“Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not expressed in fancy; rich, not gaudy;
For the apparel oft proclaims the man.”
—SHAKESPEARE.
“MILLY,” Annis said, following her sister, as usual, when she retired for the night to her own apartments, “what shall I wear to the party? Have I anything suitable?”
“I’m afraid not, dear; but you shall have a new dress and as pretty a one as can be found. We have ten days for the buying and making.”
“But there won’t be time to ask father or mother if I may have it.”
“And no need,” Mildred said gayly. “I am rich now, you know, and it will be a dear delight to me to deck my little pet sister for the party.”
“Oh, thank you! Milly, you’re just the best and kindest sister in the world!” exclaimed the little girl, dancing about in delight, then stopping short to throw her arms about Mildred and give her a vigorous hug and kiss.
Mildred returned the embrace, saying with a quiet smile, “You forget that I am pleasing myself. And don’t you think Zillah, Ada, or Fan would do as much for you under the same circumstances?”
“Yes; and I think I should for them. I think we all love one another very much; and ah, but I do want to hear how they like their presents!”
“They won’t get them for some weeks yet, you must remember, and then their letters of acknowledgment will take some time to reach us.”
“Milly, what sort of dress shall it be?” Annis asked, going back to the original topic of discourse.
“Something white I think; but we can decide better upon the material when we see what they have in the stores.”
“I hope Elsie will wear white too. I think it will be prettier for us both.”
“I dare say she will; her father likes to see her in white, and of course he will say what she is to wear.”
“Yes; and she has so many lovely white dresses. I’m sure she’ll grow too large for them before they’re half worn out.”
“Yes, no doubt,” Mildred said with a slight smile. “But now, dear, isn’t it time to say good-night?”
“Yes, when I’ve had a peep at darling wee Percy,” Annis returned, stealing softly to the side of the crib and bending over the little sleeper with a face all aglow with loving admiration. “O Milly, he’s so sweet and pretty!” she whispered, turning to the young mother who stood close at her side. “I’d like so much to kiss him, but I won’t, for fear of waking him—the precious pet.”
On going down Annis found Elsie in her dressing-room being made ready for bed. “May I stay and talk a little?” she asked.
“Yes; while mammy is undressing me,” Elsie said. “I do want to have a long talk, but papa’s orders are to get to bed and to sleep as fast as I can, and leave the talking for to-morrow.”
“Then we must, of course; but I want to tell you that Milly is going to get me a new dress for the party—a white one she thinks. Isn’t she good? And won’t you wear white too?”
“I don’t know. I hadn’t thought about it yet, and papa hasn’t said anything either.”
“Well, you have such quantities of beautiful dresses that you don’t need to think till you’re just going to put it on.”
“I don’t need to think at all,” Elsie returned, with a happy little laugh. “I have only to ask papa what he will choose to have me wear; and sometimes he saves me even that trouble by telling me unasked.”
“I don’t know whether I’d quite prefer that or not,” Annis said; “but good-night, I’ll go now, for I see you are ready for bed.”
Annis fell asleep that night and woke again next morning full of pleasing anticipations of the coming festivities; but wisely determined to give her whole mind to her lessons until after recitation.
Her toilet was almost finished when Elsie came in, her eyes shining and her face full of some pleasurable excitement. She had been up for more than an hour, had had her morning Bible reading with her father and a little chat afterward.
“Good-morning, Annis,” she said. “Oh, make haste and come with me. I’ve something to show you!”
“Have you? Well I’m ready now.”
Elsie led the way to a part of the house Annis had never seen, bringing her at length into a large room where two mulatto women were busily at work, one sewing by hand, the other on a machine. Both faces brightened noticeably at sight of their little mistress.
“Good-morning, Aunt Kitty,” she said in her sweet, gentle tones, addressing the older woman, who hastily laid down her sewing to hand a chair for each little lady. “I’ve brought my cousin to see you and some of the pretty things kept here.”
“Is you, honey? Well, you knows Ise always pow’ful glad to see yo’ lubly face in hyar. An’ what’s yo’ cousin’s name, Miss Elsie?”
