on."

It will be remembered that Sally was now a married woman--"Mrs.
Michael Welsh;" consequently, mother, who lived with her instead of
her living with mother, did not presume to interfere with her much,
though she hinted pretty strongly that she "always liked to see people
mind their own affairs." But Sally was incorrigible. The dinner dishes
were washed with a whew, I was coaxed into sweeping the back
room--which I did, leaving the dirt under the broom behind the
door--while Mrs. Welsh, donning a pink calico, blue shawl, and bonnet
trimmed with dark green, started off on her prying excursion,
stopping by the roadside where Mike was making fence, and keeping him,
as grandma said, "full half an hour by the clock from his work."

Not long after Sally's departure a handsome carriage, drawn by two
fine bay horses, passed our house; and as the windows were down we
could plainly discern a pale, delicate-looking lady, wrapped in
shawls, a tall, stylish-looking girl, another one about my own age and
two beautiful little boys.

"That's the Gilberts, I know," said Anna. "Oh I'm so glad Sally's
gone, for now we shall have the full particulars;" and again we waited
as impatiently for Sally's return as we had once done before for
grandma.

At last, to our great relief, the green ribbons and blue shawl were
descried in the distance, and ere long Sally was with us, ejaculating,
"Oh, my--mercy me!" etc., thus giving us an inkling of what was to
follow. "Of all the sights that ever I have seen," said she, folding
up the blue shawl, and smoothing down the pink calico. "There's
carpeting enough to cover every crack and crevice--all pure bristles,
too!"

Here I tittered, whereupon Sally angrily retorted, that "she guessed
she knew how to talk proper, if she hadn't studied grarmar."

"Never mind," said Anna, "go on; brussels carpeting and what else?"

"Mercy knows what else," answered Sally. "I can't begin to guess the
names of half the things. There's mahogany, rosewood, and marble
fixin's--and in Miss Gilbert's room there's lace curtains and silk
damson ones--"

A look from Anna restrained me this time, and Sally continued.

"Mercy Jenkins is there, helpin', and she says Mr. Gilbert told 'em,
his wife never et a piece of salt pork in her life, and knew no more
how bread was made than a child two years old."

"What a simple critter she must be," said grandma, while Anna asked
if she saw Mrs. Gilbert, and if that tall girl w