Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-05-17
NEHEMIAH'S PLAN.

"Better take this umbrell, hadn't We ?" sug-
Eested a voice from the shadows of the
dlngy doorway.
Miss Dean looked doubtfully at the COM
bination of faded cloth and uncertain
bones, then still more doubtfully at the
lowering, dripping sky, and accepted the
former as the least of two evils. 1t was a
rheumatic, dispirited umbrella, worn out
by long battling against the storms of the
world. 1t protested sullenly and creaking
-lysagainst every effort to raise it, and when
protests did not avail, it yielded suddenly,
and shot up with vicious velocity, pinch
iing the fingers and eniangering the eyes
of its holder. After that one flash of spirit,
however, it dropped again, and one side
Hoped dejectedly.
other things that fall to my lot," muir
INJURED Miss Dean; and then, with philos-
-ophy she did not always display concern
ing the ''other things" she whirled it
around to the back, where it was at least
out of her sight.
"Ah, Miss Dean!" Prof. Grosbeck joined
her. "Disagreeable afternoon, isn't it:'
The Professor was not as cheering sight
as he might have been had she not already
seen him a dozen times that day passing
in and out of her room, and bestowing
sharp glances through his green spectacles
upon her unruly pupils, But he was just
as gallant. He took her umbrella, and
holding it ever her head at precisely the
right angle to let the rain drip from that
depressed point on her neck, discoursed
eloQuently of a new writer on geology. 1t
is difficult to grow very enthusiastic over
geological strata with a stream of cold
water trickling down ones back, but Miss
Dean made the effort, even though she
hected that whatever the action of water
on the formation of coal, it's action on her
new gray wrap would probably be to ruin
it. Did she not know the scorn with which
Prof. Grosheck would contemplate the shall
low feminine mind that could be distracted
from weighty scientific subjects by the
trivialitieS of dress!
Once inside her own home, however, the
marvellous things ''under the earth" re-
.ceived but slight consideration. She
studied the surface, and found it dreary
:. enough. The dull schoOi-room, the prosy
Professor, the rainy day and diSagreeable
walk were no new grievances. All were
common and familiar. only her WEAKNESS
of them seemed to have eliminated this af-
ternoon. She stood at her window and
looked across the wet street to the row of
buildings opposite. Beyond them were the
sleepy river and the old gray hills, yelled
now By the mist and the smoke from the
tallsmill chimneys which the heavy air beat
back to earth again. She had n fancy that
the atmosphere of the old town beat back
e, erything that tried to rise; she felt inn
patient Of it, fettered by it, though it
was her native air. Her girlhood
had slipped away through sweet
DAYS when she was too happy to no.
tice, through busy days too full OF care for
A, her to think how they sped, and she was
down like one of these gray afternoons that
only grew grayer and drearier until the
night blotted them out? she wondered.
Was there nothing for her but this dull,
tiresofne round? Out in the great busy
world were grand men and women living
beautiful lives and doing noble work. If
she could come in contact with them. il
she could escape from this dwarIed, com
rnonplace existence. and find for herself
the golden opportunity somewhere! She
turned from the window with sudden de-
termination. -
..Why should always stay here, and be
-Drudent and economical, simply because L
have been taught to do so! Megglns," she
said. when the door opened. IL am going
away when vacation comes"
..Sakes,'' commented Meggins, lucidly.
-"Vhere."
Il dot not know yet"
Tom would help her to decide that, she
reflected. Dear old Tom! She did not ex-
meet he would understand her vague I'M
rest. He was content with has place as
oyerseer III the mills; with looking alter
the yvork-people, settling accounts, and
keeping ali the humdrum wheels moving:
But whether he understood or not, he would
help her as he had always done. He had
never failed her in all the years since they
were children together. His watchfui
GLANCE sought her windows daily as he
I,assed to fro and his hand was constantly
leaving some token of remembrance IN the
sbane of choice fruit or a cluster OF flowers
~, Ter sill. And Tom did not care for flow
erS either or she supposed he did not, be-
c.use he never attempted to analyZe or
classify them-though, indeed, he was not
i'm the habit of picking any OF his pleasures
70 nieces to see what they were made Of 1t
-.yaS enough that she liked them. she
.,,,;lad as She remembered what authority
Scr likes and dislikes bore for Tom. he