“Annis Keith, Aunt Kitty. Rachel,” turning to the younger servant, “how are you to-day? is that bad cold quite gone?”
“Yes, tank you, Miss Elsie; an’ Ise pretty well exceptin’ a misery in de back.”
“I think mamma would say you shouldn’t work on the machine to-day if your back hurts you,” remarked Elsie, with a compassionate look.
“Oh la, chile, ’tain’t nothin’!” exclaimed Aunt Kitty, with a contemptuous sniff directed at her companion. “Rachel she’s always ’plainin’ ob a misery somewheres, and de mo’ you nuss her up and let her off from work, de wuss it grows. She better work away and forgit it. Dat’s how dis chile does.”
Elsie seemed too eager about something else to pay attention to the remark. She had taken a key from her pocket, and unlocking a large wardrobe on the farther side of the room, “Annis,” she said, “won’t you come here for a moment?”
Annis was beside her instantly.
“Don’t you think this is pretty?” Elsie asked, showing her some beautifully fine India mull.
“Oh, lovely!” Annis exclaimed. “Are you going to have a dress made of that?”
“Yes; to wear to Carrie’s party, and I want you to have one, so that we will be dressed alike. Papa bought it some time ago, a whole piece, I think he said, and I shall take it as a great favor,” she added in an undertone and with a very winning, persuasive look into Annis’s eyes, “if you will accept a dress of it as a present from me.”
“Thank you ever so much, but—I’m afraid I oughtn’t to,” Annis said, hesitating, blushing, and looking half pleased, half as if the offer were slightly wounding to her pride of independence.
“Why not?” Elsie asked entreatingly. “Papa wants you to—it was he who thought of it first—and I shall be so sorry if you refuse. I’ve quite set my heart on having our dresses exactly alike, just as if you were my sister. You know I’ve never had a sister, and I’ve always wanted one so much.”
“You are just as kind as you can be, Elsie,” Annis returned, putting her arms round her cousin and kissing her affectionately, “but I don’t think Mildred would want me to take it. Anyhow I must ask her first. Couldn’t she buy me one just like it in the city?”
“I don’t know; mamma and papa both said when he bought this, that it was an uncommonly beautiful piece.”
“Oh, it is beautiful! Elsie, so beautiful that I don’t like to have you give it to me—it must have cost so much!”
“That makes it all the more suitable for you, dear Annis. And it is not at all generous in me to offer it, because it does not cost me the least self-denial to part with it. Won’t you take it?”
Annis hesitated for a moment, then said with frank cordiality, “Yes, I will, if Milly doesn’t object. You know she’s in mother’s place to me while I am here.”
“Thank you!” Elsie said delightedly. “I do so want you to have it. Let us run and ask Cousin Mildred now. No; on second thoughts I do believe it will be best to consult papa first. He always knows just what it is best to do. But wait, I want to show you the trimming for our dresses; they must be trimmed alike too, papa says.”
She lifted the lid of a box and drew out the end of a piece of lace so fine, soft, rich, and beautiful in design that even Annis, though not a connoisseur in the article, could not fail to perceive that it must be very costly.
She exclaimed at its beauty, adding, “You could never think of giving any of that away, Elsie! Cousin Horace could not have meant that you should!”
“But indeed he did,” Elsie answered gayly. “He doesn’t consider anything too good for you; nor do I either. But there’s the breakfast bell, and we must hurry down.”
They found Mr. Dinsmore alone in the breakfast-room. He greeted them with a smile, and taking Annis’s hand gave her a good-morning kiss.
“Now it’s my turn, papa,” Elsie said in a merry tone, holding up her face so bright, loving, and winsome that it would have taken a very cold and unresponsive nature to refuse her invitation.
Her father did not, though he said laughingly as he bestowed the caress, “As if you had not had half a dozen more or less already this morning! Well, what success?” with a kindly glance at Annis.
“Oh, I had to coax her, papa, but she will if Cousin Milly will.”
“Ah, is that it? Well, leave Mildred to me.”
