"
Then Southern Mary and her husband laughed, not in derision, for they
admired Aunt Hildy, and Mr. Waterman said:
"If men had your backbone, Mrs. Patten, there would be a different state
of things altogether."
"My husband is almost an Abolitionist," said Mary. "Some of our people
dislike him greatly; but my father is a good man and he does not
illtreat one of his people. He is one of the exceptional cases. But the
system is, I know, accursed by God. I believe it to be a huge scale that
fell from the serpent's back in the Garden, and I feel the day will dawn
when the accursed presence of slavery will be no longer known."
"Good!" said Aunt Hildy, "and there's more kinds than one. Them little
children is slaves--or was."
"When you get ready to make out your pension papers, Mrs. Patten," said
Mary, "let me help jest a little; I would like to lay a corner-stone
somewhere in this village for some one's benefit. You know this is the
site of a drama in my life; I pray never to enact its like again."
"I'll give you a chance," said Aunt Hildy.
Louis went over to Jane's in the morning, and the boys returned with him
to tell us what a good supper and breakfast they had had.
"And such a nice bed," added Burton. "When we looked out of the window
this morning I wished mother could come."
"Poor little soul!" I said, "your mother shall come. We will move every
obstacle from her path."
"If father could find work here it would be nice," and a little while
after, he said in a low tone:
"There ain't any rum shops here, is there?"
He was a tender plant, touchingly sensitive, and when I told him we were
to send word to his mother that he liked his home, his joy was a
pleasure to witness.
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