Chapter 43
chapter forty three of eben holden this librivox recording is in the public domain recording by roger mleene eben holden a tale of the north country by irving bachelor chapter forty three the north country lay buried in the snow that christmas time here and there the steam plough had thrown its furrows on either side of the railroad high above the window line the fences were muffled in long ridges of snow their stakes showing like pins in a cushion of white velvet some of the small trees on the edge of the big timber stood over-drifted to their boughs i have never seen such a glory of the morning as when the sun came up that day we were nearing home and lit the splendour of the hills there in the land i love the frosty nap of the snow glowed far and near with pulsing glints of pale sapphire we came into hillsboro at noon the day before christmas father and uncle eb met us at the depot and mother stood waving her handkerchief at the door as we drove up and when we were done with our greetings and were standing damp-eyed to warm ourselves at the fire uncle eb brought his palms together with a loud whack and said
look here lizabeth brower i want to hev ye tell me if ye ever see a likelier pair o colts she laughed as she looked at us in a moment she ran her hand down the side of hope's gown then she lifted a fold of the cloth and felt of it thoughtfully how much was that a yard she asked a dreamy look in her eyes why why she continued as hope told her the sum terrible steep but it does fit splendid ought to wear well too wish you'd put that on if you go to church next sunday oh mother said hope laughing i'll wear my blue silk come boys and girls said elizabeth suddenly dinner's all ready in the other room beats the world said uncle eb as we sat down at the table ye do look grand to me remarkable grand both of ye take a premium at any fair ye would sartin has he won your affections said david laughing as he looked over at hope he has said she solemnly affections are a singular kind o property said uncle eb
ain't good for nothin till ye've givin em away then like as not they get very valuable good deal that way with money too said elizabeth brower i recollect when hope was a little bit of a girl said uncle she used to say it when she got married she was goin to have her husband rub my back for me when it was lame i haven't forgotten it said hope and if you'll all come you will make us happier good many mouths to feed uncle eb remarked i could take in sewing and help some said elizabeth brower as she sipped her tea there was a little quiver in david's under lip as he looked over at her you ain't able to do hard work any more mother said he she won't never have to neither said uncle eb don't never pay to go lookin for trouble it's too easy to find there ain't no such things trouble in this world lest ye look for it happiness won't have nothin to do with a man that likes trouble minute a man stops lookin for trouble happiness'll look for him
things come pretty nighse ye like em here in this world hot or cold or only middlin you can neither laugh or cry or fight or fish or go to meetin if ye don't like every one you can find fault i'm on the lookout for happiness suits me best some way an don't hurt my feelin's a bit every day's a kind of a circus day with you holden said david brower always havin a good time ye can have more fun with yourself than any man i ever see if i have as much hereafter as i've had here i ain't a-goin to find no fault said uncle eb a real splendid world god's fixed it up so everybody can have a good time if they'll only have it once i heard of a poor man that had a bushel o corn give to him he looked up kind o sad an asked if they wouldn't please shell it then they took it away god's givin us happiness in the ear but he ain't a-goin to shell it for us you an lizabeth oughta be very happy look at them two children there came a rap at the door then david put on his cap and went out with uncle
it's somebody for more money elizabeth whispered her eyes filling i know tis or he would have asked him in we're goin to lose our home her lips quivered she covered her eyes a moment david ain't well she continued worries night and day over money matters don't say much but i can see it's always on his mind woke up in the middle of the night a while ago found him sittin by the stove mother he said we can't never go back to farmin i've plowed furrows enough to go around the world couldn't never go through it again well said i if you think best we could start over see how we get along i'm willin to try it no we're too old he says that's out of the question i've been thinkin what'll we do there with bill an hope if we go to live with em don't suppose they'll have any hosses to take care of or any wood to chop what we'll have to do is more'n i can make out we can't do nothin we've never learnt how
