Josiah had been to Jonesville, to the post-office and got the last number of my magazine, and I was just lookin’ at the pictures, which are always as pretty a pink, when happenin’ to cast my eyes out of the window, I saw Miss Gowdey and her little boy comin’ up the road. Now, some children I am attached to, and some I ain’t; and, when I ain’t, I don’t want to touch ’em with a 40-foot pole. Or—I don’t know—sometimes I would like to touch ’em with one. I have seen children that was so sweet-looking and innocent, that it seemed as if they wouldn’t want much fixin’-over to make angels of ’em; but Johnny Gowdey would want an awful sight done to him, to make an angel of him. Thomas Jefferson says he had as leave have a young tornado let loose on the farm as to have him come here a-visitin’—and his mother always brings him. Wal, as I said, I see ’em comin’ up the road; and, jest as I expected, they came up to the door and knocked. I got up and opened the door, and set ’em some chairs, and sez I: “Lay off your things, won’t you?” Sez she: “I can’t stop long.” But she sot about half an hour; and, jest before she went, she took up the magazine, the Christmas number it was, that lay on the stand, and sez she: “I should be dreadful glad to borrer this for a day or 2.” “I hain’t read a word in it,” sez I, “fer I jest got it.” “Should you be likely to read any in it to-night?” sez she. I told her I didn’t know as I should. “Wall,” sez she, “if you’ll let me take it, I’ll send it home by to-morrow noon at the outside, and I’ll try not to let you come after it, as you have your other ones.” “I suppose you can take it,” sez I, in a cold tone; “but I wish you would be careful of it, for I want to get ’em bound.” She said she would lay it right on to the parlor-table, and, when she read in it, she would hold a paper around it. Sez I: “You needn’t do that,” and I must confess, from that very minute I had my mind. I always mistrust folks that are 2 good; there is a mejum course that I rather see folks pursue. I always love to see folks begin as they can hold out, and folks that are 2 good hardly ever hold out. When I see such folks, I always think of the poor sick woman that lay sufferin’ in total darkness for a week, vainly urgin’ her husband to buy some candles, till finally he went, one night, when she was asleep, and bought 12 candles, and lit ’em all and sot ’em in a row in front of her bed. She, dreamin’ of conflegrations, widly started up to see what was the matter, and sunk back, sayin’ in low and faint axents: “Daddy, when you are good, you are 2 good.” When Miss Gowdey said she would keep it on the parlor table, I had my doubts, and when she said she would hold a paper round it when she read it, I thought more’n as likely as not the book was lost; but I didn’t say nothin’, I kep’ in, and done up the book and handed it to her. She took a large clean handkercher out of her pocket, and folded it round it and started up to go.