Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1922-01-25

peHSe
What the minister'd like to eat.
And never a royal pilgrimage
So futtered a realm in fee;
For the hurrying footsteps came
and went,
And the heart beat thick for the
great event,
When the minister came to tea.
Oh, the pewter was polished brave and
bright,
And the silver shone like glass,
With never a spot or a speck in sight
Where the clerical eye might pass.
For mother was up in the early morn,
And calling to Ann and me.
And the floor was sanded in scrolls
and waves,
And we learned how good little
girl behaves
When the minister comes to tea.
Then the cream plop-plop'd in the
waiting churn,
And our arms grew tired and lame
AS we patiently did our share in turn
Till the clerical butter came,
But our thoughts kept pace with the
dasher's stride,
IelllnS with secret gee
To all unhonored by such a guest
How the minister talked and ate
and dressed
When he came to our house to tea.
Oh! the things we piled on the willow
plates,
. And the things we shifted with
pride
Did he chuckle bit inside?
Under his grave, distracted air,
And the texts that he turned on me,
And his signing comments on
worldly dross,
And his somber dealing with dam
son sauce
Did the minister like his tea?
Was he a human after all,
This great grandee of souls?
Well, heaven be praised that he did
not fall
At the lure of our cakes and rolls.
For never was glorious pride like ours
(And never again shall be-
When the warming pan rubbed
the icy sheet
For the sake of four little tired
feet,
And the minister's been to tea!
Dear M. B. Friends:
| do not know how long ago the
poem above was written, but evil
IDENTIFY the writer had in mind the
old, old days of "willow ware and
"warming-pans" and 'sanded
floors" Do you know, Sadie-our
Sadie-had birthday January 20,
and is NINETY YEARS YOUNG!
We all congratulate her, and if l had
remembered the date, as l should
have, many more greetings would
have been sent her.
Dear Aunt Madge:
Well, Chri stmas is past and the
hustle is over, and 1 think we shall be
able to get our breath again soon 1
said to 'Lisha last week, Il almost
wish we We're back home at Beaver
Brook for a while"
l went shopping with Clarissa, my
daughter. one day-just one. Such
jam! I said: It's lucky women folks
don't wear hoop skirts, same as they
did when l was a girl" l thought /
had seen crowd of people in Martin
Adams store but, land sakes, you
ought to so into Jordan Marsh s. /
was glad when l got out into the air
again. l like it. | sometimes think
if it wasn't for the air | would lose my
breath
Everybody seemed to have lot of
money to spend, and it seemed to me
that Clarissa was going to buy out the
store. And then came Christmas. We
had a big company of our relations to
dinner There was a Christmas tree in
l whispered to Iisha this beats ALL"
mot much" he replied, TT don't
beat the Christmas trees we used to
have in the white church down. home.
Then there were presents good for
something. When a girl got bal
moral skirt or boy got a red and
blue neck comforter or pair of
white wooden mittens, that meant
comfort on cold day. What do they
get nowadays? That thing there on
the tree, so thin you can shoot peas
through, all covered with trimmings
too thin to be worn and too nice to be
seen! What did she say it is-a cas-
serole?" "Hush" l said, that isn't
the name at all! Don't talk so loud"
Well, l don't wonder he got mixed,
for i couldn't name half the wearing
things that were on that tree. l sup
pose it is all right. though. The fact
is, the times have changed and we
haven't-at least, 'Lisha and haven't.
'Lisha says: zone thing hasn't
changed, that is the Spirit of Christ
mas, and I'm mighty glad of that. 1t
is the same kind, only increased. The
same dear old Plains of Bethlehem
spirit of Peace on earth good will to
men,. 1t is getting deeper and reach
ing farther. 1t has touched nearly
every nation and tribe on earth, even
though they may not know the Au-
thor of Christmas. They are catching