Year: 1875

anxious to have them go and stay until


after Thanksgiving. The deacon insist


ed that his wife should go, but he said,
that with his rheumatism and some chores


he had to do on the farm, he thought he


had better stay at home and see to things


His wife would hardly agree to this. She


said il would be the first time they had


been separated for thirty years, and, as


the deacon said, the first time they ever


had q serious disagreement and he


laughed as if 1t was an uncommon good


joke.


"Well, as / left the deacon's with
such budget OF news that / was at
liberty to tell, thinks to myself L shall


be quite a welcome visitor at some
houses l know of. As it happened, L
was going to work for the Shutters the
very next day, and so L should have a
chance to make up, in n manner, for be-
ing so close-mouthed, as they called me,
by speaking out for once as free as other
folks.


4" got there the next morning rather
before they expected me, and as L stood
ready to knock at the side door l heard
my name, and waited moment. A
window was open, and as one of the
girls was laying the table in the kitchen,
and the other out in the back-room iron
ing, they spoke pretty loud to each other,
and could hear every word they said,
though they didn't hear me knock and
knock. One of them said, Don't tell
me about Sail Barker's prudence, and
her being so mighty conscientious and
all that. l warrant you she is as glad to
poke that great long nose of hers into
other peoples business as anybody, and
II is only because she is so contrary that
she likes to keep things TO herself. She
feels so important when she has some
great secret that she can keep from eve
rybody else 1t is the way she takes to
poster folks And she went on about
old maids in way that was scandalous.
But am not going to repeat it. You
may be sure that l felt pretty well riled
up, and | had half mind to go straight
home; but had sent my goose and lap
BOARD along, for had a jacket to press
off for Reuben Snuffer, and so / con-
cluded to put down the old Adam, and
go right in. | ought to explain that
what set Lyddy Ann out so fierce was
that her mother had been taking her to
do for letting out some secrets that had
made mischief, and she had held me up
as pattern. Everybody knows that
nothing makes some people dislike you
more than to have some other people al
ways praising you. Well, | went i'll and
sat down to breakfast, and they had
buttermilk cake that Lyddy Ann had
made and baked on board before the
fire on purpose for me, because she knew
/ liked them so much. There are some
folks who always like TO have you eat
their victuals, even if they hate you. /
ate it and praised it, though l hadn't so
much appetite as common, for | kept
thinking about my great long nose, and
of being called an old maid.


"We sat pretty much without speak
ing for n spell, for the girls mistrusted
that overheard them talk; but before
long Betsy Jane gave little hem to
clear her throat, and observed that they
must be middling busy down at Deacon
Goodman's if Matildy was to be married
in week or two. said, she isn't to
be married till spring comes;' and l was
going on to tell the rest, but they didn't
give me time to finish.


"'Not till spring What on earth
cO1tid that nlean?' Now what possessed
me / couldn't tell. | don't pretend to
say that L did right but You must re-
member that it was only half an hour
since | had heard myself nicknamed and
called an old maid, just because /
wouldn't tell all | knew. We'll, says l,
strange things happen sometimes. You
haven't heard that the deacon and his
wife have had disagreement, and are
talking of separation Now, mind, /
didn't tell them that / had heard so; /
only said that they hadn't heard it. OF
course they were amazed beyond all ac-
count. They couldn't say much, but
Did / ever !! and IF that doesn't beat
all / ever did hear i'll my born days !!
Their mother wasn't talking woman,
and she asked me if l didn't think there
must be some mistake. / said time
would show. But the girls said they
had noticed for some time how red Mrs.
Goodman's s eyes had looked, and now it
was all explained.


"It wasn't long after, "a / sat by n
window at work, spied Lyddy Ann,
with n shawl over her head, slipping
across from their side gate into Miss
Jones and in another half hour | saw
one of the Jones girls, with shawl and
cape bonnet, going across the road ; and
before dinner / counted half dozen
cape bonnets going hither and yon.
Well, the long and the short of it was,
that by the end of two days there wasn't
n man or woman in Shrewsbury that
hadn't heard that Deacon Goodman and
his wife had had "A great quarrel that
Mrs. Goodman had cried her eyes out,
and the match between Josiah and Ma
tilda, was all broken up.


"Old Deacon Walker was greatly ex-
ercised in his mind when he found there
was no such thing as putting down the
rumor, for he was peaceable man, and
he and Deacon Goodman had served the
same communion table for many year.
He couldn't bear to go to his brother
about such unpleasant business, though
he didn't believe the stories. After
making it q subject of prayer. he con-
cluded it was better that the minister
should take it in hand, and so to the
minister he went. Parson Snowdon
didn't believe the stories. 1t wasn't
long since he called at the deacon's, and
all was pleasant enough at that time.
Still, he hated rumors and he hated mis-
aud no Nyould oro onJ