The Canton advocate. [volume] (Canton, D.T. [S.D.]) 1877-1897, 1881-05-26
NABBY'S HUSBAND.
4 knock aft the tsOuire's door.


A knock at the squire's door.
An eager "come in" from the squire,
to whom any outside diversion is an in
estimable boon, he having just reached
that uncomfortable stage of masculine
convalescence when life becomes a bur-
den not only to the so-called "patient"
himself but also to those unlucky femi-
nine relatives whose duty it is to Off
ciate as his administering angels"
Mary, the servant, came in.
"PIease, Mr.. Hosley, there's woman
downstairs who says she must see you.
She's been here to see you before since
you were sick, and now she won't take
no for an answer"
"Show her right up, Mary" said the
squire, alertly, Frightening up visiby
like the war horse who scents the battle
affair off. Not all the cozy comforts of
his surroundings, the "Sleepy-Hollow-
ness" Of his chair, the pleasant pictures
on the wall, the wood fire which now,
that the wintry twilight was settling
down over the bit Of grey sky, left Wis
ible by the curtains heavy folds, danced
and flashed all over the room in rosy
shadows, could not reconcile the squire
TO his endorsed seclusion. Secretly he
pined for his dingy old den of an office,
and chafed at the doctors restrictions,
which as yet forbade all thoughts of
business. But now the moral police
force, represented by his wife and
daughter, being luckily off duty, there
was nothing to prevent this probable
client.
"Show her up, Mary" and the
squire cheerfully Strengthened himself
and assumed as much of legal dignity
as dressing-gown and slippers permit
ted
Mary disappeared. Presently the
door opened again. "Why, Nab5y,"
said the squire, "is it you? How 90
you do?'
eyes, squire it's me-" said Nabby,
dropping down with a heavy sigh into
Il chair, land / don't do very we'll"
Nabby was short, squarely-bullt
woman of fifty, with considerable gray
in the coarse, black hair drawn stiffly
and uncompromisingly back under a
bonnet about fifty years out of date.
She had sharp, black eyes, and a reso-
lutte, go-ahead manner; yet in looking
at her you could not help the convic.
ton that something more than hard
work had plowed the deep wrinkles
which ran across her forehead, and
threatend to lift her eyebrows up to her
hair. Nabby had lived with the
squire's mother fifteen years from the
time when Mrs. Hosley took her in, a
ten-year-old orphan, who was, as the
good old lady sometimes expressed it,
"more plague than profit" until she
grew into the steady and reliable hand
maiden who finally, with every ones
good wishes, married young Josiah
Gould, and set up in the world for her
self. Old Mrs. Hosley had long since
gone to her reward, but her family still
kept up friendly interest in Nabby
and her fortunes, the squire in partic.
ular being for her "guide, philosopher
and friend" in all the emergencies OF
life.
"Why, what's the matter now, Nab.
by?" said the Squire, good-naturedly.
care you sick?"
eyes, am" said Nabby, emphati-
caily, with 81 snap of her black eyes.
"I'm sick to death Of Josiah. [ can't
STAN it any longer, and I've come to
talk with you about getting divorce.
You see he's been a grown worse and
worse now for a good while. I've kept
it to myself pretty much because ! was
ashamed ont, and then kept hopin'
he'd do better. I've talked an talked
to him and said and done everything a
woman could, but it seemed as if the
more talked the worse he grew
The squire looked at Nabby's rather
sharp, hard face, and perhaps was
hardly so SURPRISED as Nabby expected
that Josiah had not been reformed by
the talking to" he had undoubtedly
received.
"He grew more and more shiftless
and good for nothing" continued Nab
by, "till finally he didn't do much but
sit around the kitchen fire, half booty
If there's anybody hate" burst out
Nabby, "it's a man forever settin round
the house under foot. And there was
a-takin' in washin' and shaving early
and late to be kinder decent and fore.
handed, and him no better than dead
man on my hands, SO far as helping any
was concerned. And so l told him, time
and again. He worked just about a
enough to keep himself in drink. He
knew he couldn't get any of my money
for that But I stood it all till about a
fortnight ago. I'd been working hard
all day helping Miss Barber clean house,
and it seems that every bone in my
body ached, l was so tired. I came
along home, thinking how good my cup
of tea would taste. Then first thing !
see when l opened the kitchen door
was old Hank Slater settin, there IN my
rockin' chair. He and Josiah were
both trunk as-hogs," said Nabby
slandering an innocent animal in her
haste for smile,