Amongst my letters wuz one from Evangeline Noble tellin' of her safe
arrival in Africa and of the beginning of her work there, some like
strikin' a match to light a lamp in a dark suller, but different from
that because the light she lit wuz liable to light other lamps, and so
on and on and on till no tellin' what a glorious brilliance would
shine from the one little rushlight she wuz kindlin'. She felt it, she
wuz happy with that best kind of happiness, doin' good. She spoke of
Cousin John Richard, too; he wuz not in the same place she wuz, but
she hearn of him often, for his life wuz like a vase filled with the
precious ointment broke at the feet of Jesus. Broken in a earthly
sense, but the rich aroma sweetened the whole air about and ascended
to the very heavens.
A missionary she knew had seen him just before she wrote me. He wuz
working, giving his life and finding it again, useful, happy,
beloved. Not a success in a worldly way; Mudd-Weakdew would have
called it a dead failure. In place of a palace, Cousin John
Richard could not call even the poor ruff that sheltered him his own.
Instead of a retinue of servants, Cousin John Richard worked
diligently with his hands to earn his daily bread; instead of
stocks and bonds bringing him rich revenues, he had only the title
deeds of the house of many mansions, and Mudd-Weakdew would not
have accepted any deeds unless signed before a notary and sealed with
our govermunt stamp. No wealth, no luxuries, not hardly the
necessities of life had Cousin John Richard, whilst Mudd-Weakdew
wuz steeped in the atmosphere of wealth and grandeur for which he
had lived and toiled, yet Cousin John Richard wuz blissfully happy
and content, Mudd-Weakdew unspeakably and hopelessly wretched. Both
had follored their goles and wuz settin' on 'em, but, oh! how
different they wuz--how different to themselves and them about 'em.
Inspiration and help flowed from Cousin John Richard's personality
like the warm sunshine of a clear June day, or the perfume from a rare
lily, brightening, sweetening and uplifting all about him, whilst from
Mudd-Weakdew fell a dark shadder made up of gloom, discontent, envy,
hatred. How different they wuz, how different they wuz! And Robert
Strong's gole, how different his wuz from Mudd-Weakdew's. I
methought of what Miss Meechim had said to me deplorin'ly, how
different Robert Strong wuz. Yes, indeed! both on 'em had had fur
different goles and pursued 'em. The onselfish road Robert Strong trod
wuz leadin' him to the house of happiness--Mudd-Weakdew's to the
house of pain and despair.
I dare presoom to say I eppisoded more'n a hour to myself about it and
to Josiah, 'tennyrate Josiah got real huffy and acted, and sez in a
pitiful axent:
"Samantha, I'm willin' to hear preachin' twice a week and can set
under it like a man, but it comes kinder tough to have moralizin' and
preachin' brung into the bosom of the family and liable to be drizzled
out onto me week days, and any time, night or day."
His axent wuz extremely hopeless and pitiful. He felt a good deal as I
did in the matter, but it is a man's nater to be more impatient and
not bear the yoke so well as wimmen do. Wimmen are more used to
galdin' things than men be; I don't blame Josiah.
I wuz glad enough to see in Vienna the stately monument to Maria
Theresa, Empress of Austria Hungary. To see all about her and below
her the noble forms of Wisdom, Strength, Justice and Religion. And men
a-hoss back and sages and soldiers and to see her a-settin' so calm
and benine on top of the hull caboodle, it gin me proud sensations and
made me glad I wuz a woman, but not haughty.
Maria Theresa wuz a likely woman; I wish she could have lived to have
me encourage her by tellin' her what I thought on her. I would said to
her:
"Marie," sez I, "you did well with what you had to do with, your
pardner left a sight for you to tend to, as pardners will if they see
their consort is willing to bear the brunt. You went through no end of
trials and tribulations, wars and revolutions, but come off
victorious. You helped the poor a sight, abolished torture, sot up
schoolhouses, fenced in the roarin' Papal bulls so they couldn't break
out and rare round so much, you helped on the industries of your
country, looked out for the best interests of your husband and son, as
pardners and mothers will and looked and acted like a perfect lady
through it all in war and peace."
It would done Marie sights of good to hearn my talk, but it wuzn't to
be. But this high, noble monument wuz some consolation to her if she
could look down and see it, as I spoze she can and duz. And partly on
her ma's account I visited the tomb of her girl, Marie Christina. It
wuz designed by Canova and wuz the most beautiful tomb I ever see.
