San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-05-19

cumb, waving away the SuggeSJlon.
brought it along with me from home.
Cold chicken and SANDWICHES and pickles
and cheese. Don't you bother your head
about me, Vinie."
Miss Mayhem heaved sigh of relief.
"You can go right up chamber, Marthy.
You know the spare room, of course,
and its all ready except airin and fresh
water"
Mrs. Whitcumb took her bag, shawl
and umbrella, stepped out of the room
and closed the door behind her. Miss
Mayhem was quivering from this rude
contact of her delicate being with force,
in the form of her sister-in-law. Every
nerve in her body, as she expressed it,
was off the hooks, each jumping its
own way" But her sense OF hearing
was more acute than ever. Since she had
been tied to her easy chair in her pleas
ant, old fashioned sitting room, she had
lived mainly through the ears. There
was red spot on either thin cheek now,
as she listened to sister Marthas heavy
step and the receding creak of her boots.
Mrs. Whitcumb did not go up the
stairs to the front chamber, but without
ceremony walked into Ann Baskets
kitchen 'to talk me over" thought Miss
Mayhem, and she was angry and tremu-
lous, for her sister-in-law had not allud-
ed to the state of her health nor asked
question as to how she found herself.
She knew Sister Martha had no faith in
nervous diseases-laughed the whole
pack of them to scorn, No intangible
form of illness took any hold on Sister
Martha's sympathies, and Miss Mayhem
could have sobbed as she sat there feel
ing like an unmasked imposter under
the Lash of her sister-in-law's harsh
Judgment. All the lectures Martha
would deliver about exerting herself and
taking exercise and living in the open
air and going to see the neighbors came
ND before her, and she shuddered in an
| ticipation.
Mrs. Whitcurnb stepped on to AIMS
kitchen now, and opened the door with
| more gentleness and consideration than
| she had shown to her sister-in-law. Ann
| was a person to be conciliated, while
| Vinie Mayhew was of but secondary i'm
| portance in the household. Ann was
/ standing before her kitchen table
secured to the whiteness of chalk. She
was of middle height, spare, bony,
angular person, with prominent Shout
der blades. sharp elbows, lean brown
arms and large knotted wrists and
hands Her hair was iron gray, smooth
ly brushed back from a narrow fore
head, etched with hard straight lines as
if done with the point of an iron instru-
ment. Her blue print dress and white
apron were spotlessly clean, and the
thick white cotton stockings showed
above her low shoes. Ann Basket had
little eyes, like gray pebbles, wide apart,
and her thin lips were generally puck
cred close as if unwilling to let out the
hoard of important secrets that lay just
behind them.
Ann claimed the supreme merit of
minding her own business and of ruling
her own domain with rod of iron that
brooked no power behind the throne
the summer kitchen, the winter kitch-
en-, the cellar, woodshed, garden and
orchard. Over the remainder of the
house she claimed only to exercise the
rights of suzerainty and partial con.
troll. 1t was barbarian territory to be
tidied daily and swept every week, but
still outside her absolute sway.
In one respect it was an advantage tc
Ann that she served an invalid mis-
tress; there was no "snooping" around
in her kitchen and asking of vain and
|, irrelevant questions Ann was making
cup cake, studded with large raisins
and to be baked in little tin patty pans
, There was clear fire in the stove, ant
the butter and sugar, -four and egg
, were all ranged on the spotless table
From a side window in her palace Queer
Ann had seen Mrs. Martha Whitcuml
arrive; had seen 10 Spaulding, the hack
man, bring in Mrs Whitcumbs trunl
and deposit it in the hall. Ann had no
taken her hands away from the cake
!, for she was person to be sought. no
i to seek; besides. she was not in the hes
u of humor.
Ann divided all Miss Mayhew's Wis
itors into "satchel folks" and "trunl
folks" The satchel folks she did nc
;; mind so much They only staid on
: i night, or at longest two, and when the
= were well out of the house Ann coul
: easily slip the company sheets and pi
low cases off the bed and press ther
= over with hot iron. and nobody woul
y be the wiser. But trunk folks meant a
- extra bout of washing and cooking an
cleaning, and Ann, who was a method
:. ical soul. objected to them as paint
= element of dislocation in her daily lif
~ Mrs Martha was notoriously trun