THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
SEPT 2 
kins, and that it was to announce his return 
possessed of untold wealth. And so the slen¬ 
der mail was gone through and a choice lot 
of gossip and scandal was hatched to be 
spread abroad in the leisure hours of the af¬ 
ternoon and evening. 
But none of the prying eyes saw the sly 
Miss Sally slip the big letter into her capa¬ 
cious pocket, or took notice of her eagerness 
to clear the little parlor of her visitors under 
pretence of getting an early dinner. As soon 
as Miss Bally was alone, she put the kettle on 
the stove and raked up the lire, closed the 
doorof the kitchen and drew down the blind. 
Then she looked over the letter once more and 
tried the fastening with her scissors, but it 
was stuck firmly and would not part without 
tearing. “I wonder where it’s from, or who 
it’s from,” she said, over and over again; but 
the marks were too indistinct to give her any 
indication. 
“That kettle will never bile, I’m sure.” 
And she took a newspaper and doubled it ur-, 
and poured a little kerosene in it, and put it 
under the kettle, which then began to sing. 
Then she poured a little hot water into a cup 
and dipped the corner of a towel in it, and 
dabbed the back of the letter with it. But it 
did not come loose. 80 she laid the letter on 
a shelf and poured a little hot water on the 
fastening, and left for a few minutes. Then 
the fastening came open easily, and the con¬ 
tents were devoured on the instant. 
“Oh, my ! here’s money,” and her hand 
trembled. “Two hundred dollars. I knowed 
it was from Josiah, but—goodness gracious! 
Well, I never! Ob, I must go and show this 
to Jonas—and I can’t go till night. I’ll send 
for him. He must know this right away.” 
And she sent a messenger to tell Jonas to 
come over to the post-office at once, and not 
lose any time, either. 
And Jonas came without losing any time, 
avd bis heart was in his mouth, for fear some 
discovery had been made of his misdoings. 
“What’s up, I wonder—sutbin’, sure, or 
Sally wouldn’t hev sent word like that.” 
And he gave the horse a cut with the whip, 
and the old wagon rattled over the stony 
road, crossed the road, and was pulled up 
with a jerk at his sister’s door. 
Jonas entered. “ What’s up, Sally ?” 
“ Why, Jonas, how scared you look; what’s 
the matter ?” 
“Matter enough, Sally; sending such a 
message as that. What do you want ?” 
“Read that, Jonas.” 
And Jonas took the letter; his chin fell and 
his hand trembled and he sank into a chair 
and looked at his sister in a dazed and helpless 
way.” 
“Why it won’t bite you, Jonas; read it 
quick. 1 want to seal it and put it back agen. 
It’s about Barley Merritt.” 
“ Barley Merritt,” gasped Jonas. “ Barley 
—Cousin Barley—has he found”— 
“Oh! read the letter and you’ll know all 
about it. Barley’s as good as dead and out of 
your way; that’s all.” 
Jonas sprang to his feet with a bound. 
“You don’t say so, Sally. Barley dead! 
Thank the Lord for that.” And Jonas sat 
down again and read the letter to the end and 
looked at his sister but said nothing. 
“ Well, Jonas, what do you think of it ?” 
“ Burn it, Sally. If this gets out and Pa¬ 
tience hears of it it’s all up, and my cake’s 
dough; that’s what I think of it." 
“Jonas, you’re a fool. A born fool. I’ll 
fix it. Give me the letter. I'm not goin’ to 
get rnyself in no scrape bnrnin’ letters, nor 
takin’ money out of ’em. I’m not a fool, 
Jonas, if you are. Now I tell you what to do. 
You write to Sam right away, and tell him to 
send word that Barley’s run away among the 
Indians with a squaw and got married to her. 
Folks ’ll believe that sooner than this, and you 
can show Sam’s letter and that’ll fix it or my 
name’s not Sally Pratt.” 
“Well, Sally, you’re no fool, anyhow; 
you’re a credit to the family, if I alnt. I’ll do 
it right away.” 
And that very evening tbe plot was set 
agoing, and Jabez’s letter was quietly put 
away in a pigeon hole in the expectation that 
it would not be called for for some time; and 
a letter addressed to Samuel Pratt, Esq., Iron- 
burg, Michigan, was sent away in the even¬ 
ing’s mail which went down upon the New 
York milk train. 