Nine beautiful figgers with heads bowed down in grief wuz bearin'
garlands of flowers to strew above the beloved head, Youth, Middle Age
and Old Age all bearin' their different garlands and seemin' to feel
real bad, even the mighty angel who guarded the open door of the tomb
had his head bowed in sorrow. Way up above wuz the face of the
beautiful Arch Duchess carved in marble, with angels and cherubs
surroundin' her. Josiah said if he wuz able he would love to rare such
a one up for Tirzah Ann. Sez he, "She could enjoy it durin' her life
and if she should pass away before us it would come handy." He thought
the features of the Arch Duchess favored Tirzah Ann, but I couldn't
see it.
Albert Fountain is a noble-lookin' structure rared up by Francis
Joseph in 1869. We also visited the Academy of Fine Arts, the
conservatory of music, Museums of Arts and Industries, the new
Parliament and University buildings. The University building has one
hundred and sixty thousand volumes and engravings and drawing enough
to fill up an ordinary building, the collection of manuscripts is
called the richest in the world.
The teachers in the University of Vienna number two hundred and ten,
good land! enough to make a good school in themselves if anybody
knowed enough to teach 'em. In the Chamber of Treasures in the
Imperial Palace we see the largest emerald known to the world and the
Florentine Diamond, 133 karats big, though Josiah said when I told him
on't that wuz nothin' to carrots he'd raised in his garden, but I sot
him right. There wuz more than one hundred and forty thousand coins
and all sorts of minerals and a great quantity of bronzes, gems and
cameos.
I hated to give in, but I had to. I see cameos there that went fur
beyend mine. We visited gymnasiums, public schools, institutes,
colleges and more noble and interestin' edifices than I could tell you
jest the names on unless I took loads of time.
The principal articles of manufacture in Vienna are jewelry, clocks,
kid gloves, musical instruments, shawls, silks and velvets. It is
supplied with water that comes forty milds in an aqueduct and gits
there as fresh and sparklin' as if it hadn't travelled a mild.
I felt that I ort to go and see the Emperor, Francis Joseph, while I
wuz in Vienna. I knowed that if my Josiah had been took from my heart
and presence as his Elizabeth had been and he'd come to Jonesville to
see the sights and look round some as I wuz doin' and hadn't come to
condole with me I should feel dretful hurt.
Just to think on't, the sweet, beautiful woman that he had loved ever
sence she wuz a little girl in short dresses and would marry in spite
of all opposition, and who had been his confidant and closest earthly
friend for so many long years a settin' up there by his side on that
hard peak with the kodaks of the world aimed at 'em, and rejoiced in
his joy and sympathized in his sorrow, to have her struck down so
sudden and to once by the hand of a assassin. Why, if it had been my
Josiah I couldn't have bore up as Fritz had; it seems to me as if I
never could have held my head up at all after it.
But Fritz had bore up under his sorrow all these years and carryin' it
along he bore also the load of his people's cares and perplexities and
tried to do the best he could with what he had to do with, which is a
golden rule to frame and hang up over our soul's mantletry piece and
study from day to day and which is the very best a human creeter can
do in Jonesville or Austria.
I sot store by him. One thing specially I always liked in him wuz his
humility and reverence, as showed by the foot-washing in the palace.
I'd hearn about that, and wanted to see it myself, like a dog, but it
wuz too late, for that takes place in April. But Robert Strong wuz
here once in April, and witnessed that ceremony.
It is a old custom, comin' from so fur back that nobody knows what
monarch it wuz and whose feet they wuz, and whether they needed
washin' or not. But I presoom they wuz middlin' clean; they be now
anyway, and the Emperor doesn't do it for bathin' purposes or to help
corns, but it is a religious custom. Robert explained it all out to me
so plain that I almost seemed to see it myself.
Robert said that the day he wuz here there wuz twelve old men, some on
'em ninety years old, seated at a table set out handsome with good
dishes, napkins, etc., and the table all covered with rose leaves, and
under it brown linen cushions for the old feet to rest on.
The old men had on black clothes, short breeches, black silk
stockings, and wide white turned-down collars. They wuz seated by
grand court officials, the oldest man seated at the head of the table.
Anon the Emperor come in in full uniform, with a train of nobility and
big court officers with him, all in gorgeous attire, and the Emperor
took his place at the head of the table as a waiter to wait on the
oldest old man. And then follered twelve palace officials, each
bearin' a black tray that had four dishes of good food on it, and they
took their places opposite the old men who set on one side of the
table, some as they do in pictures of the Last Supper or some as we
have some times in cleanin' house and things tore up and we all set on
one side of the table.
