Samantha at the Worlds Fair | Page 3

always will be called
Krit--Krit Allen.
But still it wuz--in spite of this mellerin' and amelioratin'
circumstance--strikin' and skairful enough to fill me with or.
He wuz a double and twisted relation, as you may say, bein' related to
us on both our own sides, Josiah's and mine.
But I had never sot eyes on him till that day, though I well remember
visitin' his parents, who lived then in the outskirts of Loontown--good
respectable Methodist Epospical people--and runners of a cheese
factory at that time.
Tryphenia Smith, relation on my side, married to Ezra Allen, relation
on Josiah's side.
I remember that I went there on a visit with my mother at a very early
period of my existence. I hadn't existed at that time more'n nine years,
if I had that. We staid there on a stiddy stretch for a week; that wuz jest
before they moved up to Maine.
Uncle Ezra had a splendid chance offered him there, and he fell in with
it.

She wuz a dretful good creeter, Aunt Tryphenia wuz, and greatly
beloved by the relations on his side, as well as hern.
Though, as is nateral with relations, she had to be run by 'em more or
less, and found fault with. Some thought her nose wuz too long. Some
on 'em thought she wuz too religious, and some on 'em thought she
wuzn't religious enough. Some on 'em thought she wuzn't sot enough
on the creeds, and some thought she wuz too rigid.
But, howsumever, pretty nigh all the Allens and Smiths jest doted on
her.
There wuz one incident that jest impressed itself on my memory in
connection with that visit, and I don't spoze I shall ever forgit it; it
stands to reason that I should before now, if I ever wuz a-goin' to.
It took place at family prayers, which they held regular at Uncle Ezra's.
It wuz right in the hite of sugarin'. They had more'n two hundred maple
trees, and they had tapped 'em all, and they had run free, and they had
to sugar off every day, and sometimes twice a day.
That mornin' they had a big kettle of maple syrup over the stove, and
Uncle Ezra and Aunt Tryphenia and mother wuz all a-kneelin' down
pretty nigh to the stove. It wuz a cold mornin', and I wuz a-settin' with
my little legs a-hangin' off the chair a-watchin' things, not at that age
bein' particular interested in religion.
Uncle Ezra made a long prayer, a tegus one, it seemed to me; it wuz so
long that the kettle of sugar had het up fearful, and I see with deep
anxiety that it wuz a-mountin' up most to the top of the kettle.
Of course I dassent move to open the stove door, or stir it down, or
anything--no, I dassent make a move of any kind or a mite of noise in
prayer time. So I sot demute, but in deep anxiety, a-watchin' it sizzle up
higher and higher and then down agin, as is the way of syrup, but each
time a sizzlin' up a little higher.

Wall, finally Uncle Ezra got through with his prayer, and dear good
Aunt Tryphenia begun hern. She spoke dretful kinder moderate, but
religious and good as anything could be.
I well remember what it wuz she wuz sayin'--
"O Lord, let us be tried as by fire and not be movéd"--I remember she
said movéd instead of moved, which wuz impressive to me, never
havin' hearn it pronounced that way before.
And jest as she said this over went the sugar onto the stove, and Aunt
Tryphenia and Uncle Ezra jest jumped right up and went and lifted the
kettle offen the stove.
I remember well how kinder bewildered and curious mother looked
when she opened her eyes and see that the prayer wuz broke right short
off. Aunt Tryphenia looked meachin', and Uncle Ezra put his hat right
on and went out to the barn.
It wuz dretful embarrissin' to him and Aunt Tryphenia. But then I don't
know as they could have helped it.
I remember hearin' Father and Mother arguin' about it. Father thought
she done right, but Mother wuz kinder of the opinion that she ort to
have run the prayer right on and let the sugar spile if necessary.
But I remember Father's arguin' that he didn't believe her prayer would
have been very lucid or fervent, with all that batch of sugar a-sizzlin'
and a-burnin' right by the side of her.
I remember that he said that a prayer wouldn't be apt to ascend much
higher than where one's hopes and thoughts wuz, and he didn't believe
it would go up much higher than that kettle. (The stove wuz the
common height,