The letter reached its destination in due 
course aud it was not at all difficult to set a 
rumor on foot of this kiud where Barley Mer¬ 
ritt's prolonged absence had not yet been ac¬ 
counted for. Some search had been made for 
him after his disappearance but it was soon 
abandoned, as not the slightest indication had 
been discovered as to where he had gone when 
he left the camp. The general opinion had con¬ 
curred in believing that he had been billed in 
the violent storm that had made such havoc 
in the woods that passing through tbe tangled 
windfalls was almost impossible. This fact, 
too, prevented anything like an effective 
search, as all the trails were obliterated by the j 
storm. A few words dropped casually here 
and there soon started a report that an Indian 
who had come in with furs had said that a 
white man was with them and hunting and 
trapping, and living with one of the squaws 
on the Escanaba River. Of course every one 
was sure this was the missing man, and his 
previous steady character weighed notbiug 
with the gossips who spread the news very 
fast uutil every pei-son in Ironburg and the 
other mining villages accepted this as the 
solution of the mystery. As there were sev¬ 
eral persons in the vicinity who had lived in 
the Housatonic Valley and had worked in the 
iron furnaces there, the news very soon 
reached that locality, and the local newspaper 
got hold of the news and gave it wider circu¬ 
lation in an item headed “ A Strange Dis¬ 
appearance Accounted for—A White 
Man Lives with the Indians and Marries 
A Squaw. ” These headlines displayed in large 
type over a paragraph giviug a full and par¬ 
ticular account, enlarged and exaggerated by 
gossip and rumor, made a startling sensation 
iD the neighborhood of Stony Brook farm and 
round about the neighboring locality, and 
seemed to fully corroborate the story which 
Sally Pratt had been industriously circulating 
as a peculiarly rich piece of gossip, and which 
she had first of all carried directly to Patience 
Bartlett and Mrs. Merritt, bringing conster¬ 
nation and dismay to those sorely tried 
women.—[To be continued.] 
-»-*-♦-- 
THE LOVE OF THE BEAUTIFUL. 
The expression “aesthetics” is applied to 
the theory and philosophy of taste, and com¬ 
prises the science of the beautiful in nature 
and art. Taste has varied according to the 
degree of culture existing among nations at 
different times aDd has manifested itsolf in 
the forms of their architecture, in sculpture in 
painting and minor art-work. Art in the 
widest and highest sense of the word was 
most fully developed in ancient Greece and 
her colonies, where it pervaded public and 
private life. During the Middle Ages, it 
found an asylum in the church but did not 
any longer influence the world in a promi¬ 
nent degree. A revival took place during the 
Rennaisance period in the fifteenth aud six¬ 
teenth centuries, when aid again was made 
popular in all its branches and brought with¬ 
in the perception of both rich and poor. 
Dress and personal ornament, furniture, and 
every kind of household goods came under 
its rule and sway; aud every one strove to be 
surrounded with articles of taste and grace. 
The cut we show is a copy of a picture by one 
of the old masters and is a home scene of the 
sixteenth century, showing the graceful fig¬ 
ure of a Roman lady, employed in painting 
a lily upon an article of pottery. 
In these later days of the nineteenth cen¬ 
tury, the word aesthetic has become very fa¬ 
miliar; and still retains its original meaning 
“ the love of the beautiful.” To be sure tastes 
differ yet there are rules that can govern 
taste, and this is what we are to learn. How 
many of us can recall as we go back in mem¬ 
ory to our country homes, the looks of the 
tall stately sunflower, that grew in the front 
door yard, where the family seldom passed 
excepting Sundays, on the way to church, 
and the legend, we also remember which is 
that they are the flower to greet the morning 
sun and after following her in her course 
across the heavens all day with their faces up¬ 
turned, are the last to bid her good-night. 
But they were so large and ungainly that no 
one ever thought of gathering them into bou¬ 
quets, or of putting them beside marigolds, 
asters or phlox bb we arranged these in vases; 
nor of wearing them as an ornament. Now 
we see that they are among the first to be 
admired by the aesthetics of to-day, and we are 
told it is because they represent strength. Well, 
these-old-fashioned sunflowers never expected 
to be so honored ; when the only spot they 
were allowed to grow in was the door yards 
of good honest farmers, who it seems, were 
surrounding themselves with the beautiful 
according to the opinion of the most cultiva¬ 
ted in esthetics, and entirely ignorant them¬ 
selves of this fact. 
The lily, the most beautiful of all flowers, 
in its queenliness and purity, is another em¬ 
blem used by these “lovers of the beautiful;” 
and while one may be disposed to question as 
a matter of taste, the admiration of the sun 
flower, all acquiesce in doing homage to the 
lily. And it has come to pass that our art 
schools, work into almost every design one of 
these two flowers; no lady of fashion would 
dare purchase an article of fancy work, unless 
these flowers formed a part of the design, lest 
6 be should be considered unappreciative; or 
worse than this “ out of style”, which to one 
moving in the upper circles, is equal to being 
ostracized. 
conducted by suss ray chare. 
HARVEST WORK IN THE FARM 
HOUSE. 
The season of “seed time and harvest” is 
promised us, and the farmer can look over his 
fields of waving grain, hiR well laden 
meadows, and realize the promise fulfilled. 
The most important thought of tbe farmer 
is how to take the best care of this bountiful 
harvest God has given him. The weather 
has not been the most favorable; laborers 
scarce and wages high. He must exercise un¬ 
usual care and forethought. 
