The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1892-06-04
A BEGGAR WOMAN.
The Kind Deed That Crowned a
Broken Life.

A strong breeze, sharp with the cold
suggestion of coming winter, swept up
from the bay and tossed the creal1ing
boughs of the old button woods that
stood along the roadside until they
labored in the wind like ships at sea.
The last of the fog was just disap-
| pearing and curled fiercely up from the
woods and waters, rolling away in
great, sodden masses. In the north a
long line of snow clouds were sluggish
| ly moving forward. There was some
thing gpeculiar-almost sinister-in their
| slow, heavy formation, and the weather.
wise fisherman off shore watched them
uneasily and began to draw in tackle
and make preparations to seek harbor.
On the land the farmers shook their
heads and hastened to get the last of
| the pumpkins and apples under cover.
| OF their own accord the cattle left off
| grazing and sought the barnyards.
| Now and then stragglers from some
frightened flock of wild geese flew
| toward the south in anxious search of
| their mates.
Near the end of one street of the lit
tie fishing hamlet was weather beat
en-, wood colored homestead of one story
and a loft, surrounded by a fence al
| most as old as the house itself; but as
one passed through the gateway and up
the grass-grown walk into the smoke
| painted kitchen the poverty of the out
side surroundings was forgotten in con-
temptation of the profusion inside.
At least this seemed to be the case
with the little old woman who hobbled
painfully up the path to the half open
kitchen door. There she stopped irreso-
lutely, but the savory smell of cooking
was irresistible, and she pressed slowly
forward into the low doorway. The
| kitchen was fragrant with the odors of
the Saturdays baking; from the stove
at the far end of the long room came
cheerful sputtering and kissing and over
it women bent in impatient suspense.
Her back was toward the door, and she
did not notice the great hungry eyes
that were fastened on the loaves of
bread and the. pies and cakes and
cookies that loaded the pine table.
Such profusion made the wistful eyes
CLEAN and the withered form tremble
with eagerness. But she did not venture
to cross the threshold.
On the floor two children were play
ing. They had watched the woman's
approach with childish curiosity. The
youngest rose to his feet and toddled
toward her. After gazing at her a few
moments with his big, wondering eyes
he held up the cookie he had been nib
bling. She hesitated, then took it and
ate it greedily.
The boy laughed and went to get an
other but at this moment Mrs. Barten
looked up. Her face was flushed with
heat and veXation. She was about to
speak sharply to the children when she
caught sight of the bent figure in the
doorway, and her wrath was turned.
OF all things she hated beggars the
most. During the summer months
many of them drifted up from the
neighboring Sc aports and proved con-
stant source of loss and veXation to the
fishermen and farmers. Mrs. Barten
had suffered with the rest, and as she
turned from the stove her lips were
drawn sharply over her strong white
teeth. She did not see the wistful eyes
and patient smile. What she saw was
a covering bcggar with some outland-
ish kind of head covering and ragged
shawl closely drawn about the slight
form.
"Well?" she said, in sharp, inter
rogative tone.
The old woman shivered as though
something had struck her, but her face
remained perfectly blank.
"A furriner"
Mrs. Barten sprang forward and
drew the children from so dangerous a
presence. To her foreigner seemed
all that was dangerous and depraved.
A sudden sputter recalled her to the
stove, and by the time she was again at
leisure trace of her natural kindly
disposition had come to the surface
Taking a generous handful of cookies
and one of the loaves of bread, she re-
turned to the door. But the old woman
had already passed the rickety gate and
was hobbling slowly down the street.
Mrs. Barten looked after her regret
fully.
II wish I'd a-give her suthin'," she
muttered, as she replaced the food on
the table. but lands sake alive" She
| coHIlnucu, DrlSkly, a1Jer a moment s
thought, why sh'd feel sorry? Like
as not the old tramp was jest spying
round arter suthin' to steal Most like
ly she'll have dozen snacks gin her
before night. Here you, Rob m
Liza, come back to the house this min
ute, and don't you dare go trapezin' out
agin!' And with mind at rest and
conscience satisfied, Mrs Barten re-
turned to her compounds of fragrant
odors.
Slowly the afternoon wore away; the
pies and cakes and cookies disappeared
from the table and were replaced by
pans of crisp doughnuts and heavy
spherical loaves of brown bread, with
raised lines encircling them; with plat
ters of juicy meats, Drowned TO the
critical point of perfection, and fianked
with dishes of yellow pumpkin and
white turnip and scarlet cranberry. AS
the table became crowded these ip turn