f sore over Elijah's talkin' of his mother's nestin'
when all the town knows how much he wishes as Lucy'd settle down and
nest awhile instead of keepin' 'em all so everlastin'ly churned up. Mrs.
Macy told me this mornin' as Lucy's whitewashin' the garret this week;
she see the brush goin' 'round an' 'round the window on her side--she
says it makes her bones ache just to live next door to Lucy's ways. She
says they're so different from Gran'ma Mullins' ways. Gran'ma Mullins
had n't had no whitewashin' done in twenty years--not since she rented
the cottage of father. That's true an' I know it's true too because
she's been askin' an' askin' me to have it done an' I said not by no
means--so she's left off."

"Did--?" asked Mrs. Lathrop.

"The Jilkinses is real mad over the paper, too," Susan continued. "Seems
as Elijah went an' called 'em the 'Chirpy Cherry Ponders,' an' Mrs.
Jilkins says where he got the idea as either of 'em ever chirped in
their lives she cannot conceive, for Mr. Jilkins ain't so much as peeped
a good part of the time since they were married an' she says as for
being chirpy, _she_ looks upon the word as city slang. But Judge Fitch
is about the maddest of all! I did n't read what Elijah said about him
but every one else did, an' he says he was willin' to run for congress
for the good of his country, but to put him up in a editorial as says
he'll be proud to come back from Washington as poor as he goes there, is
a very poor way to put heart into any man's contest. He says if he's got
to come back from Washington as poor as he goes he can't see no good an'
sufficient reason for goin' a _tall_, for he won't gain nothin' an' will
be out his car fare there an' back. He says he never heard of no one
comin' back from Washington as poor as they went before, an' it was a
thing as he supposed could n't be done till he found Elijah had booked
him to do it. He says if that's what he's to up an' teach his country,
he don't thank Elijah for advertisin' him as any such novelty an' he
says he won't go to congress on any such terms--not while he knows
himself. Mr. Kimball told me as he spoke to Elijah about it yesterday,
an' Elijah said to him as it would be a strong plank for Judge Fitch to
stand on in the middle of his platform, but Judge Fitch told Mr. Kimball
as he could just tell his nephew frank an' open as that one plank in his
platform had better be weak an' he'd take care to remember to step over
it every time.