ll make his livin' in Lancaster city by keepin' a
jew'lry-store. And yet them Mennonites won't leave a sister keep a
millinery-shop!"

"But," Tillie tried to hold her ground, "there's watches, pop, and
clocks that jew'lers sells. They're useful. We got to have watches and
clocks. Millinery is only pleasing to the eye."

"Well, the women couldn't go bare-headed neither, could they? And is
ear-rings and such things like them useful? And all them fancy things
they keep in their dry-goods stores? Och, they're awful inconsistent
that way! I ain't got no use fur New Mennonites! Why, here one day,
when your mom was livin' yet, I owed a New Mennonite six cents, and I
handed him a dime and he couldn't change it out, but he sayed he'd send
me the four cents. Well, I waited and waited, and he never sent it.
Then I bought such a postal-card and wrote it in town to him yet. And
that didn't fetch the four cents neither. I wrote to him backward and
forward till I had wrote three cards a'ready, and then I seen I
wouldn't gain nothin' by writin' one more if he did pay me, and if he
didn't pay I'd lose that other cent yet. So I let it. Now that's a New
Mennonite fur you! Do you call that consistentness?"

"But it's the Word of Gawd I go by, pop, not by the weak brethren."

"Well, you'll go by your pop's word and not join to them New
Mennonites! Now I don't want to hear no more!"

"Won't you buy me the plain garb, pop?"

"Buy you the plain garb! Now look here, Tillie. If ever you ast me
again to leave you join to anything but the Evangelicals, or speak
somepin to me about buyin' you the plain garb, I'm usin' the strap. Do
you hear me?"

"Pop," said Tillie, solemnly, her face very white, "I'll always obey to
you where I can--where I think it's right to. But if you won't buy me
the plain dress and cap, Aunty Em Wackernagel's going to. She says she
never knew what happiness it was to be had in this life till she gave
herself up and dressed plain and loosed herself from all worldly
things. And I feel just like her."

"All right--just you come wearin' them Mennonite costumes 'round me
oncet! I'll burn 'em up like what I burned up them novels where you
lent off of your teacher! And I'll punish you so's you won't try it a
second time to do what I tell you you haven't the dare to do!"

The color flowed back into Tillie's white face as he spoke. She was
crimson now as she rose from the porch step and turned away from him to
go into the