The Portland daily press., 1886-08-25
poRoTHY's TOBACCO.
BY HELEN FOREST GRAVES.

lOSt.
"You won't, eh?" said Silas Green, red
dening angrily.
NO." said Dorothy, 81 won'tw
"Then guess you and the children will
starve," growled Silas. "Anyhow, / guess
nobody'll feel sorry for you"
''It's all very well to talk about sympathy
and help and all that sort of thing" said
Dorothy Mallard But when it comes to
actual business, I've observed that every
mans hand is for himself"
"But no woman ever made a farm pay"
said Silas Green, sullenly biting the end of a
match.
well, anyway, mean try at it," said
calm Dorothy.
She was not quite twenty, this positive
young female-a tall, well-made woman,
with bright, gray-blue eyes, healthy red
and-whlte complexion and very dark-brown
hair, brushed straight away from her fore
head.
She was no city damsel whose ideas Of life
are limited to six-button kid gloves, opera
matinees and walks on the sunny side of
Upper Broadway, but a straightforward,
business girl, who knew every detail of farm
llO, dllu OOulu bOlA JuoO hhOA A5O Ou6AO W 81
in and carrots come out.
Her father had been complaining, "ssas the
countryfolk phrased it, for years, and now
that he was dead, Dorothy felt new avail
anche of care descending on her. For there
were four wistful-eyed little girls and one
delicate boy to be provided for.
Silas Green and Dorothy Mallard had new
or been regularly engaged, but it was an I'M
derstood thing in tho community that they
belonged to each other.
They had kept company ever since Dor
othy put up her hair behind a comb. And
Silas had perhaps learned to domineer lit
tie in good-humored way. Consequently
he did not approve of this new out-cropping
of Dorothy's independence
I'D marry her in minute if she'd hear
to my way of doing things" said he "Of
course the little girls are old enough to be
bound out. know plenty of good, sensible
women who would give EN- their board and
clothes for the work they would do And as
for the little boy, we would not quarrel about
him. There's lots of odd chores a boy like
that would be useful for"
But Dorothys eyes had flashed indigna-
rangement.
3d." she said bitterly. "Send little Abel
to the workhouse. That's the way to man
age. And as for the girls, it's pity we
don't live in Singapore or Bombay, or some
of those places where they fling all the girl
babies into the river, before they are old
enough to be in the way. | wonder, SilaS
Green what Won take me for?"
SO Dorothy gave up all ideas of married
life, and set herself to work to earn liveli-
hood out of the old farm.
'It's no use my thinking of wheat and rye,
potatoes and that sort of thing" said she.
at would require too much capital and
too many hands. Besides father used to
say that the market was overstocked. I'll
put the big corn lot into tobacco. That's a
crop that woman can handle. Old Jubal
will help me about the curing for a mere
tri1e and I'll put some grape-vines up the
rocky terraces by the south wood, and the
big strawberry field is coming into fine bear
ing this year. I'm glad l set out the young
plants last June, and watered them all
through the drought. And then there's the
young chickens. We never did have such a
fine lot before. Polly, and Chatty, and Bess
and Bell are old enough to help deal; and l
know that little Abel can at least weed
strawberries and help pick worms off the to-
bacco leaves, child though he is. He'll
like to think he's helping, too There's a
deal of ambition in that lad"
Old Jubal was a rheumatic old colored
man who travelled around the country mend
ing tinware and recaning chairs. His lazi-
ness was proverb through the whole neigh
borhood but nevertheless Dorothy Mallard
contrived to get some good, heavy work out
of him.
'If dars anything dis chile Understands it's
de car of tobacco" said old4Jubal. 'Doan
you fret, Miss Dawthy; I'll guarantee de
crop turns out fust BEST.
And so old Jubal TOOK up his residence in
the barn chamber, where he smoked himself
into stupefaction of an evening, and told
ghost stories that made little AbePs f1axen
hair stand on end, between the pipe-light-
ings.
IAN old niger of seventy and a child of
sevenp' jeered Silas Green. ''Well see what
sort of farming that is!'
Dorothy turned short around upon him.
81 believe" said she, with glittering eyes,
'that you would be pleased, Silas,-yes, act
ually pleased-if was to fail in this enter
prise of mine"
''Well, calculate it would teach you
pretty good lesson" said he, disagreeably.
But as time went on, the young chickens
grew as fat as if they had been in Dorothy's
confidence, and were secretly preparing
themselves for the girdiron and the spit; the
ripening Strawberries crimsoned all the field;
the young grape roots stretched their green
tendrils sunward, and the tobacco waved its
monster leaves as if it fancied itself down in
old Virginia instead of growing on a rocky
Rhode Island farm.
The field won such renown that one day
famous cigar manufacturer from Providence
drove up and examined it and inquired for
the raiser.
'Miss Dawthy is de boss" said Jubal.
"Where is this Miss Dawthy of yours?"
inquired Mr.. Mayhem.
''She's done took load OBJ eggs an pOul-
try to town. Massa mus wait"
Mr. Mayhem naturally prepared himself to
behold a raw boned, elderly female with
hide and leather complexion, and elbows as
sharp as the angle of a Virginia fence. His
surprise at the appearance of Dorothy Nal
lard can easily be imagined.
At the end of the season Dorothy balanced
her accounts.
''Well," said Silas Green, who had strolled
up in the frosty night with the inevitable
burned match in his mouth, show much
have you lost?"
81 don't know that it's any of your bust
ness" said she with some spirit.
81 only asked as friend" remarked Silas,
somewhat discounted.
"Oh, is that it? 1 thought it sounded ex-
actly as If you were asking as an enemy"
dryly observed Dorothy. 'Well, of course,
if that is the case don't object to answer
ing. haven't lost anything"
"Just made things meet Ell?
'Plus one hundred dollars" triumphantly
responded Dorothy.
ssGrea+ Scottp shouted Silas. There amt