Mildred Keith

by Martha Finley

  Chapter Tenth.

  "Heaven gives us friends to bless the present scene." --YOUNG.

  "OH, Rhody Jane, Rhody Jane, I say just come an' look!"

  "Look at what, Emmaret? you're always makin' a fuss about nothin',"returned Miss Lightcap scornfully, but nevertheless, stepping verypromptly, plate and dishcloth in hand, to the front door whence thehasty summons had come.

  "'Tain't nothin' this time," Emmaretta went on; "they're agoin' toSunday school, them Keith girls, and just see how they're dressed up!"

  "Did you ever see anything so fine?" chorused Minerva; "sech lovelydresses; and black silk aprons with colored lace onto 'em. Oh my! I wishI had one like 'em!"

  "Maybe you shall some o' these days when your pop gits rich," said hermother, who was gazing from the window.

  "But the bonnets is what takes me. Did you notice 'em, Rhoda Jane?they're gimp with blue ribbings and blue flowers."

  "And the white and red in their faces makes them powerful becoming,"remarked Gotobed, standing just outside.

  But he turned his head the other way, shamefacedly, as Mildred, lookingsweet and fair in white muslin and pink ribbons, followed her youngersisters into the street, and sent a casual glance in his direction.

  "Don't she think she's some!" said Rhoda Jane enviously.

  "And so she is; she looks like a posey," said Gotobed.

  "Is that the grandmother? the old lady walking with Mr. Keith."

  "No; Viny Apple says she's Mrs. Keith's aunt; and talks in the funniestway sometimes;--gets things hind part before--telling her to make up thefloors and sweep the beds, and the like.

  "There they're all out o' sight. I guess the mother's stayin' to homewith the baby; Viny said she wasn't agoin' to, and I s'pose she's upstairs primpin'."

  "And that's what you'd ought to be doin' 'forelong, if you're goin' tomeetin', Rhoda Jane," observed Mrs. Lightcap, drawing in her head."Hurry up now with them dishes. And you children walk right in here andhunt up your Sunday things, and wash your hands and faces and comb yourhair; it'll be meetin' time 'fore we know it."

  A narrow foot-path, bordered on each side by grass still wet with dew,led past the grove of saplings to the little church whither the Keithswere bound.

  Mildred, lifting her white skirts daintily, and warning her sisters andbrothers of the danger of wet and soiled shoes, should they step asidefrom the beaten track, picked her way with careful steps, rejoicing inthe fact that the distance was not great.

  The church membership was as yet very small; Sabbath school ditto. Thenewly arrived family made an important addition to the ranks of bothteachers and scholars.

  Two Bible classes were organized this morning and given, respectively,into the charge of Mr. Keith and Miss Stanhope; Rupert becoming a memberof his father's, Mildred of Aunt Wealthy's. There were but two others inthis latter class; Claudina Chetwood and Lucilla Grange; bothintelligent, lady-like, refined girls, who made an agreeable impressionupon Miss Stanhope and Mildred also. And this was mutual.

  The morning service followed immediately upon the close of Sabbathschool. The sermon was excellent; the singing, though not artistic, andsomewhat interrupted by the necessity of lining out the hymn, on accountof the scarcity of books, earnest and spirited; the people singing,apparently with the understanding and the heart also; the prayer wasfervent, and the behavior of the congregation throughout the wholeservice was quiet and devotional.

  Most of them were town folk, but a few families had come in from thesurrounding country.

  There was little display of fashion or style in dress; no one wasexpensively attired; most of the women and girls wore calico; but allwere neat, some really tasteful; and in intellect and moral worth, themajority of faces would have compared favorably with an equal number inthe older States.

  People lingered after church for mutual introductions and the exchangeof friendly remarks and inquiries. The Keiths were warmly welcomed,assured of intentions to call, hopes expressed that they would "like theplace," feel quite at home in the church and be sociable; the countrypeople adding "Come out and see us whenever you can."

  Squire Chetwood and Mr. Keith, who had made acquaintance during thepreceding week, now introduced their families; each with very excusablefatherly pride in the good looks and good manners of his offspring.

  The young Chetwoods were nearly as numerous, as handsome and intelligentas the Keiths.

  "I hope we shall be good friends," said Claudina, as she and Mildredwalked away together. "Mother was not out to-day because of a headache;but she and I are coming to see your mother and you this week."

  "We shall be pleased to see you," Mildred answered heartily, "and I amvery glad to accept your offer of friendship."

  They parted at Mr. Keith's door, mutually pleased, and Mildred carried abrighter face into the house than she had worn for weeks.

  Her mother remarked upon it with delight.

