Says I, “Serepta you are in a bad spot. You seem to be in the same place the old drunkard’s wife was. He said he’d ‘whip Sally if supper was ready,’ and he’d ‘whip Sally if it wasn’t.’”
“Yes,” says she, “that is just where I stand. They say I am a pattern for the church to foller, and so I must be all the time away from home a workin’ for the heathen and missionary societies, for a minister’s wife must ‘be given to good works.’ And I must at the same time be to home all the time a workin’ and a takin’ care of my family, ‘For Sarah kept the tent.’ I have got to be to home a encouragin’ my husband all the time, ‘a holdin’ up his arms,’ like Aaron and Hur, and I have got to be away all the time, a ‘holdin’ up the ark.’ I have got to be to home a lettin’ out my little boy’s pantaloons, and at the same time away ‘enlargin’ the borders of Zion.’ I have got to give all my time to convertin’ the heathen or ‘woe be to me,’ and have got to be to home all the time a takin’ care of my own household, or I am ‘worse than an infidel.’ And amongst it all,” says she, “there is so much expected of me, that I git sometimes so worn out and discouraged I don’t know what to do.”
And Serepta’s tears gently drizzled down into the dish-water, for she was a washin’, and I was a wipin’.
I rubbed away on a pie plate, a musin’ in deep thought, and then I segested this to her, in pretty even tones, but earnest and deep:
“Did you ever try a mindin’ your own business, and makin’ other folks mind theirn?”
“No,” says she meekly. And she sithed as deep as I ever heerd any one sithe. “I mind my business pretty well,” says she, “but I never tried to make other folks mind theirn. I wasn’t strong enough.”
“Well,” says I, “before I leave this place, I lay out to make a change.” Says I, “many is the time I have filled the bottle you was brought up on, and I haint a goin’ to stand by and see you killed. And before I leave Shackville, the meetin’ house has got to git offen your back, or I’ll know the reason why.”
She looked considerable skairt, but I could see it made her feel better to have somebody to sort o’ lean on. And as we finished our dishes, (the buttery was full on ’em, she hadn’t had time to half wash ’em the night before,) she went on and told more of her troubles to me.