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2o THI
The Family
THE VENTURE.
By Calvin Dill Wilson.
I landed on this rock, the Earth;
There met me by ihe gates of birth
A loving woman, great and fair,
With gentle eyes, and silken hair
That seemed, with al. its loosened
strands.
As playing for my baby hands.
Here for the hungered guest wao food,
Divinely mingled, fit and good;
And when the wearied bairnie wept,
Her arms wound round him and he slept.
Great God, with such a welcome here,
I'll venture forth to any sphere;
Lord of the mother, I will tread
All thine abysses without dread.
Gler.dale, Ohio.
"LET SISTER DO IT."
They were twins, Bessie and Jessie
Snow, and were very fond of each other.
In looks, there was a strong resemblance
between them. They were, also, of the
same size and weight. But they were
not alike in all things; for instance, Bessie
was obliging?Jessie was not. It
would often go after this manner in the
house:
"Jessie," Mrs. Snow would say, "I
would like to have you run down to the
corner store and get me a spool of white
thread. No. 40."
"Oh, mamma"! Jessie would respond,
looking up from reading a story-book or
dressing her doll; "let sister go. You'll
go?won i you, ness ;
Or, perhaps, grandma, who could not
walk, would say, looking from one face
to the other: "I would like a glass of
water, if you please," to which request
Jessie would respond: "Bess will get
it, grandma," and Bess would bring the
water, delivering it, invariably, with a
smile and often with a kiss on the furrowed
forehead, thus sending a ray of
sunshine into the old lady's heart.
Or Ben, the only brother of the twins,
would want a small rent sewed up or a
button fastened, or a ball mended. It
his appeal was addressed to Jessie, her
usual reply was:
"I'm busy; let sister <lo it." And "sister"
did.
To do the child justice I will say that
she did not realize that the tendency to
shirk her own duties and put everything
on her twin sister's shoulders had its
root in selfishness. Her mother sighed
over her openly. Grandma's heart ached
as she thought, "Jessie doesn't care anything
for me," and Ben one day re
proacnea ner venemenuy.
"You're never willing to do anything
for any one. You're an old pig. That's
what you are," and he strode away angrily
to find Bessie, who was always
ready to lend a hand.
Jessie had never before been called
an "old pig," consequently she felt rather
sore over it, besides 'she was rather fond
of Ben, but the epithet made no change
in her way of meeting requests for fa
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was a consultation in regard to her
growing habit. She was not at home at
that time and knew nothing about it,
but her mother, grandma, Bessie, Ben
and a beloved young aunt took part. It
was early the following morning when
Mrs. Snow said:
"Peggy (the maid-of-all work) has a
headache this morning. I'd like one of
you girls to wipe the breakfast dishes
for her and set the table for luncheon?
will you, Jessie"?
"Oh, mamma! I was just about to
finish my library book. It's due today.
Let sister wipe the dishes."
"All right," her mother responded so
cheerfully to her refusal she Was surprised;
"Bess will wipe them, I know."
By the time the dishes were wiped
and Bessie was setting the table, Jessie
had finished the library book and was
putting on her hat. Ben had been playing
in the yard and rushed in?as the
scbool Dell was ringing?to find his
"speller" which, to his dismay, was
missing.
"Do help me find it, Jess," he begged.
"I'll get a black mark if I'm late."
"Oh, I can't" was her answer; "I'm off
to the public library. Ask sister to help
you find it." And "sister" did.
As Jessie was about to leave, one of
grandma's long ivory knitting needles
snapped.
"Oh, Jessie," she cried, "seeing you
are going out, please stop at Wells' and
get me a new needle. I'm in a hurry to
finish this suawl."
"I'm sorry, grandma," was the answer,
"I'm not going anywhere near
Wells' this morning. Sister'll get your
needle, won't you, Bess"/
ur course, l n get your needle, grandma,"
called out Bessie from the table
where she was still at work. "I'll be
ready to go for it in a minute."
Jessie, with the library book in her
hand, was out of the door first and Just
in time to see her "beloved young aunt"
drive up.
"Oh, Aunt Agnes"! she cried out, running
to the curbstone as the carriage
stopped. "Have you come for me?
Where are you going'"?
[. August 18. 1909.
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Jessie was about to climb in the carriage
when her aunt touched her lightly
on the shoulde", observing:
"Not for you this time, Jessie I want
Bessie, please, and there is only room
for one of you; let sister go."
A lump came up in Jessie's throat as
she watched Aunt Agnes and Bessie
driy^^-away. And they were going to
Larchmont, where she wanted to go.
She did not seem to be in such a hurry
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She sat down on the piazza steps to
rest, and, presently, much to her surprise,
Aunt Agnes' horse and carriage
was by the curbstone again. Bessie got
out and ran into the house, and Jessie
called out:
"What did Bess forget"?
"It was because she did not forget that
we came back. She brought grandma's
new knitting needle."
When the carriage rolled off again,
Jessie proceeded to the library, but she
had lost her interest in books for the
present. She recalled her aunt's words
spoken so meaningly that they surprised
her: "Let sister go," and "It was because
Bessie did not forget." After changing
her library book, Jessie called on some
of her friends and took a long walk. It
was noon when she returned, and Ben
had just come in from school.
"I've got two free tickets to the stereopticon
entertainment tonight," he
shouted. "I'm going to take Bess?may
I, mamma"?
"Certainly," she answered; "I'm sure
she'll like to go."
There was that troublesome lump in
Jessie's throat again.
"Why did Ben choose Bessie"? she
thought. "Why, didn't Ben say, 'I'm going
to take one of the girla,' and not
say which one. And why did mamma
act so unconcerned about me having to
stay at home"?
Bessia returned from Larchmont *
about the middle of the afternoon, having
had a delightful time. An hour la
ter, grandma asked if one of the girls
would bring her a small box from her
top bureau drawer. As usual, Bessie
was the one to respond. Grandma opened
the box, taking therefrom a beautiful