, 1890-09-25

ing snow III Breht urlitS across the
path. We enter the kitchen
without the ceremony of rap.
ping. A neighbor woman il
moving about softly, and by tho
stove sits man, his elbows on his
knees, and his face buried In hIs
hands. / know who 1t Is. it Is Joe
Black, big, clumsy, good natured
Joe Black, always laughing soft.
chuckling laugh that makes him
shake all over. But no does not
even smile now as he returns INV
mothers greeting. After removing
our wraps we go into another room.
II Is long and narrow, with Frank.
lin stove on the side, II corkscrew
staircase at one end and a bedsink
Mt the other. Some one is lying ON
the bed, but can not see who 1t Is.
for the sheet Ia drawn up over tho
face. Mrs. Skinner sits by the pil.
low, her pinched, sallow face look.
ing wan and haggard; her thin grey
hair Is tightly twisted into u little
knot, and secured with something
that resembles huge darnine
needle. She wears I'm ugly, iii.
fitting dress of llnsey, and round her
paunt shoulders Is short worsted
cape. Her twin sister, and exact
counterpart, Ardilla Schroom, Is
there, and big, fat Mrs. Wrinkle,
whose ponderOus movements cause
the very walls to- tremble. l look
from these unattractive women TO
nv mother, with her bright eyes.
clear complexion and trim figure,
and NV heart gives u quick throb of
childish delight that she Is my
mother.
There Is brief, whispered con-
versation, then Mrs. skinner goes
into the kitchen, Ardillu up the
corkscrew stairs, and my mother to
II big rocker that seems piled with
pillows and blankets. She cautiously
lifts corner of the latter, discover
ing to my astonished gaze, n small,
red norsel of humanity. II
wrlggles and makes such horrid
contortions am in II panic lest IL
wiring its own neck. After looking
ut il a moment my mother covers II
again, tucking the blankets around
/ it carefully.
Presently Ardilla returns, her
arms full of linen. There ARE sheets,
pillow slips aud women's under
clothing. As she shakes them out,
some withered sprigs fall to the
| floor, and the room Is full of the
stale odor ofsweet clover.
Then they uncover the person on
/ the bed, and | see 1t Is Lucinda,
/ Mrs. Skinner's daughter, and Joe
Blacks wiIe, but looking so strange
and white | am awed and fright
encd.
Then there Is quite stir, and
great going in and out, with scraps
of conversation, and | catch the
words, "Shroud," ''funeral,"
"whte ilannep and "baby.r
Meanwhile they are bathing
and dressing Lucinda. This done,
they carry her into what know Is
the "best roou," | wondering why
she Is so helpless. Presently my
mother passes through into the
kitchen aud returns with Mrs. Skin
ner and Joe. Something in their ST.
lence and wOe.begone looks fills me
with namelcss dread In sheer
desperation cling to my mother,
with difficulty suppressing the de-
sire to scream, and we follow them
into the parlor. IL ia dark and Bit
terly cold. As my eyes became ac-
customed To the dim light | see Lu.
cinda lying on something stretched,
between two chairs, Mrs. Skinner
beside her, and Joe on his knees, one
arm lying across the pulsclcss breast,
his face buried in the pillow beside
the still white one, his burly frame
shaken by sobs; aud all around Is
the odor of sweet clover. The 81.
lence seems full of horror, the dread
in my heart becomes q terror, the
inclination To "set up a howl" Is
beyond my control, and, with u
loud wall bury my face In my
mothers skirts. At my first out
cry, she takes me to the other room,
wipes my tears and soothes me rs
only mother can. The creaking
of the floor announces the approach
of Mrs. Wrinkle.
"Dretful hard on Mis- Skinner,
aint it?" she says in her asthmatic
half whisper.
"Ies," replies my mother softly.
"She'll bo dretful lonesome 'thout
Lucindy, and she's the last, the last
o. 'leven, That's dretful big
family TO hev a-lyin' in the berrln'
"Ycs," says my mother with a
deep sigh.
Don't see what Mis- skinner was
IA thinkin' on to let her marry Joe.
she knowed she was consumpted
like all the rest. She might
knowed she couldn't stand IL to hev
babies aud raise family. Perhaps
it's jest as well; folks that's con-
sumptcd can't live long no how.
There's that baby, she'll hev that TO
take keer on. Mebbe IL III keep her
from broodin' and thinkin,.
There's Joe, he do take 1t drcti tiul.
Amt ct nuthin' scnce Yesterday
breakfus'; didn't even lay down
last night; jest goes round in that
stunded sort o. way. ! don't ike
) II; faint natteral. II he'd go on
and make rumpus I wouldn't 10
G half so bad. Mebbe the baby's q
+ good thing arter ull; he'll likely
r take to II, and children Is IL sight o
comfort TO IA body sometimes"
My mother only repeats her soit
"Nes," but feel her clasp tighten
. and her cheek Is laid to mine.
Years afterward remember see
q ing an old man going about leading
n child, A quaint little figure. her
+ linsey froclS reaching to her ankles,
pantalettes of the same materlm
quite covering the tops of her coarse
+ shoes. Her thin light hair tightiy
+ braided in two little rat-tails,. the
/ ends turned up i'm knots and se'
/ cured with IL supertluous quantly