ed my companion, or tried to--sez I,
"Arvilly, men are _jest_ as good as wimmen and no better, not a mite
better."

And Arvilly didn't like it, but I made it up to her in other ways. I
gin her some lamb's wool yarn for a pair of stockin's most immegictly
afterwerds, and a half bushel of but'nuts. She is dretful fond of
but'nuts.

[Illustration: "OLD MISS BALCH."]

Wall, Sister Shelmadine had sold ten pounds of maple sugar, and brought
the worth on it.

And Sister Henzy brung four dollars and a half, her husband had gin her
for another purpose, but she took it for this, and thought there wuzn't
no harm in it, as she laid out to go without the four dollars and a
halt's worth. It was fine shoes he had gin the money for, and she
calculated to make the old ones do.

And Sister Henzy's mother, old Miss Balch, she is eighty-three years
old, and has inflamatery rheumatiz in her hands, which makes 'em all
swelled up and painful. But Sister Henzy said her mother had knit three
pairs of fringed mittens (the hardest work for her hands she could have
laid holt of, and which must have hurt her fearful). But Miss Henzy said
a neighbor had offered her five dollars fer the three pairs, and so she
felt it wuz her duty to knit 'em, to help the fair along. She is a very
strong Methodist, and loved to forwerd the interests of Zion.

She wuz goin' to give every cent of the money to the meetin' house, so
Sister Henzy said, all but ten cents, that she _had_ to have to get
Pond's Extract with, to bathe her hands. They wuz in a fearful state. We
all felt bad for old Miss Balch, and I don't believe there wuz a woman
there but what gin her some different receipt fer helpin' her hands,
besides sympathy, lots and lots of it, and pity.

Wall, Sister Sypher'ses husband is clost, very clost with her. She don't
have anythin' to give, only her labor, as well off as they be. And now
he wuz so wrapped up in that buzz saw mill business that she wouldn't
have dasted to approach him any way, that is, to ask him for a cent.

Wall, what should that good little creeter do but gin all the money she
had earned and saved durin' the past year or two, and had laid by for
emergincies or bunnets.

She had got over two dollars and seventy-five cents, which she handed
right over to the treasurer of the fair to get materials for fancy work.
When they wuz got she proposed to knit three pairs of men's socks out
of zephyr woosted, and she said she was goin' to try