Show 1 the magic ft M m ag II 11 carpet A thanksgiving story by CLARISSA M MACKIE ACKIE cop right 1909 by ar at press association ii i i 1 the committee ou on repairs walked down the aisle and wagged d al at P eich tell pew it neer roe me before liow how t it na was to bave every pew carpeted different wheezed miss lee importantly port antly they look just like ille folks bouses houses jeremiah littles Is cot a piece of Us lis parlor carpet spread en on it and all it needs Is 14 a basket of wax nax flowers floers to make male you tl ink fill youre sitting in hlf front room at tit a funeral lue oilier other members of toe tho committee cast surreptitious glances at their several pews each cach with its gayly cohered floor and fat carpeted hassocks I 1 alien the looked at sarah L los las as onn on a pen wit its licit red boor coveri covering ag that emetic matched the carpet IP in the aisle ane e ain aint t nil all agents foi rot it carpet at ore Led hannah smith atly ii ay iy miss IP ic ti cither here not there she gild tid the facts arc are them D illel merton has sent us 1000 for the tile church li le te pairs dr loii long sis i 00 will be needed foi tot to the building and belfry tile the othel 14 1 to be ibid by the ladles of the committee to re decorate the inside and for a now car pc pet t to cover nil till the pc pews N s she looked narrowly at selena webb in the 1 buke it round 1 my pen ie III ill remain as it Is 14 4 ild calmly the drew a bre breith till of dismay that tin old merton morton pew peu protested miss lee I 1 know knon it replied serena 1 I should think tint thit when a it inin cares enough for tho the old church he wa was 4 baptized in lit to send solid 1000 1 for repairs it ifould be a it delicate attention on oil the part of the committee t refurnish his old family pew said dr longs wife nife bitterly perhaps mr nir merton would to sec see the old church restored rather than redecorated lie ile must hive irive ft tt der recollections of the old pew with his mothers carpet on the floii and the amp same old hassocks he knelt on oil when a bo hoy I 1 am sure he lie would rit er bee u the tile chancel restored to its n old time beauty rather than done over in the lates fashion slid serena webb edgerl en gerl sneered sirah lee A man as wo smart as dan merton a n man who left a poor young man and Is today it must be up to date lie ile aint no bick hick number she ended nith n triumph triumphing int relapse into slang hed admire to see his hig moneys mones been put to soine u good pur pose iho ille other indies nodded ap approval proal of this statement all till save berena serena webb who was wag gazing wistfully nt at the dim and faded fro frescoes in the chancel 0 go o ou oil u see miss webb dan mer t too oil would be pleased enough to hirt his old fat fattell till ew done one oer new were to have it nil till done b thank givin and then enite him film don down n li hue ii e a regular thanks gI ing over the hull tiling thing said miss lee ice persua sheh my bev will ss as it Is salil ralo na its she site tumid t ward mard the tile door 1 1 I have bild for it ver well returned the other bitingly 1 I 1 it ill take care to let dan merton know that flint a it st sti anger langer I ts ig g comp come to who bo aint grateful enough for his generosity to try to please him film I 1 shall hall let him know herein beren t IN ebb merely bowed politely and through the door once within the gate of her quiet old fashioned garden her straight slim figure relaxed into a it rustle rustic scat seat she clasped lafr white hands behind her annin brown bron head and hurve surveyed tup the low loll iy ay covered house with nith con eye 4 the merton hom stead and the bertou pew peu are tire tho tile possessions of an all eccentric spin spinster ater she mused whim 1 I arst daniel merton dent of tit the cordage trust w riles and command A thit I 1 sell ell blin lih old hom for foran an tin M ali arice nelch I 1 refused beci because lube the u h ae just suits nio ine and I 1 im lit tired fired of wan derlon baan hp he felid scuds t a gift to his church anil anti they demand that I 1 tear fear out the cha churain ch old furni turc ture of the tip merton pen and triai trins 4 foni forni it for or him blin I 1 am ant self lill enough to 1 ill e it a n it I Is and to believe he lie will like it bist loo nut I 1 nu afraid of that D illel merton a roan man who ii ho has risen to such as tip lie must possess a it strength of purpose that will at I 1 list tat prevail unon nivin me to pirt with n etli till 4 charming place with wilb n little sighing lauli laugh she he went into dip me houche house the quilt ault t lion liona which sue with her lir seri tints and tind her tier pets her kinsfolk kins full were ore lim her in lit another distant coun country bere sore DI ling voun yet slip she ns live fire ind she he mas xi as lonel or cepl weeks after that september dit the church lan vas closed for 4 cann cohered the of oil I 1 merlon verton pew ind and protected it from sh vi s of lime little nud and and liter ernin the brushes of de decorato colato 4 I 1 atilo bv br tittle little the tile old eli church took on vii t lien timbers fmc e the kroat