Then all bein' ready, the Emperor took the food off the tray opposite
the oldest man, and waited on him jest as polite as Philury waits on
me when we have company. The Crown Prince waited on the one next in
age, and each of the old men wuz waited on by some grand duke or other
member of the Austrian nobility.
After the trays wuz emptied, the palace guard, in full uniform, come
in with twelve more trays, and so on till four courses wuz served, the
last consistin' of a sweet dish, fruit, cheese, almonds, etc. After
this, and it wuz done quite quick, for not a mouthful wuz eaten, a
large, gold tray wuz brought in with a gold pitcher on it and a large
napkin, and the Emperor knelt and poured a little water on the old
man's foot, and wiped it on the napkin. It wuzn't very dirty, I spoze;
his folks had tended to that, and got off the worst of it. But he had
had his foot washed by a Emperor, and I spoze he felt his oats more or
less, as the sayin' is in rural districts, though he orten't to,
seein' it wuz a religious ceremony to inculcate humility, and the old
man ort to felt it too, as well as the Emperor. But howsumever, the
hull twelve on 'em had their feet washed and wiped by nobility. And
that bein' done, the Emperor, Crown Prince, and all the arch dukes,
etc., havin' riz up from their knees, the Grand Chamberlain poured
some water on the Emperor's hands, who dried 'em on a napkin, and all
the rest of the nobility done the same.
Then a court officer come in bringin' twelve black bags of money
containing each thirty silver florins. They had long black cords
attached, and the Emperor fastened the bags around the necks of each
of the old men by putting the cords round their necks. Then the
Emperor and nobility left the hall.
All durin' this ceremony a priest and twenty assistants read and
intoned beautiful extracts from the Gospel, showin' how the Lord
washed the disciples' feet. Then all the food and plates and foot
cushions wuz packed into baskets and sent to the houses of these old
men, and I wuz glad to hear that, for I thought how they must have
felt to have such tasty food put before 'em and took away agin for
good and all.
When the Empress wuz alive she did the same to twelve old wimmen--good
creetur! Wuzn't it discouragin' to wash the feet of the poorer classes
every year of her life, and then be shot down by one on 'em? How Fritz
must have felt a-thinkin' on't! If he'd been revengeful, I felt that
he might have gin their feet a real vicious rub--kinder dug into 'em
real savage; but he didn't; he washed and wiped 'em honorable, from
what I've hearn.
I always thought that that wuz a noble thing for the Emperor to do. I
d'no as our presidents would be willin' to do it, and I d'no as they
wouldn't. I don't believe the question has ever been put to 'em. I
guess Washington and Lincoln would anyway, and I don't believe that
they would have shrunk back if the feet wuz real dirty; they went
through worse things than that.
But to resoom: Robert Strong's description of this seen made me set
more store by Fritz Joseph than I had sot. And I wanted dretfully to
meet him and condole with him and congratulate him, but didn't know as
I should have a chance. But to my great satisfaction we wuz all
invited to the palace to a big informal reception. I wuz tickled
enough.
I spoze it wuz on Robert Strong's account that we wuz invited to the
Emperor's palace, though Josiah thought it wuz on his account. Sez
he:
"Fritz is a educated man and reads about foreign affairs; of course,
he has hearn of Jonesville and knows that I am one of its leadin' men,
and wield a powerful influence in political and religious circles, and
wants to honor me and on my account and to please me, and for various
diplomatic reasons he is willin' to receive my pardner."
But it wuzn't so, no such thing; it wuz on Robert's account; Robert
had been invited there for lunch when he wuz there before, for Miss
Meechim had told me on't over and over. When the evening of the
reception come, Miss Meechim wuz in high feather every way. She wore
one in her hair that stood up higher than old Hail The Day's tail
feathers, and then her sperits wuz all feathered out, too.
Dorothy looked sweet as a rose just blowed out. She had on a gown of
pale-green satin and shiffon, which looked some the color of fresh,
delicate leaves, and her sweet face riz up from it and bloomed out
like a flower. It wuz a little low in the neck, which wuz white as
snow, and so wuz her round arms. A necklace of big pearls wuz round
her neck, not much whiter than the warm, soft flesh they rested on,
and she carried a big bunch of white orchids. She looked good enough
to frame in gold and hang up in anybody's best parlor, and Robert
Strong felt just as I did I knew by his liniment. On such a occasion,
I felt my best black silk none too good, and at Dorothy's request I
turned down the neck a little in front, mebby a half a finger or so,
and wore a piece of lace she gin me over it that come down to my belt.
