Year: 1861




AUNT KIssY's MOTIONS OF HONESTY.


BY MRS. FRANCIS D. CAGE.


'.Don't call that man honest" said aunt
Kissy, looking up at uncle Zeke over her
spectacles, and biting off the end of her
thread with vim that made the snap sound
like the crack Of pistol


''Why not; [ never knew deacon Belt
guilty of anything that seemed dishonest
in my life. and [ have done business with
him off and on for twenty years. There is
no more honest man than he. though he is
hard as granite in his deal; he will have
his own way. but l don't know that he ever
takes anything from anybody. If feller
undertakes to get the better of him in a
trade, he lets him know it before be gets
through with him."


Il guess he does!!" responded aunt Ke-
ziah, with toss of her head, as she drew
her long thread of Coates cotton, No. SO
through the eye of her needle with a whiz,
and snapped a knot in the end with her fore
finger and thumb. preparatory to heming
the flap of uncle Zeke's new coat.


.sWell, Ireckon man has right to
his own; and if the deacon stands up for
that and neither gives nor takes, it amt no
more than right, and SO I say that deacon
Belt is an honest man, if he is hard on folks
now and then, I can stand most anything,
if [ know man is honest"


.Hard now and then Ezekiel, did you
ever know him anything else bat hard p
asked aunt, with another quick jerk-.Did
you ever go into his house without being
robbed? Did you ever meet him in the
street without being poorer after he had
passed by Does he ever meet US in an
evening party that he does dot defraud the
whole company. He cheats his wife, cheats
his children, cheats his workmen, cheats
his church, and makes everybody poorer that
comes within the sound of his voice; cheats
even the horse that he rides; snd"-


"Why, Kissy, you are crazy. What do
you mean? Deacon Belt never cheated
anybody


Never did hey! Did I not hear you
say, when you was young man, and work
ed for him year, that you would rather
work for Mr.. Spaulding for nothing, than
for Deacon Belt for double wagcs-that he
made you unhappy all the year round by
his swapping, and snarllng, and haggling
about a few coppers, or few minutes time !?
Did he not task you, and exact of you all
that could be crowded into your hours of
labor? Did he not rob you of happiness,
and cheesfulness, and good feeling?'


ooh yes, that's all true, but then he
paid me my cash. y


''But cheated you Of happiness and COM
fort. Did you not tell me, the other day,
that your call to receive your money of him
gave you the blues for week, because
of his morosness and severity on the neigh
bors; and did you not tell me that he spoke
so harshly to his wife, because one of his
children made noise. that she turned pale
and red, and then, almost smothered with
suppressed tears, left the room; was not
that robbing her of that which was better
than money? Did you not tell me your
self that you pitied his children. who were
never happy in his presence, and dared not
give shout of JOY or pass a jest. if he was
within half a mile of the house +? Is he
not cheating them out of the joyousness o.
childhood %


"Well, I'll own his disposition amt the
sweetest that ever was


Don't call such man honest simply
because he pays you what he owes, to the
fortleth part OF cent. or never forgets q
contract that involves money. when he de-
frauds you of everything else True homes.
ty should be measured by the golden rule,
doing as you would be done by. Deacon
Belt allows no man, woman, child or beast
10 he hapnv or even cheerful wbaro bo &c
Meet him on the road, and while you chat
with him, he worries your horse by whip
ping his own, and cheats him out of mo-
ments rest. He denies to children amuse-
ment, because he does not want it himself.
His wife does not venture an opinion, be-
cause she knows he will contradict and per-
haps insinuate that she is a fool Call his
attention to beautiful sunset, and he will
spoil it to your eye by some disgusting allT
sion or hateful sneer. Admire the ffoxer
garden and he will condemn the maassfor
not putting his time to better adsailtage
and blacken the beauties of nabfire by some
tale of unworthiness in his .6eighbor and
so, like great thief, he abcs on from day
to day, robbing every o. that he meets Of
something that is better than gold, and
making their burdsns of life heavier and
harder to be bornG because he is so honest
that he cam aa5fd to be comfortable Talk
as much as you please about honesty,
wouldfather a man would take my days
earnsngs, than to purloin all my good feel
Jugs, rob my sunshine of its glow. my land
cape of its flowers, childhood of its mrth
homo oe H. 1,ro