Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1884-02-01
EBENEZER GRATH'S WIFE.
BY ~ COUNTRY PARsoN.''

asst; this is the third TINA Eve called
7ou. / believe you are uncommon deaf
his morning." Ebenezer was sprink-
ing his potatoes in the patch near the
house. The bugs were accomplishing
heir destroying work, and nothing but
The Paris green would disco urage them.
1t was a little old house, innocent of
paint, story aud half with leaneto,
great brilliant tres overshadowing the
roof, and the ground in front sharply
descending to the road. It was side
ALL farm facing the east. It would seem
tough tussle with pature to get a living
out of this rocky soil, to say nothing of
The luxuries Of life. Why the very
weeds looked stunted and rocks, rocks,
abounded everywhere. Even Grath
said: sit seemed as if the Almighty left
what few He had over in Jordan. Ii
was mighty hard road to: travel any
how" Although Ebenezer Grath had
never vexed his soul about it, he
would sit in the doorway with his
stump of a pipe, looking of,on the mead
Dws and stream that neighbor Jackson
owned, hour after hour, wondering s'wby
it was always his risky luck to be poor."
The said jackson in the mean time was
breaking up piece of muck which he
had drained, and was going to. plant
with strawberries. "Waste of time"
Eben said, "61dlin' round in an old
muck hoie." But Jackson cleared three
hundred dollars the second year by his
industry. Eben Grath was "shiftless,"
! there is no better word; good natured
but with no gift. He was like the rock
down in the east pasture, rurnbles, no
stability to it. He lacked the fxedness
of the granite about him, his back bone
needed stiHening, he was spoiled in the
fishing without a murmur, but it made
bis back ache TO dig potatoes. He kal-
! ilated he had no call that way.'' There
were four young Graths. Likely chill
dren they were, healthy, we'll formed
and full Of vitality. They had managed
to live so far on a Gfty-acre farm, the
last payment on the mortgage just met,
and at last out Of debt.
Ebenezer Grath had a wife, and that
was an important fact to him. She had
| faculty." a knack for affairs, an indom-
| table push. She was o type Of a GER
| tain class of New England women who
seem to belong to no social circle, but
make place for themselves by the very
aggressive pluck that will not be daunt-
ed. She had 81 good common-school
education; a farmers daughter, she
| knew how to work, and liked to. Ebe-
nezer Grath was q good-looking young
man with some money and she married
| him, the only poor bargain she had
ever made, but this was serious enough.
| The problem Of lite faced her very soon.
She had got to meet it, aud with charac-
! teristic energy she would not allow fate
! to scof her. II you know anything
about this strain Of blood, you will un-
derstand that this woman would not let
60 her grip on life without struggle. If
she died, she woold die in honorable
warfare. She never would strike he:
colors. But what a call it was for pa
| tience, heroism, an iron will. To work
! the farm was one thing, but to make
Ebenezer work was quite another. Even
her heart failed her almost, but Sue
! never let it be known. She had put her
| hand to the plough Of her life, she would
not loo ( back. And so she cast about to
see what could be done with a scrubby
| farm for the support Of all increasing
| family. The children came along fast
| enough, and they brought care, worry
! and pains but this woman had an iron
constitution. She went to deaths door
! more than once, but she would not die
| One day she went to the village, TAX
ing her baby with her. She was quite
| depressed: EbcneZer grew more shift
| less; she was not strong. The interest
on the mortgage would soon be due, and
where was the money coming from? AS
old White logged on she glanced at the
q ff,1roi Hp IT nf tho lxy
| paper. There was something about
| market gardening and the profit of lit
| tie land we'll cultivated. She read it
| with a new interest. So occupied was
she that Deighbor passed her in his
wagon and she knew nothing about it's
Why could she not do something in this.
line? Since the coming of summer
! bQarders to the region there was q mar
ket for such things: She would think it
| over. She had been married ten years
and the fourth baby sat beside her. 1t
had been ten years Of worry and strug-
gle. They had picked berries in sum-
mer and braided hats and Gated chairs
in the winter. They had done any-'
thing that would bring in an honest dol
lar. She had always been interested in
chemistry from a school girl. She had a
special aptitude IN that direction. Agri-
| cultura! chemistry Was somewhat dis
cussed IN the papers; she had once
s aaota This woman s' was ou I TO to
catch hints and follow out a line of
thought to it's practical results. When
f E6en, he said, "Bla oas,''' Jane,
what won't We think of;scan We: contrive
plan to raise vegetables without work."
"You can't raise them on this farm
without brains?" she replied, and fell
into brown study. A day or two after
she announced to Eben she had leased
for five years five acres Of land OH the
flat grown up to trash. "Haint we got
land enough?" he asked in amazement;
"l'n be switched if i don't believe you
daft; Jane Gra.h." "If be youth pay
the DOCTOR" she replied grimly.
That five acres of muck must be cleared,
ami Ebenezer Grath found he must help
if he wanted peace. When Jane had
that set to her jaw he knew there was
no call to argue, and so, with q neighbor
and much grumbling, he set about it. It
was a big chore, but Ebenezer Grath's
wife was relentless, and it was accom-
iplished. And then she had it drained,
s.tsWhat on arth is the use Of planting
hole? ! believe you'll bring me to the
poor house." ST have keptyou out Of it
Tor ten year s." she said sharply.
She got the land 70. twenty five dollars
a year, it brought in nothing to it's own
Ter before; he was glad enough to realMe
IanY thing from il. The drsia pipes cost
.har thirty five dollars The first year
lIiand was broken r.p and she plantbd po-
I s4tatoes, and she realized three hundred
and fifty bushels. The market Has short.
She had an extra fine crop. and Eben-