It looked like a cob-web that had ketched in its transparent meshes
some voylets and snowdrops. And at her request I did not wear the
cameo pin, but a little bunch of posies she fixed for me, fine white
posies with a few pale lavender ones. I spoze Dorothy, though she
didn't tell me so, for fear it would make me oneasy and nervious, but
I spoze she wuz afraid that some bold thief might rob me of that
valuable jewel; she knowed that cameo pin fell onto me from Mother
Smith and fell onto her from her ma. This rim of memory sot it round
and rendered it valuable aside from its intrinsic worth, which wuz
great. Why, I hearn that Grandmother Smith paid as high as seven
dollars for it, gin five bushels of dried apples and the rest in
money. Tommy stayed to home with Martha.
The guests wuz ushered into a spacious and magnificent room.
Innumerable lights flashed from its lofty ceilings and music and
flowers brightened the seen. The rich costooms of the ladies and the
gorgeous uniforms of the men, representatives of the different
countries, richly embroidered in gold and silver, added to the beauty
of the panorama. Jewels wuz sparklin' everywhere, and I thought to
myself I d'no but Dorothy wuz more fraid than she need be, I d'no; but
I might have resked the cameo pin there. For it didn't seem as if
anybody there, man or woman, stood in need of any more ornaments, and
if they took it, I should always thought they done it out of pure
meanness. For such a profusion of jewelled ornaments I never see, and
such dresses, oh, my! I thought even before I met the royal party what
would I give if Almina Hagadone could be sot down there with liberty
to bring a lot of old newspapers, the Jonesville "Augurses" and
"Gimlets" and take patterns. Oh, my! wuzn't they grand, though our
good Methodist sisters wouldn't dream of havin' their calico and
woosted dresses with such long trains draggin' behind 'em or havin'
'em low-necked and short sleeves. I could hardly imagine how Sister
Gowdey and Sister Henzy would look with their chocolate-colored
calicos made without sleeves and dekolitay, as Miss Meechim called it;
they would blush to entertain the thought, and so would their
pardners.
Francis Joseph, or as I called him in my mind, the good crisp name of
Fritz, I found wuz good lookin' and good actin'. Of course, like
myself and Josiah, he's gittin' some along in years. And like us, too,
he won't most probable ever be hung for his beauty. But what of that?
Like others lately mentioned, his liniment shows just what kind of a
person he has been and is. Honest, honorable, hard-workin', gittin'
up at five o'clock in the mornin', doin' a good day's work before lots
of folks rises up from their goose-feather pillers. Fillin' up the day
with duties performed to the best of his ability. Good, solid-lookin'
and good-actin' the most of the time, though I spoze that like every
human bein', he has had spells of bein' contrary and actin', but on
the whole a good man, and a well-wisher to his race.
And now in this dretful epock of time, when everything seemed
upside down, thrones tottlin' and foundations warpin', and the roar of
battle comin' nigher and nigher on every side, I felt that it wuz a
great thing for him that he had the chance to hear some words of
encouragement and advice. Yes, I knowed that if ever the Powers
wuz in a tight place they wuz now.
I wuz the last one in the line, and so had a chance at him; I
shouldn't have had if Miss Meechim and Arvilly had been follerin'
close to my heels. I had said in days gone by that if I ever got holt
of one of them Powers I would give 'em a piece of my mind that they
could patch onto their daily experience, and tremble and wonder at it
for the rest of their days. I had been riled up by these Powers a
number of times, real provoked and out of patience with 'em. But now
when I stood in the presence of one of 'em I felt different from what
I thought I should feel; I pitied 'em like a dog. And I showed it. I
mistrust my liniment looked pale and excited, though not havin' a
lookin' glass present I couldn't tell for certain, but I know my voice
trembled with emotion, for I hearn it myself.
I sez to him how proud and happy I wuz to see him lookin' so well and
holdin' his age to such a remarkable degree, and after a few such
preliminary politenesses had been tended to, I branched out and told
him with my liniment lookin' good and earnest I know, and tears almost
standin' in my eyes, I told him the feelin's I felt for the Powers,
how mad I'd been at 'em in the past, and how them feelin's had turned
into pity, for I knowed just what a ticklish place they wuz in and
how necessary it wuz for 'em to keep a cool head and a wise, religious
heart, and then, sez I, "I d'no as that will save you. You Powers have
got so hard a job to tackle that it don't seem to me you'll ever git
out of it with hull skins if you don't use all the caution a elephant
duz in crossin' a bridge. Go cautious and carefull and reach out and
try every plank before you step on't."