  "Yes, mother," she responded gayly, "I begin to feel a little happierabout living here, now that I find we are to have good preaching, Sundayschool--with an excellent and competent teacher for my share"--glancingarchly at Aunt Wealthy's kindly, sensible face--"and pleasant friends;"going on to give a flattering description of the Chetwoods, particularlyClaudina.

  "I hope she will prove a valuable friend and a very great comfort toyou, daughter," said Mrs. Keith. "You need young companionship and I amvery glad to know that it will be provided."

  The little girls had been up stairs putting away their best bonnets.

  "Where's Viny?" asked Zillah, running back into the sitting-room wherethe older people still were.

  "She went out telling me that she wouldn't be back till bedtime,"replied the mother.

  "Leaving us to do our own work!" cried Mildred. "Oh, mother, what madeyou let her?"

  "Let her, my child? she did not ask my permission," laughed Mrs. Keith;"but indeed I think we are quite as well off without her for to-day; aswe do no cooking on Sunday."

  Before another week had passed, Mildred was ready to subscribe to theopinion that they were as well without her altogether--she having provedherself utterly inefficient, slow and slovenly about her work, unwillingto be directed, impertinent, bold and forward.

  There was not a day when Mildred's indignation did not rise to feverheat in view of the many and aggravated sins of omission and commissionon the part of their "help;" yet it seldom found vent in words. She wasstriving with determined purpose to rule her own spirit, and askingdaily and hourly for strength for the conflict from Him who has said,"In me is thine help," "My strength is made perfect in weakness."

  The example set her by her mother and aunt was also most helpful. Theywere both cheerful, patient, sunny-tempered women; never a word offretfulness or complaint from the lips of either; Aunt Wealthy calm andserene as an unclouded summer day, Mrs. Keith often bringing to her aida strong sense of the ludicrous; turning her vexations into occasionsfor jesting and mirth.

  Mildred knew that they were trials nevertheless, and her love andadmiration, and her resolve to show herself worthy to be the daughter ofsuch a mother, grew apace.

  To the affectionate heart of the unselfish girl there seemed no greatertrial than seeing this dear mother overburdened with care and toil; buttry as she might to take all the burdens on her young shoulders, it wasutterly impossible; and while the conviction that to see her impatientand unhappy would add to her mother's troubles, helped her to maintainher self-control, the reflection that Viny's shortcomings added largelyto those trials, made it tenfold more difficult to bear with them.

  So also with the little tempers, untidinesses, and mischievous pranks ofher younger brothers and sisters.

  Home, even a happy home, is often a hard-fought battle-field; and whoshall say that there is not sometimes more true courage displayed therethan in another kind of conflict amid the roar of cannon and clash ofarms, where earthly glory and renown are to be won.

  The Chetwoods and Gr
anges, and several others of the same standing insociety, called that week; also Mr. Lord, the minister, brought his oldmother who kept house for him, he being a bachelor.

  When Viny happened to be the one to admit callers, she seemed to thinkit incumbent upon her to take a seat in the parlor with them and exertherself for their entertainment.

  Mildred speedily undertook to disabuse her of this impression, but thegirl haughtily informed her that "she had as good a right in the parloras anybody else."

  "But I wouldn't go into it to visit with anybody that didn't come to seeme," said Mildred, with a determined effort to keep down her risinganger.

  "Well, I guess they're about as likely to want to see me as any o' therest; and if they don't they'd ought to. So there!"

  "But you have your work to attend to."

  "The work can wait. And the rest o' you's got plenty to do too."

  The only remedy was to keep Viny busy in the kitchen while some of thefamily watched the doors into the streets and admitted visitors.

  Even this stratagem sometimes failed and they could only consolethemselves that the visitors understood the situation.

  "Ain't you goin' to call on the Keiths?" asked Gotobed Lightcap at thedinner table one day about the middle of the week.

  "Who? me?" queried his mother; then pushing away her empty plate, andresting her elbow on the table, her chin in her hand, while she lookedreflectively off into vacancy. "Well, I s'pose a body'd ought to beneighborly, and I'm as willin' to do my part as the next one; butthere's always a sight of work to do at home; and then I feel kinderbackward 'bout callin' on 'em; they live so fine, you know; Viny Applesays they use real silver spoons and eat off real chaney every day; an'that's more'n we can do when we have company."

  "Well, old woman, I guess the victuals don't taste no better for bein'eat off them things," responded her husband, cheerfully, passing hisempty cup.

  "Maybe. And they don't have no tea nor coffee for dinner, Viny says. Ithink it's real stingy."

  "P'raps they don't want it," remarked Gotobed.

