Claiborne guardian. [volume] (Homer, La.) 1877-188?, 1882-01-11

full mean job for man to impose
upon any woman, and / might have
saved her lots Of scrubbiug of oil
cloths and washing of tenders If
had been particular never 10 spit Oil
EN-. I've sometimes thought may
be she was triiie too nice, but
see now how unhappy and misera-
BILE I'd be if | was compelled TO live
with a slatterDly woman who hadn't
pride enough TO keep things tidy.
Home wouldn't be home to me il
Kate had been dirty, careless wo.
man like NOrah. And yet, all these
years I've been making labor for
her by my COMPOUNDED carelessness.
| suppose it is a modification, just
as she says, 10 have strangers look
on her as careless slovenly house.
keeper, when she tries very hard to
have things nice. Many's the time
she's logged in heavy buckets of
water when her back was aching
terribly, while I've been sitting by,
reading. She never could bear TO
see the yard Uttered up, aud !
shouldn't wonder if her sickness
wasn't partly brought on by carry.
ing away those heavy planks that
I'd been promising her for two
months to take to the barn. al.
ways intended to do it, but some.
how I've forgotten, though I'd rath.
er have got up out of bed at mid
night aud done it than let her strain
her poor weak back by carrying EN-
herself. That's the way it was with
fixing up the ash hopper when she
wanted to make soap. She asked
me at least a dozen times to do it
for her, but some how | never got
at it, and so at last she got discour-
aged and did it herself. When a
mans got an ambitious, energetic
wife who takes pride in her home
surroundings, lie can't do her a
greater wrong than TO throw cold
water on her efforts and be a mill
stone in the way"
The approach of an old farmer
friend living short distance down
the road, who stopped his horse at
this moment TO inquire after Mrs.
Birney, put an end to the husbands
bitter reflections.
"You have nice place here" oh.
served Farmer Doyle, az he glanced
at the vines and rows OF bushes III
the yard at the rear OF the house.
"Your wife took sight of comfort
in cul,ivating this little patch of
ground before she got sick. used
10 expect TO see her nearly every
time ! passed in the morning just Az
regularly as | expected to see the
house itself standing there. Some.
tunes she was digging around the
vines and shrubs aud sometimes car
rying basketfuls of earth, or may be
she would he working with her bees
IN there in the hives under the
trees, or making new beds for her
flowers, or trimming of the grass
with her sickle. ! nsed often TO
tell her it was too hard work for
her to be bending over that way to
cut the grass, but she never seemed
to mind it particularly; | suppose
it was Just her energy and determi
nation to have things complete that
kept her up. Yes, you've got a'nict
place, Birney. 1t don't look much
AS it did when you moved here.
remember | nsed to think it wonlt
take a good deal Of money to fix it uI
and make it salable, but here youl
wife's Just gone ahead and, without
any expenses, has made it blossom
as q rose, and to day it would bring
double as much AZ you paid for 1t
tell you, neighbor Birney. jus
these little improvements that cos
only labor aud care, are the best in
vestnents u man eau make, and thu
kind that adds to the value OF prop
erty more than costly buildings
Id rather have your little HON
with its cheerful porch, covered witt
that iQueen of the Prairie, an,
your shady front yard and choic
small fruits, than Mr.. Buckland'
big, bald looking house over ther
with it's mansard roof and colore
glass, and not a vine or flower I
, be seen, and weeds as high as
u mans waist. Ii they had you
improvements, it would he the mos
, desirable place in this part Of th
country, but they've lived there Sc,
en- years, and 30 far as can SCI
they bavnt much else but mustar
F, stocks and burdock to show for it.
Every word that the farmer spok
{ in eulogy Of his property was sta
' to the conscience. smitten Birpe.
for he realized, what he had nevt
done before, that to his strickel