He felt it, I could see he did, he knowed how the ground wuz quakin'
under him and the rest of the Powerses. "And don't," sez I, "don't for
mercy's sake! you Powers git to squabblin' amongst yourselves, for if
you do you might just as well give up first as last, for you are all
lost as sure as fate. Keep your temper above all things," sez I.
"You've got age and experience as well as I have, and it takes such
experienced wise heads to manage such a state of affairs, and I d'no
even then as we can git along without an awful fuss, things are so
muddled up. Mebby you're the very one to go on and try to straighten
out the snarls in the skein of the nation's trials and perplexities,
and I'll do all I can to help you," sez I.
He wuz dretful impressed by my eloquence; he acted for all the world
just as Mr. Astofeller did. He looked at his watch just as if he wuz
anxious to know just the time I said such remarkable things, and I
continued on, "Sister Henzy," sez I, "thinks that the millenium is
comin'."
"Sister Henzy?" sez he inquirin'ly.
"Yes," sez I, "Sister Mehala Henzy, sister in the M. E. meetin'-house
at Jonesville. She sez that this is the great universal war that is to
usher in the thousand years of peace and the comin' of our Lord. She
reads Skripter a sight and has explained it out to me and I must say
it does look like it. And oh how I do want to be here to see it, but
don't spoze Josiah and I can live a thousand years, no matter how much
patent medicine we take, specially as we both have the rumatiz bad,
but oh how I would love to.
"Brother Meesick thinks this is goin' to be a war of the yellow races
agin the whites. And though it would come tough on Josiah and me to be
driv out of house and home and scalped and made slaves on, yet right
whilst them yeller races wuz engaged in it if I could think at
all--and of course I don't know how much the seat of thought is
situated in the crown of the head and hair and whether the entire
citadel would go with the scalp, but if I could think and keep my
conscientiousness as I spoze I should, I should have to give in right
then and there that it wuz only justice fur the white races to submit
to the revenge of the darker complected, thinkin' what we'd done to
them.
"Josiah bein' so bald they would probable have to take his head right
off, not havin' anything to hang onto while they scalped him, and I
should probably foller him soon, as I couldn't imagine a life
Josiahless. But whilst I lived, and even if I wuz sold into captivity,
and see Thomas J. and the rest of the children sold into distant
countries, and I chained to widder Henzy, drove off west to be slaves
to Hole In The Day or Big Thunder, I should have to say amidst my
heart breakin' groans and sithes, it is just, it is just, we white
folks richly deserve it for our treatment to the darker races."
The Emperor felt my talk deeply, I knew by his looks; he looked
completely wore out; it wuz from admiration I knowed.
Sez I: "It is a dretful thing to have all the beasts of the world git
mixed up and a-fightin' and chankin' each other up, as they have
seemed to, whilst the Powers have sot and looked on. Jest now it looks
to me as if the Russian Bear is gittin' the worst on't and the dragon
a-comin' out on top, and the Eagle has done noble work a-shriekin' and
fightin' and protectin' her young.
"It seemed to me and Josiah that the Powers have took things pretty
easy and loitered along when their ministers and missionaries wuz
chased into a corner and the Boxers ready to take their heads off. It
makes a sight of difference in such things whose heads are in danger.
If it wuz the Powers' own heads, for instance, there would probable
been more hustlin' round.
"But things are in a dretful state in Russia and Japan and China. It
is a great pity I hadn't knowed what wuz comin' when I wuz there; I
could probable done lots of good advisin' the Empress and tryin' to
make her do as she ort to, though my pardner thinks the blame hain't
all on China. He argys wrong, but is sot on it. He sez spozen he wuz
slow with his spring's work and didn't keep his fences up, or hustle
round so and mebby didn't pay Ury so big wages as the Loontowners did
in their factory, and wuzn't what they called sound on the doctrines.
You know they are seven-day Baptisses over in Loontown and Shackville;
but Josiah sez if them two Powers got together and tried to force
Loonton and Shackville civilization and ways onto Jonesville, which is
a older place and glad to be kinder settled down and mind its own
bizness; and if they should try to build roads through Jonesville
medders and berry lots and set up their tabernacles and manufacturys
there and steal right and left and divide Jonesville into pieces and
divide the pieces amongst 'em, why, sez he, 'I would arm myself and
Ury and fight to the bitter hind end.'
