A Little Girl of Long Ago; Or, Hannah Ann: A Sequel to a Little Girl in Old New YorkDouglas, Amanda M.
History
A Little Girl of Long Ago; Or, Hannah Ann: A Sequel to a Little Girl in Old New York
Douglas, Amanda M.
New York (N.Y.) -- History -- 1775-1865 -- Fiction
"Well," said Famie, slowly, "there's my snowball tablecloth and two
towels. 'Rastus's wife won't ever care for them with her fine Paris
things. But we won't give away the silver, nor the old pewter flagon,
nor the basin and cups. They've the crown mark on them, 1710 for a date.
Deary me, they'll outlast us," and she sighed also.
Roseann agreed. Six sheets and pillow-cases, three tablecloths and
half-a-dozen towels, and two blankets, one spun and woven by their own
mother. The initials and date were marked on them in old-fashioned
cross-stitch, which was a little more ornate than regular
sampler-stitch.
Aunt Hetty's blanket had been made from the wool of an especial cosset
lamb that had lost its mother and been brought up by hand. The little
girl was very much interested.
"Did it follow her about?" she asked.
"Dear sakes!" and Aunt Famie laughed. "I just guess it did. It grew very
troublesome, I've heard tell, and was quite quality, always wanting to
come into the sitting-room. And it would curl down at Aunt Hetty's feet
like a dog. She saved the wool every year, and spun it, and laid it away
until she had enough. But I don't believe it went to school, although
it could spell one word."
"One word!" cried the little girl, in amaze. "What was that?"
"Why b-a ba, of course. They said it could spell through the whole
lesson, and I don't see why not. I've heard lambs make a dozen different
sounds."
The little girl laughed. She was very fond of listening to what Aunt
Famie did when she was little; and they went to call upon some curious
old people who kept to the Dutch ways and wore the old costume. Some of
them had wooden clogs for rainy weather. When they talked real Dutch,
Hanny found it was quite different from German. They had a picture of
some old ancestor's house with the windmill in the front yard.
The drives about were beautiful then, and so many places had queer old
legends. Dr. Hoffman was very much interested, and it seemed to Hanny as
if she had strayed over into Holland. She resolved when she went home to
ask Ben to get her a history of Holland, so she and her father might
read it together. Her mother never had any time.
Margaret was much surprised at her gifts, and thanked the cousins with
warmest gratitude. Even Grandmother Van Kortlandt had hinted "that she
wasn't going to save up everything for Haneran." But the elder people in
those days were fond of holding on to their possessions until the very
last.
Uncle David came up for them and took them to White Plains, where they
had a nice visit; and grandmother selected some articles from her store
for the prospective bride.
Hanny remembered what Cousin Archer had said about the mittens, and
asked Uncle David. He found his hook, and, sure enough, it was something
like a crochet-needle. He took what the little girls called single
stitch. But he admitted that Hanny's pretty edgings and tidies were
quite wonderful.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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