes for my aunt while Uncle Peabody went we sat down in the genial warmth while I told the story of my life In ''the busy town" as they called 1t. What pride and attention they gave nae theni
 My fine clothes and the story of how had come by them taxed my inge- nuity somewhat, although not improp- erly. I had to be careful not to let them know that I had been ashamed of the homemade suit. They somehow felt the truth about 1t and little silence followed the story. Then Aunt Deel drew her chair near me and touched my hair very gently and looked into my face without speaking.
 "Ayesi know" she said presently, in a kind of caressing tone, with a touch of sadness in 1t. "They ain't used to coarse homespun stuff down there in the village. They made fun O ye-didn't they, BartT
 "I don't care about that" assured them. "'The minds the measure of the man." I quoted, remembering the knes the Senator had repeated to me.
 That's sound" Uncle Peabody ex- claimed with enthusiasm.
 Aunt Deel took my hand in hers and surveyed 1t thoughtfully for a moment without speaking.
 "You ain't goin' to have to suffer that way no more," she said in low tone. We're goin' to be more comf'ta- ble-ayes. Yer uncle thought we better go West, but couldn't bear to go or so fur an leave mother an father an sister Susan an all the folks we loved layin' here in the ground alone-I want to lay down with 'em by an by an wait for the sound O the trum- pet-ayes l-mebbe it'll be for thou sands O years-ayes !"
 To our astonishment the clock struck twelve.
 "Hurrahi It's merry Christmas w said Uncle Peabody as he jumped to his feet and began to sing of the little Lord Jesus.
 We joined him while he stood beat ing time with his right hand after the fashion of a singing master.
 "Off with yer boots, frIend" he ex- claimed when the stanza was finished. "We don't have to set up and watch like the shepherds"
 We drew our boots on the chair round with hands clasped over the knee-how familiar Is the process, and yet haven't seen 1t in more than half a century, I lighted a candle and 
 feet, Uncle Peabody following close and skipping my thigh as if my pace were not fast enough for him. In the midst of our skylarking the candle tumbled to the floor and I had to go back to the stove and relight 1t.
 How good 1t seemed to be back in the old room under the shingles The heat of the stovepipe had warmed Its hospitality.
 "It's been kind O lonesome here," said Uncle Peabody as he opened the window. q always let the wind come in to keep me company-it gits so warm"
 ''Ye can't look at yer stockin' yit," said Aunt Deel when I came down. stairs about eight o'clock, having slept through chore time. I remember 1t was the delicious aroma of frying ham and buckwheat cakes which awoke me {; and who wouldn't rise and shake off the cloak of slumber on a bright, cold winter morning with such provo cation?
 "This ain't no common Christmas tell ye," Aunt Deel went on. Santa Claus won't git here short O noon I wouldn't wonder-ayesw w
 About eleven o'clock Uncle Hiram and Aunt Eliza and their five children arrived with loud and merry greetings. Then came other aunts and uncles and cousins. With what noisy good cheer the men entered the house after they had put up their horsesi I remember how they laid their hard, heavy hands on my head and shook it little as ttey spoke of my "stretchin' up" or gave me playful slap on the shoulder an ancient token of good will-the first form of the accolade, I fancy. What joyful good humor there was in those simple men and women-enough to temper the woes of a city If 1t could have been applied to their relief. They stood thick around the stove warming themselves and taking off its griddles