Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 20, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 February 1875 — JUST AS THEY PLEASED. [ARTICLE]

JUST AS THEY PLEASED.

“ I wish I could do exactly as I please 'fill Out! whbtc day,”tmicHda to hor littlo sister Emma. “ Oh! that would be so splcudid for us both!” cried Emma, joyfully. “Let us go and ask mamma if we can.” The children ran into the garden where their mother was working with her flowers “ Mamma,” cried Ida, “we want to have this day for our own—and not mind anybody—and go where we want to and not ask you if we can.” “Why, my dear,” said her mother, puzzled at this strange request, “ are you tired of obeying me, or do you not have freedom enough that you are dissatisfied?” “ Oh, we are not dissatisfied, mamma! Only we thought it would be so nice to try for one day and see if we couldn’t take care of ourselves.” “Very well,” said the mother, “you and Emma have my permission to spend this day as you choose, and may tell me this evening how you enjoyed it.” Ida and Emma danced with delight, hardly knowing what to do first. There had always seemed to be so many prohibited pi* asures, and so many forbidden places to go; but now that liberty was granted them they could not decide how to spend the time different from other days. Presently Emma ran for her hat and her little spade, and began to dig in her garden. But she soon grew tired, for this she was permitted to do on ordinary days, and throwing her spade carelessly on the ground she pulled up some young radishes she chanced to see growing near by, and taking them into the house had a nice little luncheon all by herself. Emma ate a great many radishes—so many, in fact, that she felt exceedingly uncomfortable. Ho she sat down on the doorstep with her brow all wrinkled in pain—for she would not complain to any one on the day she could, do as she pleased —when Ida came in sight, dressed in her very best clothes. “ Why, Ida!” exclaimed Emma, “ what will mamma say? You know she never will let you wear your best dress to play in.” “ But we can do as we please to-day," replied Ida; “ besides, I am going to spend the day with Lizzie Lee. Don’t you want to go with me?” “ But that will not be doing as you please,” said Emma, “ because mamma gave you permission to go yesterday.” “ Will it not be doing as I please if I choose to go?” asked T da. “To he sure,” replied Emma, “ and I will g«, too, if you will wait a little while, or until I feel better again.” “ What is the matter?” asked Ida. “Oh, I ate some radishes, and you know they never did agree with little girls,” replied Emma, sorrowfully. “ I am very sorry for you,” said Ida, “ but 1 think, after all, that I would rather go alone, because it would seem more independent ; besides, it is a long walk, the sun is getting vefy warm, and you would have to dress yet.” —‘ Well,, go on, then,” said Emma, “ and I will come by and by.” Ida started on her way, walking carefully on the grass to keep the dust from soiling her light boots. It was, as she had said, a good walk to Lee’s, and there was a long hill to climb, too, before she reached the house. At the foot of the hill she thought it best to rest a moment before attempting the steep ascent. Sitting down, therefore, on the fresh, green gfass, she placed her parasol by her side, but neglected to close it; and a little breeze sprang suddenly up and carried it far down the slope.-" Ida was instantly on her feet, and gave chase. when the parasol was recovered, after a pursuit of some distance, she found the frail silk sadly torn, while it was otherwise badly damaged by the rough usage it had received. “ Ob, dear!” sighed Ida, “my pretty new parasol is spoiled, and I know r I can’t have another one this summer.” « With the desire to do “ as she pleased” a trifle abated by this mishap, she started once more up the bill. Pausing when she reached the top, out of breath, she happened to glance down and discovered an ugly rent in the side of her delicate kid boot. At this Ida felt tempted to retu-n home. But being now in sight of the house, and feeling very tired, she concluded to keep on, and stay a few minutes, if only to rest. Her ring at the door was answered by her friend Lizzie Lee, herself, who seemed delighted her. “’Why, Ida! How glad I am to see you!” she said. “Come light into the parlor here, where it is cool and pleasant. You must be tired after your long walk. I have been wishing you would come all the morning. And where is Emma? Why didn’t you bring her with you?” “She will be here presently,” said Ida, telling her of Emma's slight illness. When Ida was rested Lizzie proposed going out into the yard to swing. Ida was obliged to be so careful of her dress that half of her pleasure was destroyed. “ I ’wish you had worn some other dress,” said Lizzie, “ and then we could slide down the hay-stacks. It is such fun! But that dress of yours would be torn to pieces in no time at all.” “Ican turn up the skirt and pin it round my waist. Ido love to slide down bay!” said Ida, eagerly. No sooner said than done. The dress was soon fastened up with pins; and away ran the girls in great glee for the bay-stacks, ■ :■ ■ —

