Produced by Juliet Sutherland, David Widger and PG Distributed Proofreaders SAMANTHA AMONG THE BRETHREN. By "Josiah Allen's Wife" (Marietta Holley) Part 7 CHAPTER XXVI. He wuz jest a-countin' out his money prior to puttin' it away in his tin box, and I laid the subject before him strong and eloquent, jest the wants and needs of the meetin' house, and jest how hard we female sisters wuz a-workin', and jest how much we needed some money to buy our ingregiencies with for the fair. He set still, a-countin' out his money, but I know he heard me. There wuz four fifty dollar bills, a ten, and a five, and I felt that at the very least calculation he would hand me out the ten or the five, and mebby both on 'em. But he laid 'em careful in the box, and then pulled out his old pocket-book out of his pocket, and handed me a ten cent piece. [Illustration: "HANDED ME A TEN CENT PIECE."] I wuz mad. And I hain't a-goin' to deny that we had some words. Or at least I said some words to him, and gin him a middlin' clear idee of how I felt on the subject. Why, the colt wuz more mine than his in the first place, and I didn't want a cent of money for myself, but only wanted it for the good of the Methodist meetin' house, which he ort to be full as interested in as I wuz. Yes, I gin him a pretty lucid idee of what my feelin's wuz on the subject--and spozed mebby I had convinced him. I wuz a-standin' with my back to him, a-ironin' a shirt for him, when I finished up my piece of mind. And thought more'n as likely as not he'd break down and be repentent, and hand me out a ten dollar bill. But no, he spoke out as pert and cheerful as anything and sez he: "Samantha, I don't think it is necessary for Christians to give such a awful sight. Jest look at the widder's mit." I turned right round and looked at him, holdin' my flat-iron in my right hand, and sez I: "What do you mean, Josiah Allen? What are you talkin' about?" [Illustration: "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, JOSIAH ALLEN? WHAT ARE YOU TALKIN' ABOUT?"] "Why the widder's mit that is mentioned in Scripter, and is talked about so much by Christians to this day. Most probable it wuz a odd one, I dare persume to say she had lost the mate to it. It specilly mentions that there wuzn't but one on 'em. And jest see how much that is talked over, and praised up clear down the ages, to this day. It couldn't have been worth more'n five cents, if it wuz worth that." "How do you spell mit, Josiah Allen?" sez I. "Why m-i-t-e, mit." "I should think," sez I, "that that spells mite." "Oh well, when you are a-readin' the Bible, all the best commentaters agree that you must use your own judgment. Mite! What sense is there in that? Widder's mite! There hain't any sense in it, not a mite."