The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-01-08
Mothers Day.


She was n woman of about sixty
the wife of Pennsylvania farmer
There was not Il picturesque or unusll'
al point about her; she was tall, lean,
and round-shouldcrcd. Indeed, us she
walked with long, looping strides from
the Kitchen to the cellar, the cow-yald
or the wood. shed, she bore an absurd
| likeness to the gaumt hound that fol-
lowed her.
Her day was not eventfdl. She rose
at four in the morning, and made up
the fires in the stoves. Her husband
and sons were asleep. ''Men,' she
said, "hated house work" She did
not call the girls until breakfast was
nearly ready, because "young things
needed sleep" She milked five cows
before the sun was fairly up.
The farmer, his five children and
two-iarnl hands sat down To breakfast,
and she poured out the coffee and bai-
ed the cakes which they ate. After
they had finished she ate her own
breakfast, if she cared for any. Then
came washing or ironing or scruhbing
or baking ultil it was time for the
heavy noon meal which she cooked.
Her daughters used sometimes to help
Il little, but in an idling halt-hearlcu
way. Sometimes she would drive
them out with Il queer pathetic smile.
"Ioung folks like pleasure. They
ought to have their fun! !" she would
say.
There wus the morning work to fin
jsh after the dinner was over. 1T was
Il large farm, and the men were hearty
eaters. She "laid down" great uuanti-
tics of meats and canned and dried
vegetables.
After supper was over, everybody
culnd some recreation but mother.
The farmer smoked, the young folks
visited the ncighbors or gathered ut
one end Of the porch cliattcrlng and
laughing. Mother was inside ut work,
sewing or with her great basket OF
stockings.
She would look out at them smiling.
"Thcy like their fun" she would
say. She locked at them again some
Times iS if, old Us she VAS, she would
like some fun too, but she never joined
them. They were with the friends
whom they had made At college and
school. Mother had been very little ut
school when she was young. BESIDES,
she llai no time for idIing. Some
times when she was making shirts for
the bows: she worked until midnight.
One evening her youngest girl read
her a story, which she thought would
suit her mothers intellect. 1t touched
and pleased her greatly. She spoke OF
it for year afterward.
One of her days WAS like all the 9TH
ers, except the Sunday, when she had
time TO 90 10 church. She was very
ha, py there, but especially when they
SANG any hymn which she had known
Us Il girl; shc would join, scarcely
above her breath, for she knew her
voice was cracked.
When strangers remarked that she
was growing thin, her children re-
plicd that it was no wonder. Mothers
energy would wear the flesh from any
woman's body. Her appetite failed,
the very smell Of the salt meat and
cabbage which she cooked nallScated
her. Size used to listen eagerly when
they talked OF the fruits which could
hc bought in the city. But nobody no
ticrd il. "Mothrr' had always been
the motive power, which had kept the
whole machinery in motion. 1t never
occurred to anybody that the over
could be exhausted.
One day, however, when they came
down to breakfast, the table WAS not
spread, and the fires were not lighted.
For the first time in her life, when she