Well, there bein’ no regular undertaker, the bashful young minister, after the last him wuz sung, give a notice that wuz dretful mixed up, and sounded more as if he had invited the corpse to walk round and view the congregation than visey versey. A way wuz cleared round the coffin, and the folks from the kitchin all filed in first and walked round the coffin and then went out through the parlor bedroom door into the kitchen and outdoors, and then the folks in the settin’ room did the same, and then the mourners.
Jack, the first minute he got a chance, squeezed in in front of all the rest and wouldn’t move on. Grandma Bodley looked calm and peaceful; she had lived a Christian and died one, and the peace of God wuz wrote down on her forward. Her lips and eyes that had smiled so many times on less happy souls wuz closed peaceful. Her hands, that had gin blessin’s and help to so many emptier hands, wuz folded, and she looked glad to be at rest. But Jack kep’ eyin’ her so with such a strange, searchin’ look it made me feel queer. Grandma looked so peaceful and Jack so watchful of her I felt curious and couldn’t deny it. After all the rest had gone out he kep’ up that same stiddy watchin’, and he not sayin’ anything, nor she nuther.
Well, way along that evenin’ when we had got back from the funeral, for I told Tamer the house wuz so full I would take Jack home with me agin, and after we had had supper, and it wuz gittin’ along most bedtime, Jack come up and laid his head aginst my shoulder and sez:
“Aunt Samantha, I didn’t miss anything.”
Sez I, “What do you mean, Jack?”
“I wuz on the lookout to-day, and I couldn’t see that anything wuz gone. You know you said part of grandma had gone to Heaven, and I kep’ a good watch all day, and I couldn’t see but what she wuz all there; her head wuz there, and her hands, and I couldn’t see a thing wuz missin’, unless it wuz her tongue. I didn’t see that, but I spozed it wuz in her mouth, she most always kep’ it there, and I can’t make out what you meant, for you always are shure nuff; you don’t fool anybody as most everybody duz.”
And then I had to go all over the ground agin and tried to be patient, and bein’ on a solemn and grand subject, onbeknown to myself I soared a little and spoke of the happy angels who had come down from their blest abode to take dear Grandma home. And Jack interrupted me with big shinin’ eyes:
“Do you spoze if I had been there I could have seen ’em?”
“No, Jack, I am afraid not. I am afraid we hain’t good enough.”