ways to lighten her labors, for, even in the busiest seasons, no help
was allowed her to perform all the household work; and I soon found many
ways of making myself useful.




CHAPTER IV.


One rainy afternoon, while busied about the house, Mrs. Judson surprised
me by saying suddenly: "I suppose you don't know what makes me take so
to you, Walter; but I'll tell you, you remind me of my youngest boy,
Reuben." I looked at the old lady with wonder, saying, "I did not know
you had any children, Mrs. Judson." "True" said she, "I forgot you did
not know; but no further than your mother lives from here she must
remember that I once had two boys who were very dear to me, but perhaps
she never told you about it. It ill becomes me to speak of _his_ faults,
but I must say my poor boys had a hard life of it with their father. He
had no patience with them when mere children, and matters grew worse as
they became older. Do what they would, they could never please him, and
he often beat them cruelly. But one way and another they got along till
Charley was sixteen and Reuben fourteen years of age. Their father one
day left them ploughing in the field while he went to the village; the
ground was rough and stoney, and by some accident the ploughshare was
broken. When their father came home and found what had happened, he
seized the horse-whip and gave both the boys a terrible flogging.
Neither of the boys had ever before given their father a word; but, when
he stopped beating them, Charley stood up and said: 'You have beaten us,
father, a great many times and for very little cause; but this is the