They're
powerful strict, and think it a mortal sin to touch a card or read a
play. My own folks were what they called black-mouthed Prosbytarians,
from the north of Ireland, but aijewcation made me liberal-minded. It
never had that effect on the mistress, although her own taycher was an
old Scotch wife that spent her time tayching the childer Scott, and
Pollok's 'Course of Time,' and old Scotch ballads like that Packman one
she was reciting to your friend. Now, I larnt my boys and gyurls, when I
was school tayching, some pieces of Shakespeare, and got them to declaim
at the school exhibitions before the holidays. I minded some of them
after I was married, and, one day when it was raining hard, I declaimed
a lovely piece before Persis, that's the mistress' name, when the woman
began to cry, and fell on her knees by the old settle, and prayed like a
born praycher. She thought I had gone out of my mind; so, after that, I
had to keep Shakespeare to myself. Sometimes I've seen Tryphosa take up
the book and read a bit, but Rufus, that's the baby, is just like his
mother--he'll neither play a card, nor read a play, nor smoke, nor tell
lies.
Pages:
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166