The lady glanced at the mirroring steel
Where her form of grace was seen,

Where her eyes shone clear and her dark locks waved
Their clasping pearls between.

"Bring forth thy pearl of exceeding worth,

Thou traveler gray and old:

And name the price of thy precious gem,
And my pages shall count thy gold."

The cloud went off from the pilgrim's brow,
As a small and meagre book,
Unchased with gold or gem of cost,
From his folding robe he took.
"Here, lady fair, is the pearl of price;
May it prove as such to thee!
Nay, keep thy gold; I ask it not;
For the Word of God is free."

The hoary traveler went his way;
But the gift he left behind

Hath had its pure and perfect work
On that high-born maiden's mind;

And she hath turned from the pride of sin
To the lowliness of truth,

And given her human heart to God,
In its beautiful hour of youth..

And she hath left the gray old halls
Where an evil faith had power,

The courtly knights of her father's train,
And the maidens of her bower;

And she hath gone to the Vaudois vales,

By lordly feet untrod,

Where the poor and needy of earth are rich

In the perfect love of God.

JOSIAH ALLEN'S WIFE AT A. T. STEWART'S STORE.

MARIETTA HOLLEY.

The following sketch is from a work entitled "My Opinions and Betsey Bobbet's." In the preface the writer describes the circumstances under which the book was written; a deep voice kept saying to her "Josiah Allen's Wife, write a book; the great public wheel is rolling slowly on, drawing the female race into liberty, PUT YOUR SHOULDER-BLADES TO THE WHEEL." No wonder Josiah was frightened nearly out of his senses, when she spoke in a loud clear voice, "I WILL put my shoulder-blades to the wheel, I WILL write a book."

I had heard it was considerable of a store, but good land! it was bigger than all the shops of Jonesville put together, and two or three ten-acre lots, and a few meetin' housen.

But I wouldn't have acted skairt, if it had been as big as all Africa. I walked in as cool as a cowcumber. We sot down pretty nigh to the door and looked round a spell. Of all the sights of folks there was a comin' in all the time, and shinin' counters all down as fur as we could see, and slick lookin' fellers behind every one, and lots of boys runnin' round, that they called "Cash." I says to Betsey,

"What a large family of boys Mr. Cash'es folks have got, and they must some of 'em be twins, they seem to be about of a size."

I was jest thinkin' in a pityin' way of their mother, poor Mrs. Cash, and how many pantaloons she would have to mend in consequence of slidin' down hill, when Betsey says

to me,

“Josiah Allen's wife, hadn't you better be purchasing your merchandise?" Says she, "I will set here and rest 'till you get through, and as deah Tuppah remarked, 'study human nature.' She didn't have no book as I could see to study out of, but I didn't make no remarks. Betsey is a curious creature, anyway. I went up to the first counter-there was a real slick lookin' feller there, and I asked him in a cool tone, "If Mr. Stewart took eggs, and what they was a fetchen' now?"

He said, "Mr. Stewart don't take eggs."

66

Well," says I," what does he give now for butter in the pail ?"

He said, "Mr. Stewart don't take butter."

"Well," says I, in a dignified way, “it haint no matter, I only asked to see what they was a fetchen here. I haint got any with me, for I come on a tower." I then took a little roll out of my pocket, and undone 'em. It was a pair of socks and a pair of striped mittens. And I says to him in a cool, calm way,

"How much is Mr. Stewart a payin' for socks and mittens now? I know they are kinder out of season now, but there haint no danger but what winter will come, if you only wait long enough."

He said, "We don't take 'em."

I felt disappointed, for I did want Alexander to have 'em, they was knit so good. I was jest thirkin' this over, when

he spoke up agin, and says he, "we don't take barter of no kind." I didn't know really what he meant, but I answered him in a blind way, "that it was jest as well as if they did, as fur as I was concerned, for we hadn't raised any barter that year, it didn't seem to be a good year for it," and then I continued on-" Mebby Mr. Stewart would take these socks and mittens for his own use." Says I, "Do you know whether Alexander is well off for socks and mittens or not?" The clerk said "he guessed Mr. Stewart wasn't sufferin' for 'em ?"

"Well," says I in a dignified way, "you can do as you are a mind to about takin' 'em, but they are colored in a good indigo blue dye, they haint pusley color, and they are knit, on honor, just as I knit Josiah's."

“Who is Josiah ?" says the clerk.

Says I, a sort of blindly, "He is the husband of Josiah Allen's wife."

