a-steamin' and a-blowin' right along the streets of Jonesville without
the sign of a horse or ox or anything nigh it to draw it. A-puffin' out
the steam, and a-tearin' right along, that awful lookin' that it skairt
she that wuz Celestine Bobbet most into fits.

She lived in a back place where such machines wuz unknown, and she had
come home to her father's on a visit, and wuz goin' over to visit some
of his folks that day, over to Loontown.

And she wuz a-travellin' along peacible, with her father's old mair, and
a-leanin' back in the buggy a readin' a article her father had sent over
by her to Deacon Widrig, a witherin' article about female Deaconesses,
and the stern necessity of settin' 'em apart and sanctifyen' 'em to this
one work--deacon work--and how they mustn't marry, or tackle any other
hard jobs whatsumever, or break off into any other enterprize, only jest
plain deacon work.

It wuz a very flowery article. And she wuz enjoyin' of it first rate,
and a-thinkin', for she is a little timid and easily skairt, and the
piece had convinced her--

She wuz jest a-thinkin' how dretful it would be if sum female deaconess
should ever venter into some other branch of business, and what would
be apt to become of her if she did. She hated to think of what her doom
would most likely be, bein' tender hearted.

[Illustration: "SHE SEE THIS WILD AND SKAIRFUL MACHINE APPROACHIN'."]

When lo, and behold! jest as she wuz a-thinkin' these thoughts, she see
this wild and skairful machine approachin', and Deacon Henzy a-standin'