Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Vol. XVI., December, 1880.Various
History
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Vol. XVI., December, 1880.
Various
Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Science -- Periodicals
Mrs. King took heart, folded her arms, and thus applied herself to the
setting forth of her humane exertions: "In comes Mistress Magovern,
an', 'Mrs. King,' sez she, 'put rar bafesteak to the choild's oye;' an'
that minit, ma'am, the rar bafesteak wint to it. Thin comes Mrs. Haley.
'Is it rar bafesteak ye'd be putting to it, Mrs. King?' sez she. 'Biling
clothes, Mrs. King,' sez she. That minit, ma'am, the rar bafesteak come
afif an' the biling clothes wint to it. In comes Mrs. Quinlan. 'Will ye
be destryin' the choild's oye intirely, Mrs. King?' sez she. 'Cowld ice,
Mrs. King.' An' that minit, ma'am, the biling clothes come aff an' the
cowld ice wint to it. Oh, I do be doin' iverything anybody do tell me."
It was a memorable sight to see the Gunning twins wandering down The
Lane hand in hand when their maternal relative had gone out washing for
the day and taken the door-key with her. "Thim lads is big enough to
take care of thimsilves," she would remark, though "the lads" were not
yet capable of coherent speech. No doubt they wandered into some
neighbor's at meal-time and received a willingly-given potato or a drink
of milk. They seemed happy enough, and their funny, ugly little faces
were defaced by no tears. They grew in time old enough to explain their
position to inquiring passers-by and to pick up and eat an amazing
quantity of green apples. A lady passing one day stopped and
remonstrated with one of them. "Barney," she said, "it will make you ill
if you eat those green apples."--"I do be always atin' of them, ma'am,"
replied Barney, stolidly.
Perhaps it may have been the green apples, but from whatever cause
Barney fell ill, and all that the doctor prescribed made him no better.
"It's no matther, stir," said Mrs. Gunning one morning: "yer needn't
come ag'in. I'll just go an' ask Mrs. ------" (my mother).
The next morning the doctor, meeting my mother, laughingly remarked
that it was very plain that they couldn't practise in the same
district: he had just met Mrs. Gunning, who informed him that "what
Mrs. ------ gave her the night befoor done the choild a power of good."
The day preceding our departure from the place my sister and I passed
through The Lane, and received the most amiable farewells, accompanied
with blessings, and even tears. The figure I best remember is that of
Mrs. Regan, who, bursting out from her doorway, stood in our path, and,
dissolving in tears, sobbed out, "Faith, I'm sorry yez be goin'. I don't
know what I'll do at all widout yez;" and, seizing my sister's hand,
gave her this unique recommendation: "Ye were always passing by
mannerly--niver sassy nor impidint, nor nothing."
The Lane has changed to-day. A Chinese grocer has, I hear, set up a shop
in its midst. Some of its most noted characters have passed away, and
the younger generation have taken on habits more American than those of
their predecessors.
M.R.O.
A CHILD'S AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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