Samantha at Saratoga [44]
straw ticks. I jest took mine out in a quiet way, and throwed 'em to one side. The rest on 'em, I see, and it wuz real good in 'em, drinked through 'em, as we used to at school. It wuz real good in Druzilla, and Ezra, and also in the Deacon. It kinder ondeared the hull on 'em to me. I hope this won't be told of, it orto be kep -- for he wuz a goodnatured lookin' hired man, black, but not to blame for that -- and good land! what is a straw? -- anyway they wuz clean. There wuz some tents sot up there in the back yard, lookin' some as I s'pose our old 4 fathers tents did, in the pleasant summer times of old. And I asked a bystander a standin' by, whose tents they wuz, and he said they wuz Free Thinkers havin' a convention. And I says, "How free?" And he said "they wuz great cases to doubt everything, they doubted whether they wuz or not, and if they wuz or when, and if so, why?" And he says, "won't you stay to-night over and attend the meetin'?" And I says, "What are they goin' to teach tonight?" And he says, "The Whyness of the What" I says, "I guess that is too deep a subject for me to tackle," and says I, "Don't they believe anything easier than that?" And he says, "They don't believe anything. That is their belief -- to believe nothin'." "Nothin'!" says I. "Yes," says he, "Nothin'." And, says he, "to-morrer they are goin' to prove beyond any question, that there haint any God, nor anything, and never wuz anything." "Be they?" sez I. "Yes," says he, "and won't you come and be convinced?" I looked off onto the peaceful waters, onto the hills that lay as the mountains did about Jerusalem, onto the pillow of fire that seemed to hold in it the flames of that light that had lighted the old world onto the mornin' of the new day, -- and one star had come out, and stood tremblin' over the brow of the mountain and I thought of that star that had riz so long time ago, and had guided the three wise men, guided 'em jest alike from their three different homes, entirely unbeknown to each other, guidin' 'em to the cradle where lay the infant Redeemer of the world, so long foretold by bard and prophet. I looked out onto the heavenly glory of the day, and then inside into my heart, that held a faith jest as bright and undyin' as the light of that star -- and I says, "No, I guess I won't go and be convinced." Wall, we riz up to go most immediately afterwerds, and the Deacon (he is very smart) observed: "How highly tickled and even highlarious the man seemed in talkin' about there not bein' any future." And he says, "It wuz a good deal like a man laughin' and clappin' his hands to see his house burn down" And I sez, "it wuz far wurse, for his home wouldn't stand more'n a 100 years or so, and this home he wuz a tryin' to destroy, wuz one that would last through eternity." "But," says I, "it hain't built by hands, and I guess their hands hain't strong enough to tear it down, nor high enough to set fire to it." And the Deacon says, "Jest so, Miss Allen, you spoke truthfully, and eloquent." (The Deacon is very smart.) When we got into the buggy to start, the Deacon says, "I would like to resoom the conversation with you, Josiah Allen's wife, a goin' back." And Druzilla spoke right out and says, "I will set on the front seat by Ezra." I says, "Oh no, Druzilla, I can hear the Deacon from where I sot before." But the Deacon says, Talkin' loud towards night always offected his voice onpleasantly, mebby Druzilla and he had better change seats. Again I demurred. And then Druzilla said she must set by Ezra, she wanted to tell him sumthin' in confidence. And so it wuz arraigned, for I felt that I wuz not the one to come between pardners, no indeed. The road laid peacefuller and beautifuller than ever, or so it seemed under the sunset glory that sort o' hung round it. Jest about half way through the woods we met the English girl, a stridin' along alone, each step more'n 3 feet long, or so it seemed to me. There wuz a look of health, and happy determination on her forwerd as she strided rapidly by. I would have fain questioned her concernin'