“No, sir,” exclaimed Dr. Landreth’s voice in his rear, “it can’t be done! Mildred belongs to me.”
“Ah, good-morning to you both!” said Mr. Dinsmore, turning at the sound to find the doctor and his wife both there. “I’ve no idea of interfering with your claims, sir; one wife’s enough for me to manage,” with a merry glance at Rose, who entered at that moment by another door.
“A trifle too much sometimes if the truth were told; isn’t she?” Rose retorted as she took her place at the head of the table, the others seating themselves at the same time.
“My dear, you should never tell tales out of school,” said Mr. Dinsmore.
There was a general laugh, then a moment’s pause for all to recover their gravity, and he asked a blessing on the food.
At the first opportunity Mildred remarked, “You have roused my curiosity, Cousin Horace, and I think are bound to gratify it. In regard to what am I to be left to you?”
“Didn’t I put my veto on that?” queried her husband.
“Yes, and yet I venture to assert that you are every whit as curious as I to know what it all meant. Cousin Horace, you are called upon to explain.”
“Will you do me a favor?”
“Gladly, if it is in my power.”
“There, children, you see it’s all settled with a word.”
“What’s settled?” asked Mildred.
“That Annis shall have, or rather already has, your consent to her acceptance of a little present from Elsie. I shall explain further anon.”
After breakfast and prayers, Mildred was taken to the sewing-room and shown the intended gift, while the desired explanation was made.
She was not so proud in her wealth as she had been in her poverty, and gracefully accepted for Annis, though she perceived that the present was by no means the trifle Mr. Dinsmore had represented it.
“I had intended to give Annis her dress,” she said, “but I doubt if I could find anywhere such exquisitely fine mull or lace so beautiful and costly as this, and I think it will be very nice to have the dresses alike. This lace is superb!” examining it more closely. “You are making Annis a most generous gift, Cousin Horace,” she added, looking up with cordial affection into his handsome, kindly face, as he stood by her side, “and I thank you and dear Elsie, a thousand times.”
“Not at all; I feel myself the obliged party,” he returned, “and I want you to do us the further favor of allowing Annis’s dress to be made up here. Aunt Kitty and Rachel are accomplished seamstresses and dressmakers, and will be well pleased to have the job.”
“Dat we will, Massa,” responded Aunt Kitty, as he turned to her as if for confirmation of what he had said, “an’ I spects we kin do de work up ’bout right.”
This offer also Mildred accepted with thanks, remarking gayly, “You never do anything by halves, Cousin Horace.”
The little girls, greatly pleased at the result of the conference, ran off in high glee to take their accustomed out-door exercise, then settled themselves to their lessons with a determined will to think of nothing else until they were learned.
So fully occupied were they with the business in hand that they were not aware of the departure of their elders on a shopping expedition to the city. When they felt themselves fully prepared with their tasks they put aside their books, rather wondering that Mr. Dinsmore was so much later than usual in coming to hear their recitations. But they practised some duets they were learning together on the piano, and the time did not seem long till the carriage drove up and their four elders walked in upon them looking as if they brought a pleasant surprise, as indeed they did. Mr. Dinsmore and Rose each put a small paper parcel into Elsie’s hand, Dr. Landreth and Mildred doing the same by Annis.
With eager fingers the children made haste to undo the packages and bring their contents to light, the givers looking on with faces full of pleased anticipation.
Elsie’s presents proved to be two very elegant sashes—a pale blue and a rich cream-white. Mildred’s present to Annis was the same, two sashes exactly matching her cousin’s, the doctor’s a jewel-box, which being opened showed a dainty lining of pale blue satin, on which reposed an exquisitely beautiful necklace and bracelets of pearls scarcely inferior in size and value to those belonging to Elsie, which Annis had so often admired, never dreaming that such would ever fall to her lot.
She went into a transport of delight and hugged and kissed, not Mildred only, but her new brother to his heart’s content.
Elsie fully sympathized in Annis’s pleasure, was quietly happy in her own gifts, and grateful to her kind parents.