After a good many tumbles they at last reached the top of the highest stack, and first one, then the other, came sliding down, Bhouting and laughing. Ida became so excited in this play that she forgot all about her dress. The pins dropped out, down came the skirt, and no attention was paid to it until, heated, tired and out of breath, the two girls sat down on the hay to rest. Ida was then awakened to the disagreeable sense of “her misfortune by Lizzie’s exclaiming: “Oh, metcy, Ida, your dress is completely ruined! Why didn’t you keep it pinned up?” Ida very ruefully began to examine her finery. Her dress was, * iftdet-d, shockingly torn, crumpled and soiled; and with a very sober face she hastily descended the hay-stack, followed by Lizzie, who was loud in her expressions of sorrow and sympathy. “ What shall I do? I can never go through the streets in such ragged clothes,” said Ida, with tears in her eyes “ Stay here till it’s most dark,” said Lizzie, “ and wear one of my dresses.” Returning to the house, Ida’s dress was quickly changed for one of Lizzie’s, which was too large and too long for her; but as she had made up her mind to stay until nearly dark she decided that this was a matter of not much consequence. “ I wonder why Emma doesn’t come,” she had remarked several times during the afternoon; “I am afraid she grew worse alter I left her.” We will return to Emma and learn the reason why she did not join Ida and Lizzie Lee. After Ida went away she remained sitting on the door-step’ for some time; then, feeling a great deal better, she changed her dress and started with the intention of following her sister. But on her way she met a number of her young friends who w-ere going a-fishing, and who invited her to join them ; and this Emma did without much coaxing, telling of the permission granted her to do as she pleased all day long. On arriving at the river’s bank they selected a nice place under some willow trees, and fished for awhile; but not being successful they were soon ready to abandon this sport. ’ “ Let us walk on the raft,” was proposed by one of the party; for there was a great raft of logs near by, tied up to the shore. All joyfully assented to this proposition except Emma, and she remained quietly under the willow trees, dangling a fishing-rod in the water. “Come on, Emma! come on! This is fine fun!” shouted the boys and girls, as they clambered about on the rough logs that composed the raft. “ No, no, I cannot go with you,” said Emma, “ for mamma has forbidden me to play on the raft. ” “Oh, ho! I thought you could do as you chose to-day,” laughed her companions. “ I am doing as I choose —and I choose not to disobey my mother,” said Emma, stoutly. “ Let us go back and stay with Emma, if she can’t come with us,” they whispered among themselves^ So they all ran back to play again under the willow trees. And they made boats out of pieces of bark, and loading them with little pebbles let them float away down the stream. In this way they amused themselves until it was time to return home. “ Mamma,” saidEmpia, coming into the room where her mother was sitting, “ I have had a very pleasant day; hut when I do as I please it seems to be just as you would please; so I don’t think I will care to do just as I please any more.” Emma had forgotten all about the radishes, evidently. A few moments after Emma’s, return Ida entered the room. She looked very strange in the borrowed clothes of her friend. “Ida!” exclaimed her mother, in surprise. “ What is the matter? Whose clothes have you on?” “ Mamma,” said Ida, “I could think of nothing remarkable to do this morning to make this day different from other days but lo wear my white dress, my ligat boots, my best hat and my new parasol. And now I will never want to do as I please again, for my dress is torn to pieces, my parasol is spoiled and so are , my shoes; and I was obliged to borrow this dress of Lizzie Lee to come home.” “ But h4te you enjoyed yourself otherwise?” asked her mother. “ Oh, yes, mamma, very much, and I would have been: quite happy bad I only worn one of my plain, neat dresses and a pair of stout shoes.” . “In that case you would have shown better judgment, certainly,” said her mother. “ Ah, mamma, I find it is because you have better judgment than we that you require us to obey you every day!”* “ Undoubtedly, my dear Ida. But I regret the loss of your dress no longer, since you have learned, and seem to appreciate, a rather hard lesson in experience.” “ And after this, I think I will always prefer to do more as you please, and less as I please—at least until I too have good judgment and experience 1 like you, mamma,” said Ida.— Witch Hazel, in Prairie Farmer.