One half hour’s planniug and careful con¬ 
sideration in the morning after family prayer 
has been offered, in which the direction of the 
loving Father, who has promised to guide us, 
has been asked for, success is almost sure. In 
the care and anxiety that will come, do not 
forget your wives, nor that the increase of 
labor in the harvest field reaches the farm¬ 
house. 
You expect a nicer table than is usually 
set for just you rown family; more dishes are 
looked for, and as much greater quantity pre¬ 
pared, as there are extra mouths to feed—and 
how hungry men are who work in the field 1 
So while tbe necessities increase at home, 
do not forget that help is needed there too. 
See that the wood pile is large enough to 
meet the demands that will be made upon it; 
and that there is some one to Bhell peas, string 
beans, wash the dishes, and take steps for 
your wife: do not think she can go through 
with the harvest work of home without help. 
She may have a fretful baby, who is affected 
by the over-heated, over-worked mother, and 
the fretfulness is thereby increased, adding 
more care and using up more vitality than 
you. as a husband, can ever know, for these 
precious little ones are a constant draught 
upon the mother’s strength. 
Y our wife is as desirous for success as you 
can be; she has as much interest in results as 
you have. She may go on uncomplainingly, 
managing as best she may with little help; 
but by and by, after a few years of overwork, 
the old smile of her youth seldom is seen on 
her once bright face, and you come in tired, 
aud sometimes cross, needing a little cheer¬ 
fulness from some source to lift you out of 
the weariness of the day’s work and care. 
Then you begin to long for the old loved 
smile, and wonder why vour wife has grown 
so old; why Jennie Graves, who is just the 
same age, is as bright and good company as 
ever. Of course, because Jennie Graves has 
had good help ail ber married life, which gave 
her time to get “ fixed up” a little when her 
husband got through his day’s work and 
came in at night to tea; thin they could sit 
down and enjoy a social chat together, she 
being fresh and ready to listen to his account 
of the day’s labor. This drew their lives 
closer together, not allowing a premature old 
age to creep in and separate them, or con¬ 
trasts to be made between his wife and any 
one’s else. 
Give your wife the needed help all the year; 
greet her with the same cheery voice used be¬ 
fore she was your wife; do not allow her to 
long for auy of the early affection shown her; 
take the baby often from her tired arms; and 
we guarantee the result will be a cheating of 
Old Father Time out of the eurly care-lines 
he likes to make before he has a right to; a 
fresh rose color on tho cheeks; a Bweet tone to 
the voice; a happy spirit, and always many 
evidences of love. There is no reason why a 
farmer’s wife should not be the most attrac¬ 
tive of women, and wo hope that farmers will 
give their wives every possible chance of their 
becoming so. 
- ■ — 
NOTES FROM THE “FARMERS WIVES 
CLUB.” 
There is one thing said little Mrs. Grice 
that I should like to say which is, that women 
especially those who do their own work, 
should make the most of Sunday. I feel as if 
I should not have been alive if I had not in 
my early married life used all the head work 
I could to get my work out of the way so that 
I could attend church once at least Sunday 
during the pleasant weather. I have started 
for church many times when I felt tired 
enough to go to bed, but I found that the 
fresh air was invigorating and the long ride 
to town rested me more than sitting down 
with all my housekeeping utensils in sight. 
And often the change from the bustle and 
hurry of a large farm and family to the 
church with the music and the services, 
seemed to me like a brief visit to a better land 
so that the common place greetings of my ac¬ 
quaintances at the door used to sometimes 
jar like an intrusion on something sacred; aud 
however hard my week’s work had been or 
was going to be 1 felt as if I had been repaid 
for my efforts. I often thought what a for¬ 
tunate thing it was that two of my boys and 
two of my girls were so nearly of a size that 
I had only one good suit and took them by 
turns, which saved me extra sewing, quite an 
object with growing children and it answered 
every purpose. 
Where there is a dairy farm even if it is a 
small one, early rising on Sunday is neces¬ 
sary to bring every thing in order to be in 
time for church but with good management 
it may be done. Many little preparations 
may lie made on Saturday evening which will 
give more leisure and quiet in tbe morning. 
Another thing is, with hard-working women, 
that if you go to church regularly your own 
apparel is much more likely to be presentable, 
and it will bo iu the end less trouble. 1 knew 
a woman aud there are mauy such who told 
me that when she had three small children she 
used to be so tired with her round of daily 
work and the care of them, that she got be¬ 
hind with her own clothes, so that if there 
was a funeral in the neighborhood she had a 
world of trouble getting this and that ready to 
wear, so that she could go without feeling 
ashamed of her appearance. Dorinda. 
- ♦ - 
GOING TO THE CITY. 
“To go and live in the city” is the great 
ambition of many country girls plodding 
Pottery Decoration.— Fig. 286. 
