Stevens County tribune. (Morris, Minn.) 1877-1880, 1878-08-22
RUTH.

just Us he uSeU 10 WneH he was UOy,
after he had been rompiny and racing
over every Hill within a mile of home
until he had worked himself up into a
fearful state of perspiration, and then
had set down to rest and get cool. The
next day he was sure to feel anguish, and
dull, heavy pain would find every par
ticular bone in his body, and all that he
wanted was to lie Gown on the bright
covered lounge by the fire, and have
mother sit by him and give him drink,
once in awhile, from the cup of mysteri-
Gus tea which he had used to believe was
sure panacea f; + all ailments his flesh was
heir to. Just so he felt now. His head
ached; and every little while he went off
into series of terrific sneeZes which
seemed TO threaten utter demolition to
the top of his head, and the poor little
plaster sheperdess on the mantel, for she
went into a jngling paroysm every tine,
probably from some mysterious and oc-
cult sympathy which he hardly compre-
bend.
Dear me! such a cold as / have
got!" growled David Reade, kindling
fire in the little stove, while his teeth was
fairly chattering. "Itll keep me tied up
to the house for week. just as like as not,
and ought to be down TO the store every
day"
He got the fire to burning at last, and
pulled up the hard, uncompromising old
chair, which was one of the three or four
articles of furniture the room contained,
before the feeble blaze and tried to get
his feet warm.
But poor David couldn't get warm, nor
feel comfortable. Cold chills crept up
his back and down his legs, and regular
~, every fifteen minutes, as if he were
run by clock work, and marked off the
quarters, he kept up his sneezes, and the
sheherdess danced her jigs on the very
edge of the mantlepiece to their accom-
paniment.
Seems to me never felt quite so mis-
erab bic before, "groaned David with shiv-
er. Seems to ne, too, that this room
looks little the worst ever saw" and
he looked about him with great deal of
dissatisfaction written on his face.
It was bare little room. There was
no mistake about that, David Reade.
There was bed in one corner, and the
chair he occupied; bureau that had
amalgamated with wash-stand, and be-
came rather nondescript article of furn-
iture in consequence, and his trunk.
Yes, and there was the stove, and little
shabby old table that had been so weak
in the legs ever since he had known any
thing about it, that it had to have the
corner all to itself in order to have it
stand up at all.
He was head bookkeeper il great
store down town, and he saved quite a
sum of money. Sometimes he thought he
would get a more comfortable room, and
furnish it nicely, and get some good out
of his earnings. But he hadn't any faith
in his ability to keep things looking Or
derby and neat, for he abominated an I'M
tidy, Uttered room, and he wouldn't have
the chambermaid putting things to rights
for him on any account. That would
spoil every thing. for it would seem like
sending out and hiring home at so much
a week to have some one who was paid to
do it keeping things as they should be-
so he had never carried out his plan, but
had continued TO live on in his cherries
bachelor quarters.
Dear! dearI how do ache !" growl-
ed David, getting up and pacing up and
down the floor. "a fellow doesn't feel
the need of home so much when he is
well, but when he's under the weather
lie begins to wish he had somebody to
care for him and nurse him up"
A ray of light flashed across the dark
ness-for by that time it was highland
made bright spot on the wall of his
room. He went to the window and look.
ed across the way. The light shone from
the attic window of u tenement house
He could see into the room from which
it shone, and it revealed pretty and pa.
thetiC little picture, to him. A woman
sat at little table, copying. A great
MANY pages of manuscript lay beside he1
elbow, and he knew by the pile before
her that her task would not be done fol
hours yet.
1t was very pretty face that bent owe
the paper. Not girlish face, but it hae
a sweet, grave kind of beauty in it, ant
from the forehead, shown like gold in tn,
lamplight falling on it. 1t was a poo
little room that she worked and lived in
as far as David could make out from tn,
glimpse afforded by the window, but i
was wonderfully neat one. He knew
that, for he had often watch her SWEEP
and dust it, and put things deftly in thei
places. Yes, he, David Reade, bachelor
had been guilty more times than h
would have liked to confess, of watching
his neighbor across the way.
He stood there tonight and watched
her until his feet seemed to be standing
in a puddle, and the cold sbiyering sen
sation In his bones armed him that h,
had better be trying to warm himself a
the fire than be watching Ruth Doane
The last look he got of her was more salts
factory than any previous one had been
for she looked straight towards the win
dow. David drew back as if he felt SUR
she would discover him watching her
and then the light of her lamp seemed Il
get tangled up in the rose bush in he
window, and he dragged his achinl
body back to the stove and sat down.
Sat down to think and dream.
What he thought about was Rutl
Doane, and what he dreamed was this
In the little glow which came from tn
crack in the stove. door, the whole room
seemed suddenly changed into scene O
comfort, that to David Reade stood 70
type Of heaven, because it was home
There was soft, warm carpet on tn
floor. and lounge, whose curving side
seemed made to embrace somebody an,
for nothing else in the world, stoo
where the table stood In the room tina
he was sitting and dreaming in tonight
There were bright, CHEEKY pictures o
the wall, and bird slept in cage i
the window, where half dozen bio:
soming pants grew, vigorous and greer
n -