A Little Girl in Old New York

et out once

Here's Margaret spending her time drumming on the piano and studying French and what not. I dare s

other," he returned with a dry

y rushed on that way! Why don't some of you smart men who have plenty of

eeping machine, I think. And y

iron and steel sewing-woman and was puzzling his brains day a

ing this very minute, but she's fussing over those drawings of John's. I've such

And if you would just go out a bit now and t

and Miss Weir told me of a girl who would be glad to come and sew for fifty cents a day. I think I'll have her a few day

ed him. Stephen had insisted some one must come in and help sew, and that his mother must have a little time for herself. Seven men and

e elders could guess where he had gone. Business was dull along in August, so the men had some time for diversion, and the father always en

es, the wild masses of vines and sumac, and then stretches of rocky space interspersed with squatters' cabins and the goats, pigs, geese, and chicke

to Mr. Brockn

so much about your little girl, and threatened to hunt her up. And now she's gon

two small windows in the gable ends, but in front the eaves overhung the doorway and the windows and were broken and moss-grown. There was a big flat stone for the doorstep, a room on one side with two windows, and on the other only one. The hall door was divided in t

had evidently fallen into a doze. Hanny stretched up on tiptoe. A great gray cat lay asleep also. There were some mats laid about the floor, two ve

e a queer sound like a gentle call, then went to the old lady and stretched up to

a Miss Underhill,"

ve I had fallen asleep. Miss Underhill?" in a sort of

arm-chairs and gave her fo

e heard of you some time ago, but I have been much occupied wi

think some here-about, but we lost sight of them long ago. We really have n

er skin. Her gown was gray, and she wore a white kerchief crossed on her bosom like

antecedents, and his removal to the city,-th

of Harlem Heights, and my only brother was taken prisoner. The Ferrises, my mother's people, owned a great farm here-about. But much of it was laid waste, and a little later the old

by her. She reached over and

ttle girl in the Revolutionary War?"

she gave a faded little smile. "I

e past eight,

ins, and General Howe pushed forward through McGowan's Pass, the rocky gorge over yonder. But our men forced them into the cleared field, and if it had not been for a troop of Hessians they would have driven the British off the field. But

on the wrinkled hand. What if she had been alive then!-

great many people believed the rebels all wrong and said they never could win. M

d to win, did you?" inquire

he was taken sick and died before we knew he was really ill. Then our house burned down. Mother thought it was set on fire. Oh, my child, such quantities of things as were in it! My mother had never gone away from the old house because grandmother was a widow. Then the land was divided, an

istening wide-eyed, a

st everybody has forgotten us. You might like to see sister Jane, though sh

alone here?" Mr

k and looks after our garden, and sleeps here at night. The doctor thought it wasn't safe to be left here alone with sister Jane. It made it easy for

ves, that is, no one to

o war. And after father's death mother felt a good deal that way. They dropped us out, and we never took any pains to

er and stouter, and the little girl thought her the oldest-looking person she had ever seen. Her cap was all awry, he

, seated her, and introd

ois," she exclaimed in a whining, tremu

sed, and went for a plate of bre

r old parlor," she said to he

ther with a big curly white wig coming down over his shoulders, and several ladies whose attire seemed very queer indeed. There was a black sofa studded with brass nails that shone as if they had been lately polished, a tall desk and bookcase going up to the ceiling, brass and silver candlesticks and snuffers' tray, as well as a bri

girl inspecting it. "That's a harp. Young ladies played on it when we were young

arp were very vague, but she thought it was something you

to be

the ang

upon my

within

e of this c

you play on i

, but it was considered more graceful t

gs. A few emitted a doleful s

mmittee of some kind came and bought them. We needed the money sadly, and we had no one to leave them to when we died. There was some beautiful old china, and a lady bought the fan and handkerchief that my grand

bits of talk Mr. Underhill had learned by indirect questioning that they had parted with their land by deg

had to repeat everything, and she seemed to forget the moment a thing

hand of Miss Lois as he said good-by. "Get s

ears stood in her eyes. "Come again and bring yo

was still there, and at its foot was one of the first bat

by some Hessian troops. They didn't seem very fortunate at first, for they were beaten again. Grandmother can tell you a good deal about that. A

ked amazed. Did he

like the flood and the selling of Jos

s about as old

wful old, but the other lady

. It's very sad to lose yo

after much consideration. She didn't s

returned, with an earnest p

g plans on the dining-room table. He had found a place to work at house-building and was studying architecture and draughting. A man had come in to see her father, so she was left quite alone. The Deans and several of t

garet went up to White Plains, as

dmother considered her wonderful also. She wasn't so much in favor of short frocks and pantalets that came down to your ankles, but the little girl did look pretty in them. And when she found how neatly she could hemstitch

out quite a pile. Aunt Eunice lighted upon some beautiful green calico. I was upon a stand whethe

t begun to sing "The

n old-fashioned little thing one can hardly

say?-wrong or bad seemed too forc

sweet and cunning, Hannah Ann, and

he breath out of the little gir

t had taken three years to go there and come back. And the beautiful India shawl it had taken seven years to make, and the Persian silk gown that had been bought of some great chief or Mogul-grandmother wasn't quite sure, but she thought they had a king or emperor in thos

y fight about

emselves. They thought a king, thousands of miles away, couldn't know what was best for them. And England sent over things and we had to pay for them whether we wanted them or not. And

a country, but her mind is quite chaotic on the subject.

hey went round the battlefield, but sixty years of peace had made great changes, and the next fifty years was to see a beautiful town and many-storied palaces all about. She dippe

the little girl. She thought she would try and come down when the fall work was done, and she gave

about with her face tied up. She said there was no place like Yonkers, after all. Retty seemed happy and jolly, but there was a new

ed themselves hoarse with joy when school closed, made the street and the playground ring with delight again. If they were

umbia, ha

oes, heaven

d bled in fre

patriots was being raised for some future e

, and liked her very well indeed. So the little g

artificial flowers in a factory down-town, and two sons. The eldest one was connected with a newspaper, and was in quite poor health. His wife, the little girl's mother, had been dead some years. The child was rather pale and thin, with la

r children and not sit around nursing the cat. But Ophelia, that's my daughter who teaches down-town, where we

their stoop. Nora never uttered a word, but looked as if she would cry the next moment. Mrs. Craven to

f the back parlor, which was used as a recitation-room for the older class. There were about twenty little girls, no

they sewed and embroidered and did worsted work. There was quite a rage about this. One girl had a large piece in a frame-"Joseph Sold by his Brethren." Hanny never tired of the beautiful blue and red and orange costumes. Another girl was working a chair seat. And still another

nce like a fairy. Her education was a curious conglomeration. She could read and declaim, but spelling was quite beyond her, and her attempts at it made a