"Sez Josiah: 'Why do we want our pleasant woods and fields turned into
noisy bedlams by the whirrin' of wheels, creakin' of engines and the
roar and smoke and dust of traffick? Spozein' we should make more
money and dress better and own more books; money hain't everything in
life, nor hustlin' in bizness; peace and comfort and mindin' your own
bizness is sunthin'.'
"'And wheresoever them noisy manufactories go, there goes whiskey,'
sez Arvilly. A neighborin' woman who wuz by and jined in: 'What good
duz it do to try to settle which is the right Sunday if at the same
time them proselyters brings pizen that crazes their converts so they
can't tell Sunday mornin' from Friday midnight, bring the preachin'
of love and peace and the practice of hatred and ruin, the creeds and
catechism packed on with opium and whiskey.'
"'Yes,' sez Josiah, 'let me catch the Loontown and Shackville Powers
tryin' to divide Jonesville into pieces and grabbin' the pieces and
dividin' 'em up amongst 'em and turnin' us out of house and hum, I
guess them powers would find they had got hold of a Boxer when they
come to cut up my paster and divide it and the medder back of the
house where grandfather Allen's grandpa and great-grandma lays with a
white railin' round 'em, kep' up by the Allens two hundred years. I
guess they'd think they had got holt of a Boxer--yes indeed! and
Josiah Allen breathed hard and looked warlike.
"'But,' I sez, 'Josiah, you hain't got it right; there is more to
it.'
"And he sez fiery red in the face and sithin' hard, 'There is
generally more to everything.' And I sez, 'So there is, Josiah.'"
I see the Emperor lookin' round anxiously and he seemed to be on the
very pint of startin' away. I mistrusted he wanted to go and git more
folks to hear my wonderful eloquence, but I couldn't wait and I sez,
"Time and Josiah are passin' away and I mustn't detain you; you Powers
will have to do the best you can with what you've got to do with.
Wisdom is needed here, and goodness, piles and piles of goodness and
patience and above all prayer to the God of love and justice for help.
He is the only Power that can bring light into the dark problem
confrontin' the nations. He can settle the question and will, if you
Powers trust Him and try to toiler his teachin's."
"The only receipt I can give you is what I told you. Seekin' earnestly
for patience and wisdom from on high, payin' no attention to the blue
light that rises from the low grounds lit by Greed, Ambition and
Revenge, follerin' from day to day the light that filters down from
heaven through the winders of the mind and soul, and keepin' them
winders as clean as possible so the light can shine through. Brushin'
away, as fur as your powers can, the black cob-webs from your own
civilizations whilst you are tacklin' the scrubbin' brush to cleanse
older and dirtier ones, and don't for mercy sake in the name of
freedom take away freedom from any race or nation. I d'no what else
you can do."
Agin he looked anxiously round as much as to say, oh why, why don't
somebody else come to hear this remarkable talk?
And sez I, "I will say in conclusion for your encouragement, fur off
over the hills and dells of the world and Jonesville there will be one
follerin' you with earnest good wishes and prayers and will help you
Powers all she can and may God help you and the other Powerses and
farewell."
He looked dretful relieved as he shook my hand and I passed on. I
guess he had worried for fear it would be out of sight, out of mind
with me, and I rejoined my pardner. The rest of our party had passed
on into another gorgeous apartment, but my faithful pardner had waited
for me. He wuz rejoiced to see me I knowed, though his words wuz:
"What under the sun wuz you hangin' round and preachin' to a Emperor
for? I believe you would dast anything."
"I hope I would," sez I, calmly, "upheld by Duty's apron strings." I
wouldn't have it knowed in Jonesville for a dollar bill that right
there in the Emperor's palace Josiah demeaned himself so, but he did
say:
"I don't want to hear any more about them infarnal strings."
And a gorgeous official looked round at him in surprise and rebuke.
Well, we didn't stay a great while after that. We walked round a
little longer through the magnificent rooms, and anon we met Arvilly.
She wuz lookin' through a carved archway at the distant form of the
Emperor and unfastenin' the puckerin' strings of her work-bag, but I
laid holt of her arm and sez:
"Arvilly, for pity sake help me find Robert and Dorothy." She turned
with me, and my soul soared up considerable to think I had already
begun to help the powers and lighten their burdens. And pretty soon
the rest of our party jined us, and we returned home to our tarven.