The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1879-11-28

establishing hlmnelt AZ the same time IL
permanent bschelOrhood at his sisters
A busy, bustling little woman wa.
Ruth Dyer, bubbling over with wit and
affection. Sister and wife to two such
opposite types Of manhood, she stood
between both, tceonciling their differ
ences OF taste and temperament in heI
love and delicate tact. John, though
conscious of q general superiority 70
small statured men who wore spectacles
had yet never found occasion to slight OF
cOnfute his brother-in-law. He felt that
if his unobstrusiyeness had been Q trihe
nearer meekness he should have snubbSd
him without mercy as il was, he con.
fessed q secret admiration for his schol
arly attachments and, in the main, sen
sible views. The minister meanwhile
regarded this blu tering, self.confdent
inmate of his household with q mingled
feeling of Christian federation and IN
disguised envy of his length of limb.
Ruth, with true womanliness, "loOked
up" to each-to John because he was
: taller and stronger and always knew
when to order more wood and how to
regulate her machine; to Frank because
of the rare peace and comfort she could
escape to in the study, when the kitchen
and children were more unmanageable
than usual.
While l have been occupied with
these several descriptions, the minister
has gone on with his books, slowly and
regularly turning the leaves. John,
after turning his daily inside out some
half q dozen times, has handed it to
Ruth, with the remark that "There's
nothing in it," aud is now engaged on
an article in the monthly on practical
engineering.
john" says his sister, with sudden
determination, spriDging apparently
from peru.sl of one of the advertising
columns, "Pll go with you to the city
tomorrow. Scrimp ~ Screw are sellin !
wonderfully cheap. It's just the place
to get my cashmere"
"Um-m.m," responded John, deeply
interested in engineering, caring nothing
for Scrimp's cashmeres. Ruth looked al
him with n half frown ofimpatience, for
which any one will excuse her, who has
ever wanted TO talk and found no one to
listen. She glanced, resignedly, from
one TO the other, and, as if acknowledge.
ing the hopelessness of the case inconti-
nently dumped the workbssket from her
lap TO the floor, and took up Warner
Back,log studies, and was soon as lost to
all thought of cheap dress goods Is her
brother. She knew that by 9 clock her
husbands aching eyes would drive him
to bed, where he would sleep the sleep
of the just until dsybresk. John, who
never sat still longer than an hour,
would, sooner or later, be ready for q
chat; and as talking and mendiDg were
two occupations that did no: in the least
interfere with each other, she might as
well defer the latter short time, and
read another chapter.
True to her prediction, the methodical
minister closed his book at the stroke OF
nine, and quietly took himself of. John
soon arose and stretched himself before
the fire. What was that you were
saying about going to the city?' he
asked. Ruth fingered a moment on the
last sentence, then laid the book aside
and raised the rejected basket.
yes" she said, az think / will "a
with you. / want to make some pur-
chsses, and see the Ellis girls. | mean
to have them here for Thanksgiving"
HesvensI what forp growled John
not that he had any special antipathy to
the Ellis girls, but that he made it as a
point to growl whenever q woman's
name wSs mentioned.
"Why," Ruth returned with spirit,
"people always ask some one to dinner
or else they're asked themselves. Pm
sure don't want to 90 to Deacon
Drone's, and have Frank come home
with headache, and the children scared
and you in a temper, with me smiling
through it all pretending to ecjoy IT,"
"Poor-msrtyr," said her brother
what a pity that Deacon Drone rent
the most expensive pew"
"Oh, hush!" said Ruth, dimly awar'
that the sleeping Frank would hav,
disapproved such q mercenary considera
ton.
$50 you smile and smile through
sense of duty, and not because there i
anything particular funny going on" h
added.
eyes," nodded Ruth. at is w
women who must do all the make-be
levin, as Johnny says"
Hump" said John, turning on hi
heel, and commencing his pace up ant
down the room. cts not 80 very diff
cult, l imagine" Ruth knew what tina
meant, but did not reply. She was no
one to contend for any special merit il
her sex, with any one, much less with
! this brother, whom she knew matched
every hooking speech with an act o.
surrepititious kindness TO some poo
working girl or forlorn old woman. Sh,
wondered not q little that 30 sensible .
young man should spend his days in bit
ter remembrance of the duplicity of 1
girl whom he had fallen in love with OIL
two months acquaintance. If it hat
been q love like hers and Franks now
that had begun in the high school, ant
strengthened through all the succeeding
years, there would have been q show o
reason in it. Ruth would have epioye,
hearing a fuller explanation of the de
tails of that summers experience thsl
she had yet received, but she was no
likely to be grsti6ed, for the hero of tn
romance had taken the very sublim
resolve "neVer to let that name pass hi
lips" Having eased his mind by thi
sarcastic allusiOn to the natural deceit
fulness of women, and thrown of som
of his superfuous energy by his rapi
march across the room, he drew out hi
watch with yawn, and acted very muc
like an ordinary man inclined to drowsi
ness and unaffected with heart memories
"Be sure you get your traps ready i
time," he said, for We 20 on the earl
train, and don't mind any rough thing
say about lovely women Conside
yourself a standing exception"
"Thank you, dear" said his siste
with plsintive occurrences. "Don't fol
get 70 lock the front door,"
The next day Ruth might have bee
seen joining the crowd that was rushin
to Scrimp e. Screws in search of sil
cent calicoes and half-dOllar merino
Meekly she states her request to the ell
CANT gentlemen who met her at the doc
and followed him to q counter attende
by q tall, graceful young woman wit
dark hair and gray eyes. Why is tn
Juno here?" was Mrs Dyer's ment
query, while aloud she asked to look {
cashmeres. While she was examiniI
the different grades, one of the girls wi
was duttering about in a profusion
l gilt jewelry and gay ribbons, seized
: spare moment to run over IN juno
3 counter and inform her in loud whisp
t that she meant TO "treat herself to
e twenty-five cent dinner" Ruth, wi
a had quick ear and tolerable reasonil
;. powers, thought at once of sill the hs
!, rowing tales she had read about miser
= employers and their unhappy victim
= She remained standing with q piece
q ! ooahnnara hatwaan her thunnh and Fo,