great belfry was as repaired and the bell rt haug gray restored the building to like ability ahe the furnace was as bendid and the tile ot bleim an was u as repaired i indoors the warm glow of the old red carpet was as replaced by sober brown bronn pile and und the no newly aly varnished pews n were ere carpeted with the same wit wooden foot rusts rt at took the of the discarded Ld ba bas socks and polished beats bete supplied listeid of thu the comfortable cush cushions lons o 0 abe faint pinks and ted tedi i of tit the old I 1 g a i t va na to t se i a green N alls and hacel it incel it as its ill cry new and bety ny hideous in tin I 1 etre estre nely niely dunom niico iii rol table 1 ilie I lie nuh jv ful and anti the con git guL gatlon gation gai titled at the tile sill ador of ot the sh ibb old the tonii un on rep repairs tirs bent in tit their alport ou on the bunday bt fore chank gling 11 at the line time the mad a it lottor letter from billiel alerton suing that tic he would gladia accept their imitation to the special services or ices on oil dal cold and the diy daiy dawned and anti the tile usual of the day were nere bushul forward that vone might till 11 the ser icea at the church chere was its a rustle of t as its the tile people pe oi gathered i therod in the edillo up in the trout po pen on oil the till right of f thi aisle in alj abc old martun pen pon alth its still till gorgeous turly c arliet and hassocks hus socks sat st renit bebb conscious cloua thit her scat seat n is a blot on the fair in the tile front left hand pew ae sit dr long and lid bis MR wife nife nerous nervously ly na awaiting I 1 t ill the arrival of daniel merton for it na wis nai i under understood stood that the great man mail N was as to be ushered into the good doctors for sober brow bron it pew pen the last bell nas ringing the choir li vas is rubt fing the paces of or their books and the organ was growling a low lon iol ol when nhen there was nits the insist ent blast of a horn and then the soft chug chug of i motorcar it stopped at lit the lilt church church the door opened 1 and then drew it long breath as daniel merton walked up tip the aisle and was as ushered into dr longs sait I 1 or sevenia moments he knelt in and then be he arose and looked about him ns as the 4 ervILe 1 began he saw a strange church and strange people lie ile had bad borne in ill his mind s eye for years past a quaint old church n with ith warm arm red carpet and ganv pews cach furnished according to its owners fance I 1 here wis n is nothing here to remind hini of the past and bis bo hood flood sale the seat sent across the alil there in the tile old merton pew with its ancle nt turkey carp carpeted ted floor and fat tussocks S a slender woman noman with swett serious face bent above aboe her ber look bool that was wag what cinfel merton saw in the tile old deiv where he lie had find knelt when licit a boy 1 I ille he people of F fia ia a lill thin man nian with a handsome face lined with fill care it man plainly dressed as one of themselves thenis elros and thoe alio had known him hini when n bov traca in III hl his countenance a vague likeness to he the ambitious lid of twenty anve heirs be fore alic saw him look loot about the church with nith face race which d did id not clit cli inge tige until it readied reached the old M ilton tit on pew pea they sall aw his big keen e ees eg test on screna webbs face ace and on oil tit the old time tinie furnishings before the thes turi turn ed cil to 10 1 at n sweeping ping glance up and down tile lie nisle at the brown carpet then tin i siw sau him leae his seat tind nud cross file lie aisle and sit down serena webb blushed ind and shared her tier hymn book j w ith him ahe service serice was as long for the good people of if ery cry grateful to thell bLuell cent townsman and und the tile must express their grat gratitude tilde in ill sonorous bon son orous sentences ts tint thit a million mill on alre might 1 3 t it 11 birch S ira it I 1 itu t u sur ea cd the chuich in high nork ork men bad lt its 4 to to it ts origin il diton dc LoratI itlie e scheme und the tile fiorisi 4 inen i ere banking 1 bilms alms about il if e ch tit ailt 1 to think hert benna na ebb should mai mat vs r din morton merton after alldever all never saw him in lit hei let iku till that day mrs long in on ear r that theae old turkey carpet did it sulfated sarah leu lee just to think of 0 him that everybody must carpet their own onn pew to suit themselves SO Cs even old ililda jones has made her tier a hi aided mat for hers lied bush I Is ii i behind the times in me itne villel werton was vi i hi to serena in the garden of his old home honie it alas tho the combination of you nud tho the old pew set in the midst of that hideously decorated kunf hurth ailt it wt jou you sweetheart sw theart that aiole thim izil this crust of motle petting anti inide iii ide me again in feirt ilk the lie I 1 1 1 11 lobe to be I 1 ant in i lid murmured bereni li IJ t 11 iia keep the uld old turk turan birrel dm din it carried you back bm k to ti lahood Ly ty hood it brought oil u airov 4 tin jille to nip und and it has car ried 11 4 inith to it Is n nir mr gh irpel indeed |