we've thought that all over i said we may have a place in the country with a big garden well said she i'm very well if i am over sixty i can cook and wash and mend and iron just as well as i ever could uncle eb came to the door then bill he said i want you an hope to come out here an look at this young colt o mine he's playful as a kitten we put on our wraps an went to the stable uncle eb was there alone if ye brought any christmas presents he whispered slip em into my hands i'm goin to run the circus to-morrow an if we don't have fun o plenty i'll miss my guess i'll lay them out in my room said hope be sure an put the names on em uncle eb whispered as hope went away what have ye done with the boilers i inquired sold em said he laughing barker never kept his promise heard they'd gone over to the berg an was tryin to sell more territory i says to dave you let me manage em an i'll put em out of business here in this part of the country
so i read out an advertisement for the paper read about this way for sale twelve hundred patented suction wash boilers any one a can't stand prosperity an is learnin to swear will find em a great help if he don't he's a bigger fool'n i am nothin in em but tin that's worth somethin warranted to hold water well you know how that editor talks tweren't a day before the head man of the boiler business came and bought em and the advertisement was never put in guess he wasn't hankerin to have his business spilt uncle eb was not at the supper table that evening where's holdin said elizabeth brower dunno said david goin after santa claus he tol me never see the beat o that man was the remark of elizabeth as she poured the tea jest like a boy every christmas time been so excited for a week couldn't hardly contain himself ketched him out in the barn the other day laughing like a fool said david thought he was crazy
we sat by the fire after the supper dishes were put away talking of all the christmas days we could remember hope and i thought our last and far away best of all and no wonder for we had got then the first promise of the great gift that now made us happy elizabeth sitting in her easy-chair told us of christmas in the olden time when her father had gone to the war with the british david sat near me his face in the firelight the broad brow wrinkled into furrows and framed in locks of iron gray he was looking thoughtfully at the fire uncle eb came soon stamping and shaking the snow out of his great fur coat cold night he said warming his hands then he carried his coat and cap away returning shortly with the little box in his hand just thought i'd buy this for fun said he holding it down to the firelight dumbed if i ever saw the like of it whoa he shouted as the cover flew open releasing a jumping jack quicker'n a grasshopper ye ever see such a sassy little critter then he handed it to elizabeth wish ye merry christmas dave brower said he ain't as merry as i might be said david
know what's the matter with ye said uncle eb searchin after trouble that's what you're doin findin lots of it right there in the fire trouble is goin to get mighty scarce around here this very self-same night ain't goin to be nobody lookin for it that's why fer years you been takin care o somebody at i'll take care o you long as you live sartin sure folks they said you was fools when you took em in man said i was a fool once always had a pretty fair idea myself since then when some folks call you a fool it's a rather good sign you ain't you've waited a long time for your pay ain't much longer to wait now there was a little quaver in his voice we all looked at him in silence uncle eb drew out his wallet with trembling hands his fine old face lit with a deep emotion david looked up at him as he wondered what joke was coming until he saw his excitement here's twenty thousand dollars said uncle eb a real genuine bank check
jest as good as gold here tis a christmas present for you an elizabeth and may god bless ye both david looked up incredulously then he took the bit of paper a big tear rolled down his cheek why holden what does this mean he asked that the lord pays his debts said uncle eb read it hope had lighted the lamp david rose and put on his spectacles one eyebrow had lifted above the level of the other he held the check to the lamplight elizabeth stood at his elbow why mother said he is this from our boy from nehemiah why nehemiah is dead he added looking over his spectacles at uncle eb nehemiah is not dead said the latter nehemiah not dead he repeated looking down at the draught they turned it in the light reading over and over again the happy tidings pinned to one corner of it then they looked into each other's eyes elizabeth put her arms about david's neck and laid her head upon his shoulder and not one of us dare trust himself to speak for a little
uncle eb broke the silence got another present he said it's a good deal better'n gold or silver a tall bearded man came in mr trumbull hope exclaimed rising david and elizabeth brower said uncle eb the dead has come to life i give you back your son nehemiah then he swung his cap high above his head shouting in a loud voice merry christmas merry christmas the scene that followed i shall not try to picture it was so full of happiness that every day of our lives since then has been blessed with it and with a peace that has lightened every sorrow of it i can truly say that it passeth all understanding look here folks said uncle eb after a while as he got his flute my feelin's have been touched hard if i don't have some jollification i'll bust bill brower limber up your leather a little bit End of chapter 43. Recording by Roger Moline.
