Tirzah Ann's summer trip, and other sketches

By JOSIAH ALLEN’S WIFE, Author of “Samantha at Saratoga,” “Sweet Cicely,” “Miss Richards’ Boy,” Etc.
NEW YORK: THE F. M. LUPTON PUBLISHING COMPANY Nos. 72-76 Walker Street.
Reprinted from Peterson’s Magazine By Special Arrangement.
Copyright, 1892, by The F. M. LUPTON PUBLISHING COMPANY.


Tirzah Ann and Whitfield—Tirzah Ann is Josiah’s darter, you know—make a likely couple, though I say it that shouldn’t. Whitfield is indestrius, and she is equinomical, which makes things go well. But Tirzah Ann is dretful ambitious, and wants to do as other folks do, and so knowin’ it is very genteel to go off in the summer for a rest, why she wanted to go off for a rest, too. And Whitfield bein’ perfectly bound up in her, of course wanted to do jist what she wanted to. I thought it wus foolish in her. But I always had very deep and filosofical idees on these things.
Now, rests are as likely things as ever wus—so are changes. But I have said, and I say still, that I had ruther lay down to hum, as the poet saith, “on my own delightful feather bed,” with a fan and newspaper, and take a rest, than dress up and travel off two or three hundred milds in search of it, through the burnin’ sun, with achin’ body, wet with presperation all over. It seems to me I could get more rest out of the former than out of the more latter course, and proceedin’.
Howsomever, everybody to their own mind.
Likewise with changes. I have said, and I say still, that changes are likely and respectable, if you can get holt of ’em, but how can you?
Havin’ such powerful and eloquent emotions as I have, such principles a-performin’ inside of my mind, enjoyin’ such idees and aspirations, and longings, and hopes, and joys, and despairs, and—everything, I s’pose that is what makes me think that what is goin’ on ’round me—the outside of me—hain’t of so much consequence. I seem to live inside of myself (as it were), more than I do on the outside. And so it don’t seem of much consequence what the lay of the land ’round me may happen to be, whether it is sort o’ hilly and mountaneous, or more level like. Or whether steam-cars may be a-goin by me (on the outside of me), or boats a-sailin’ round me, or milk wagons.