I wouldn't say right out, that I was Josiah Allen's wife, because I wanted them socks and mittens to stand on their own merits, or not at all. I wasn't goin' to have 'em go, jest because one of the first wimmen of the day knit 'em. Neither was I goin' to hang on, and tease him to take 'em. I never said another word about his buyin' 'em, only mentioned in a careless way, that "the heels was run." But he didn't seem to want 'em, and I jest folded 'em up, and in a cool way put 'em into my pocket. I then asked to look at his calicoes, for I was pretty near decided in my own mind to get a apron, for I wasn't goin' to have him think that all my property lay in that pair of socks and mittens. He told me where to go to see the calicoes, and there was another clerk behind that counter. I didn't like his looks a bit, he was real uppish lookin'. But I wasn't goin' to let him mistrust that I was put to my stumps a bit. I walked up as collected lookin' as if I owned the whole caboodle of 'em, and New York village, and Jonesville, and says I,

"I want to look at your calicoes."

"What prints will you look at ?" says he, meanin' to put

on me.

Says I, "I don't want to look at no Prince," says I, "I had ruther see a free born American citizen than all the foreign

Princes you can bring out." I said this in a noble, lofty tone, but after a minute's thought I went on,

"Though if you have got a quantity of Princes here, I had as lives see one of Victory's boys, as any of 'em. The widder Albert is a good housekeeper, and a first-rate calculator, and a woman that has got a Right. I set a good deal of store by the widder Albert, I always thought I should like to get acquainted with her, and visit back and forth, and neighbor with her."

I waited a minute, but he didn't make no move towards showin' me any Prince. But, says he,

66

What kind of calico do you want to look at ?"

I thought he come off awful sudden from Princes to calico, but I didn't say nothin'. But I told him “I would like to look at a chocklate colored ground work, with a set flower on it." Shan't I show you a Dolly Varden ?" says he.

66

I see plainly that he was a tryin' to impose on me, talkin' about Princes and Dolly Varden, and says I with dignity, "If I want to make Miss Varden's acquaintance, I can without askin' you to introduce me,"

His face was jest as red as blood. But he tried to turn it off with a laugh.

Says I, with a searchin' look, "Young man, if I was in your place, I would drop Dolly Varden's acquaintance.” Says I, "I advise you for your own good, jest as I would Thomas Jefferson."

"Who is Thomas Jefferson ?" says he.

Says I, in a cautious tone, "He is Josiah Allen's child by his first wife, and the own brother of Tirzah Ann."

I then laid my hand on a piece of chocklate ground calico, and says I, "This suits me pretty well, but I have my doubts,” says I, examinin' it closer through my specs, “I mistrust it will fade some. What is your opinion?" says I, speakin' to a elegantly dressed woman by my side, who stood there with her rich silk dress a trailin' down on the floor. Says I,

66 Do you suppose this calico will wash, mom?"

I was so busy a rubbin' the calico to see if it was firm cloth, that I never looked up in her face at all. But when I asked her for the third time, and she didn't speak, I looked up in her face, and I haint come so near faintin' since I was united to Josiah Allen. That woman's head was off!

The clerk see that I was overcome by somethin', and says he, "What is the matter?"

I couldn't speak, but I pinted with my forefinger stiddy at that murdered woman. I guess I had pinted at her pretty nigh half a minute, when I found breath and says I, slowly turnin' that extended finger at him, in so burnin' indignant a way, that if it had been a spear, he would have hung dead on it,

"That is pretty doin's in a Christian country!"

His face turned red as blood agin, he was so mortified. And he murmured somethin' about her "bein' dumb," or "a dummy" or somethin'-but. I interrupted him—and says I, "I guess you would be dumb yourself if your head was cut off." Says I, in awful sarcastic tones,

"It would be pretty apt to make any body dumb."

Then he explained it to me. That it was a wooden figger, to hang their dresses and mantillys on. And I cooled down and told him I would take a yard and three-quarters of the calico, enough for a honorable apron.

Says he, "We don't sell by retail in this room."

I gave that clerk then a piece of my mind. I asked him how many aprons he supposed Tirzah Ann and I stood in need of? I asked him if he supposed we was entirely destitute of aprons? And I asked him in a awful sarcastic tone, if he had a idee that Josiah and Thomas Jefferson wore aprons,? Says I, "any body would think you did." Says I, turnin away awful dignified, "when I come agin I will come when Alexander is in the store himself."

I joined Betsey by the door, and says I, "Less go on to

once."

But," says she to me in a low mysterious voice: "Josiah Allen's wife, do you suppose they would want to let me have a straw colored silk dress, and take their pay in poetry?"

Says 1, "For the land's sake Betsey, don't try to sell any poetry here. I am wore out. If they won't take any socks and mittens, or good butter and eggs, I know they won't take poetry."

She argued a spell with me, but I stood firm, for I wouldn't let her demean herself for nothin'. And finally I got her to go on.