  "Don't you b'lieve no such thing!" exclaimed Rhoda Jane, scornfully,"'tain't fashionable; and they'd ruther be fashionable than comfortable.Viny says they're awful stuck up; wouldn't let her come to the table orinto the parlor if they could help themselves.

  "But I don't keer, I'm not afeard on 'em, if mother is; and I'm goin'over there this afternoon; if it's only to let 'em see that I feelmyself as good as they be any day; and I'll tell 'em so too, if theydon't treat me right."

  "Pshaw, Rhoda Jane, how you talk!" said her mother.

  "Well, I'm spunky, mother; that's a fact; and I ain't a bit ashamed ofit nuther."

  "Don't you go if you can't behave yourself," said Gotobed, leaving thetable and the room.

  Mrs. Keith had gathered her children about her in the parlor, it beingthe shadiest and coolest apartment in the house in the afternoon. She,herself, Aunt Wealthy and the little girls were sewing, while Rupertkept the little boys quiet and interested with the making of a kite, andMildred read aloud from Mrs. Sherwood's "Roxobelle."

  Mildred had a clear, sweet-toned voice, enunciated distinctly, and readwith feeling and expression; so that it was a pleasure to listen to her.

  Rupert, Zillah and Ada were also good readers, and would take theirturns as such; for this was no new thing, but one of the mother's waysof educating her children and training them to a love of literature.

  While many another thing had been left behind in Ohio, they had broughtall their books with them. Poetry, histories, biographies, books oftravel, religious and scientific works, juvenile story-books and a fewnovels, all of the best class, were to be found among their treasuredstores, reveled in by old and young.

  Mr. Keith had his volumes of legal lore too, but with these the othermembers of the family seldom if ever cared to interfere.

  Mrs. Sherwood was a favorite author with the young people; they werereading "Roxobelle" for the first time and had reached a most excitingpart--the scene where the little dog had led Sophie Beauchamp into theroom where his invalid and much abused mistress lay, chained by diseaseto her wretched bed, when Mrs. Lightcap and Rhoda Jane appeared in theopen doorway.

  They were dressed with the utmost simplicity--gowns, aprons andsunbonnets of calico, made without regard to fashion; no collars orcuffs; hands bare and brown; faces sunburnt, the mother's stolid, thegirl's sufficiently sharp but lacking education and refinement.

  It was far from being a welcome interruption. Mildred closed her bookwith a half suppressed sigh, the little girls exchanged glances ofvexation and disappointment; Rupert, too scowled and uttered anexclamation of impatience half under his breath; but Mrs. Keith and MissStanhope rose smilingly, gave the visitors a cordial greeting, askedthem to be seated and entered into conversation.

  "It's powerful warm," remarked Mrs. Lightcap, accepting the offeredchair and wiping the perspiration from her heated face with the cornerof her apron.

  "Yes, it has been an unusually warm day," responded Miss Stanhope,handing a fan; while Mrs. Keith asked if they would not take off theirbonnets.

  "Well ma'am, I don't care if I do," returned Mrs. Lightcap, pulling hersoff and laying it on her lap; Rhoda Jane doing likewise.

  "Let me lay them on the table," Mildred said, recovering her politeness.

  "No, thank you; 'tain't worth while fur the few minutes we're agoin' toset; they's no ways hefty.

  "Our names is Lightcap; this here's my daughter Rhoda Jane and she saysto me, 'mother,' says she, 'we'd ought to be sociable with them newneighbors of ourn; let's go over and set a bit.' No, now what am Italkin' about?' 'twan't her nuther, 'twas Gote that spoke of it first,but my gal here was more'n willing to come."

  "Yes, we always try to be neighborly," assented the girl. "How do youlike Pleasant Plains, ladies?"

  "It seems a pleasant town and we find very pleasant people in it," wasMrs. Keith's smiling rejoinder.

  "That's the talk!" exclaimed Miss Lightcap laughing. "You'll do, Mis'Keith."

  "Comin' so late you won't be able to raise no garden sass this year,"remarked the mother; then went on to give a detailed account of whatthey had planted, what was growing well, and what was not, with anoccasional digression to her husband, her cooking and housework, theoccasional attacks of "agur" that interfered with her plans; and so onand so on--her daughter managing to slip in a word or two now and then.

  At length they rose to go.

  "How's Viny?" queried Rhoda Jane, addressing Mildred.

  "Quite well, I believe," replied Mildred in a freezing tone, and drawingherself up with dignity.

  "Tell her we come to see her too," laughed the girl, as she stepped fromthe door, "Good-bye. Hope you won't be ceremonious, but run in sociableany time o' day."