Little Susy's Little Servants Part 7

"How many miles do you suppose he walks, Nursey?" asked Susy.

"I don't know. I wish I knew. And I wish I knew how many miles my hand travels in a week."

"Your _hand_! Why, just as many as your feet," said Susy.

"No such thing. See here now, look at me while I sew. Don't you see how my hand goes back and forth with every st.i.tch? And when I make beds, and sweep and dust, and wash you children and dress you, and brush your hair, and pick up your toys--dear me! it's a wonder they're not used up, long ago!"

Susy laughed, and felt quite interested.

"Who told you any thing about that?" she asked.

"n.o.body," said nurse. "Don't you suppose I ever have any thoughts of my own? However, I did see something in the paper about how far a printer's hand could travel in one day, and that set me to thinking about mine."

When Susy went to her mamma she told her what she and nurse had been talking about.

"I suspect your eyes are the greatest travellers you know much about,"

said her mamma. "Think how far they can go; and how many times they move from one end of the page to the other, when you read."

"I wish I knew how far," said Susy. "If Charlie ever comes here I mean to ask him to measure one of my books. He has got such a nice little carpenter's rule to measure with!"

Perhaps the children who read this book would like to know how far the hand that printed had to travel to do it. To be sure, it was not all done by a single hand; but one of the printers has been kind enough to find out how many miles the _hand_ moved when they set up the types, and behold it was nearly 230! Add to this the journeys my hand has had to make back and forth, to and fro, over the paper, off to the inkstand and back again, and you will see that even our little book costs a good deal of labor, and keeps a good many hands from being idle and so getting into mischief.

While Susy and her mamma were talking together, they heard a little knock at the door, and on opening it, they saw Robbie standing outside with a long piece of twine in his hand.

"What does Robbie want?" asked his mamma.

"I want you to mezzer how many miles long my foots are," said Robbie.

Susy and mamma laughed, and Robbie climbed up on the bed where his mamma still lay, though she was now getting well.

"Instead of that I will teach you a verse to say to papa at breakfast:

'Thou hast delivered my eyes from tears, my feet from falling and my soul from death.'"

Robbie learned his verse very quickly, and Susy wanted now to learn hers. Her mamma gave her an easy one:

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path;"

and Susy learned it so easily that she asked for another.

"I did not know there was any thing in the Bible about feet," said she.

"Is there any thing about hands?"

"Yes, indeed. Don't you remember the story of the man with the withered hand that he could not use? Jesus must have pitied him because he had but one well hand, or he would not have healed him. In a few days I hope I shall be strong enough to have you come and read to me, and I will make a list of verses for you. For I want you to see that though your hands and feet and eyes and ears and tongue now seem small things, such as G.o.d would be likely to overlook, He has made them to do great things and useful and kind ones."

CHAPTER VII.

Susy and Robbie were standing at the window a few days after this, watching some boys who were playing in the snow.

"I wish we could go out and throw snow at each other," said Susy. "Can we, Nursey?"

"No, not to-day," said nurse; "for your hands would freeze for want of mittens. I am hurrying as fast as I can, to get some done but I don't know; time flies in this house."

"Where does it fly to?" asked Robbie.

Before nurse had time to answer, the children were sent for by their mamma. They jumped down from the window, and ran to see what was wanted.

"Grandmamma has sent a basket full of things, and I thought you would like to take them out for me," said their mamma.

"Oh! yes," said Susy, "we'll take turns. Robbie shall take out the first thing and I'll take out the next."

So Robbie put in his hand, and pulled out, with great labor, a jar of currant jelly.

"That's for mamma," said Susy. "Grandma always sends jelly to her." She put in her hand and took out a small bundle that had "Robbie" printed on it in large letters. On opening it, out rolled a pair of nice warm mittens, which were marked: "For the little hands that so often, and so cheerfully, picked up grandma's ball."

Susy blushed and the tears came into her eyes. She knew the reason there were no mittens for her. She had often looked displeased when grandma's ball had rolled under the table when she was busy, reading or playing.

Robbie ran and threw his arms round her neck.

"Naughty drandma!" said he.

"Oh! no, _kind_ grandmamma, to try to make my little Susy good," said their mamma.

"Susy shall have one mitten and I'll teep one," said Robbie.

"No, Susy must wait till nurse gets hers done. But I am sure dear grandmamma has sent something for her. Try again, my darling."

And this time there came out six pairs of warm white stockings; three for Susy and three for Robbie, and on the bundle was written: "Grandmamma has not forgotten how many times those little feet went up and down stairs for her when she made her last visit; and so she has knit these warm stockings for them."

"There's something else in the basket," said Susy. "Why! it's a cart, and it's horses, and it's barrels! O Robbie! Help me get them out!"

Laughing and pulling, and trembling over, they at last got the cart and horses out of the basket, and a very nice toy it was.

"I suppose it's for Robbie," said Susy.

"Aunt Maria sent it to him," said her mamma. "Don't you remember she promised she would?"

"Oh! she promised me a work-basket!" cried Susy, "let me see, yes! here it is! O mamma! There's a thimble and scissors, and needle! Now I can sew with my own things. Look, Robbie."

But Robbie was too busy. One of his barrels had broken open, and a host of sugar-plums had rolled out all over the floor.

"O Robbie! give me some sugar-plums, will you?" cried Susy.

"It is _torn_," said Robbie. "Big men don't load up with sugar-pums."