Samantha at the World's Fair Part 20

Miss Pooler said, "That she wuz a-goin' to the Fair, and a-goin' in good season, too. She wouldn't miss it for anything in the livin' world. But she had got to make a visit all round to his relations and hern before she went. And," sez she, a-lookin' sort o' reproachful at me,

"I should have thought you would have felt like goin' round and payin'

'em all a visit, on both of your sides, before you went," sez she. "They would have felt better; and I feel like doin' everything I can to please the relations."

And I told Miss Pooler--"That I never expected to see the day that I hadn't plenty of relations on my side and on hisen, but I never expected to see another Christopher Columbus World's Fair, and I had ruther spend my time now with Christopher than with them on either side, spozin' they would keep."

But Miss Pooler said, "She had always felt like doin' all in her power to show respect to the relations on both sides, and make 'em happy. And she felt that, in case of anything happenin', she would feel better to know she had made 'em all a last visit before it happened."

"What I am afraid will happen, Miss Pooler," sez I, "is that you won't git to the World's Fair at all, for they are numerous on both sides, and widespread," sez I. "It will take sights and sights of time for you to go clear round."

But I see that she wuz determined to have her way, and I didn't labor no more with her.

And I might as well tell it right here, as any time--she never got to the World's Fair at all. For while she wuz a-payin' a last visit previous to her departure, she wuz took down bed-sick for three weeks.

And the Fair bein' at that time on its last leglets, as you may say, it had took her so long to go the rounds--the Fair broke up before she got up agin.

Miss Pooler felt awful about it, so they say; it wuz such a dretful disapintment to her that they had to watch her for some time, she wuz that melancholy about it, and depressted, that they didn't know what she would be led to do to herself.

And besides her own affliction about the Fair, and the trouble she gin her own folks a-watchin' her for months afterwards, she got 'em mad at her on both sides. Seven different wimmen she kep to home, jest as they wuz a-startin' for the Fair, and belated 'em.

Eleven of the relations on her side and on hisen hain't spoke to her sence. And the family where she wuz took sick on their hands talked hard of suin' her for damage. For they wuz real smart folks, and had been makin' their calculations for over three years to go to the Fair, and had lotted on it day and night, and through her sickness they wuz kep to home, and didn't go to it at all.

But to resoom.

Jest as I turned round from Miss Pooler, I see Miss Solomon Stebbins and Arvilly Lanfear come in the depot.

Arvilly come to bid me good-bye, and Miss Stebbins wuz with her, and so she come in too.

Arvilly said, "That she should be in Chicago to that World's Fair, if her life wuz spared." She said, "That she wouldn't miss bein' in the place where wimmen wuz made sunthin' of, and had sunthin' to say for themselves, not for ontold wealth."

She said, "That she jest hankered after seein' one woman made out of pure silver--and then that other woman sixty-five feet tall; she said it would do her soul good to see men look up to her, and they have got to look up to her if they see her at all, for she said that it stood to reason that there wuzn't goin' to be men there sixty-five feet high.

"And then that temple there in Chicago, dreamed out and built by a woman--the nicest office buildin' in the world! jest think of that--_in the World_. And a woman to the bottom of it, and to the top too. Why,"

sez Arville, "I wouldn't miss the chance of seein' wimmen swing right out, and act as if their souls wuz their own, not for the mines of Golconda." Sez she, "More than a dozen wimmen have told me this week they wanted to go; but they wuzn't able. But I sez to 'em, I'm able to go, and I'm a-goin'--I am goin' afoot."

"Why, Arvilly," sez I, "you hain't a-goin' to Chicago a-walkin' afoot!"

[Ill.u.s.tration: "Why, Arvilly!"]

"Yes, I be a-goin' to Chicago a-walkin' afoot, and I am goin' to start next Monday mornin'."

"Why'ee!" sez I, "you mustn't do it; you must let me lend you some money."

"No, mom; much obliged jest the same, but I am a-goin' to canva.s.s my way there. I am goin' to sell the 'Wild, Wicked, and Warlike Deeds of Man.'

I calculate to make money enough to get me there and ride some of the way, and take care of me while I am there; I may tackle some other book or article to sell. But I am goin' to branch out on that, and I am goin'

to have a good time, too."

[Ill.u.s.tration: "No, mom; much obliged jest the same."]

Miss Stebbins said, "She wanted to go, and calculated to, but she wanted to finish that croshay lap-robe before snow fell."

"Wall," sez I, "snow hain't a-goin' to fall very soon now, early in the Spring so."

"Wall," she said, "that it wuz such tryin' work for the eyes, she wouldn't leave it for nothin' till she got back, for she mistrusted that she should feel kind o' mauger and wore out. And then," she said, "she had got to make a dozen fine s.h.i.+rts for Solomon, so's to leave him comfortable while she wuz gone, and the children three suits apiece all round."

Sez I, "How long do you lay out to be gone?"

"About two weeks," she said.

And I told her, "That it didn't seem as if he would need so many s.h.i.+rts for so short a time."

But she said, "She should feel more relieved to have 'em done."

So I wouldn't say no more to break it up. For it is fur from me to want to diminish any female's relief.

And the cars tooted jest then, so I didn't have no more time to multiply words with her anyway.

CHAPTER VIII.

We were travellin' in a car they call a parlor, though it didn't look no more like our parlor than ours does like a steeple on a wind-mill. But it wuz dretful nice and comogeous.

We five occupied seats all together, and right next to us, acrost the aisle, wuz two men a-arguin' on the Injun question. I didn't know 'em, but I see that Thomas J. and Krit wuz some acquainted with 'em; they wuz business men.

When I first begun to hear 'em talk (they talked loud--we couldn't help hearin' 'em), they seemed to be kinder laughin', and one of 'em said:

"Yes, they denied the right of suffrage to wimmen and give it to the Injuns, and the next week the Injuns started off on the war-path.

Whether they did it through independence or through triumph n.o.body knows, but it is known that they went."

And I thought to myself, "Mebby they wuz mad to think that the Goverment denied to intelligent Christian wimmen the rights gin to savages."

Thinks'es I, "It is enough to make a Injun mad, or anything else."

[Ill.u.s.tration: "They denied the right of suffrage to wimmen and give it to the Injuns."]

But I didn't speak my mind out loud, and they begun to talk earnest and excited about 'em, and I could see as they went on that they felt jest alike towards the Injuns, and wanted 'em wiped off'en the face of the earth; but they disagreed some as to the ways they wanted 'em wiped. One of 'em wanted 'em shot right down to once, and exterminated jest as you kill potato-bugs.

The other wanted 'em drove further off and shet up tighter till they died out of themselves; but they wuz both agreed in bein' horrified and disgusted at the Injuns darin' to fight the whites.

And first I knew Krit jest waded right into the talk. He waded polite, but he waded deep right off the first thing.

And, sez he, "Before they all die I hope they will sharpen up their tommyhawks and march on to Was.h.i.+ngton, and have a war-dance before the Capitol, and take a few scalps there amongst the law-makers and the Injun bureau."

He got kinder lost and excited by his feelin's, Krit did, or he wouldn't have said anything about scalpin' a bureau. Good land! he might talk about smas.h.i.+n' its draws up, but n.o.body ever hearn of scalpin' a bureau or a table.

But he went on dretful smart, and, sez he, "Gentlemen, I have lived right out there amongst the Injuns and the rascally agents, and I know what I am talkin' about when I say that, instead of wonderin' about the Injuns risin' up aginst the whites, as they do sometimes, the wonder is that they don't try to kill every white man they see.