Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1889-12-12
"A NICE OLD WOMAN"
How John Dalton Came to Marry
His WaSher-WOman.
"'Oh, dear.'

''On, dear.
1t was a pretty little face which was
all pucl1ered up into such a lot of wor-
ried little wrinkles; pretty in spite of
the shadow of care in the fair blue eyes,
and the tired drop at the corner of the
girlish mouth. The owner of the face
and the wrinkles and the blue eyes and
the mouth in question was a slight,
rather misunderstanding girl Of about
eighteen, who stood, attired in a faded
calico dress, in the doorway of a small
wood-colored cottage Tor cabin" as
they more truthfully call such edifices
in the mountains) looking out at the
sunny slope of the road before her.
Two fresh-faced smiling girls of her
own age had just gone by, stopping to
say a pleasant word or two as they
passed; and the sight of their pretty,
though simple, lawn dresses and float
ing gibbons had brought, as they de-
parted, those worried wrinkles to the
face that should have been as bright as
theirs, and the impatient exclamation
with which our story begins to her gen.
orally accomplishing lips.
AS a general thing Phrosy Miller (she
was Enphrosyne by rights, through the
instrumentality of her father, who had
found the name in his somewhat limited
reading, and had delighted in it's long
drawn sweetneSs) was a very cheerful
and contented girl in spite of the
troubles and hard work that had come
into her young life SO early; but, just at
present, there was something especial
upon her mind, and that was the COM
ing picnic.
1t was to be in just four weeks from
to-day, and all the girls were going; and
she, who had stayed at home so much
and SO patiently for the last year, felt as
though she really must go, too. But
how? That was the question that
z. brought the worried little wrinkles to
the front so conspicuously. All the girls
were going to have new lawn dresses
land fresh ribbons for the occasion, and
lido up" her blue muslin as best she
could land she was something wonder
full in the laundress line, all her neigh
bors said,) it would not look any way
but old and faded; and her ribbons
well, her small stock thereof had been
cleaned and dyed and ''done over" SC
often that they were merely travesty
upon their kind. Of course new dress
and the requisite adornments would cost
very little, but, as Phrosy said, tersely
but truly: IF diamonds could be bought
for nickel apiece and one didn't have
. the nickel, where would be the comfort
of it?"
Money had been very tight in the
Miller family ever since Mr. Miller's
long illness, ending in his death, ha.
put the little household under load O.
debt which seemed at first simply over
whelming.
Ben Miller-a wild and reckless youns
l. I. 10 y; 60 Nov
we'll and strong and able to care for thu
mother and sister-had steadied dow1
wonderfully and taken the burden o
existence on his shoulders patiently ant
manfully. Mrs. Miller and Phrosy hat
economical in every way, even to thu
extent of taking some of the man
woodchoppers about as boarders, an
they had worked early and late, an
sewed and denied themselves until tn
debt was paid, and the future began t
look little brighter. Then fat
frowned on them once again. Mrs. Nil
Ter, large, heavy and somewhat III
wieldy woman, in going down the back
steps one day made misstep and fell
receiving an injury to her hip whic
made her utterly helpless. Since the
Phrosy had found life harder than ever
Additional doctor bills piled in upo
them: Mrs. Miller, instead of helping a
before. was now as helpless as baby an
so nervously irritable that keepin
boarders longer was an impoSsibilit
even had Phrosy been able to do til
work. So it was that every cent tia
came into the family had to be earne
by Ben; and so it was that the ne
lawn dress. so ardently desired, SCENE
to be among the impossibilities of exis
ence, for Ben's wages were small at be-
and there were at least dozen ways Il
every dollar.
And Phrosy thought altogether TX
much of her patient and kind-hearte
brother, who denied himself so much
keep her and his invalid mother fro
want, to add to his burdens by telliI
him her own troubles.
IF there was only something that
could do myself to earn little money
she said to herself, ssbut there doesI
seem to be. Mother wouldn't hear