New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-11-06
NATHAN WOODS LOVE STORY
BY FRANK POPE HUMPHREY.

ing. They lay in six parallel graves in the Oh"
IL was a family tradition that they all had been
remarkably handsome babies, which fact IL u was
fact, made it all the harder that Nathan @ u
have been so ugly. Tie was so ngH 4 T. ;zhctb :
familiar friends but behind her back OF couise'
'Iizbeth had "a most unmOtherly perception Oh
Nathan's ugliness, and though sne owd not helm
sometimes audibly lamenting that Asa, WIZ i''
such pretty black eyes or Nehemiah wnoSrl ;"n
curled so beautifully or Asaph whose comp ho
such fine pink and Whlte' hau noV
She sometimes qualified her remarks upon ms Is
ugliness by some such phrase ei az aoodp at which
times he felt that he would gl9oy Pr won nonId
considerable portion of his goodness II ne couio
only be little llandsomer ,o. ~, that ucIiness
He never questioned the fact OF tIlat ueilheSSe.
lie had examined his face too many times III .he
looking-glass TO do that. Bristlng carroiS nan,
small light blue eyes with reddish iui obscmrcd
by fTeckles, made up "A combination ,i.aV; ~ mo-
the partial eyes Of the owner couid ho1 w pa
nounced handsome. or even mouei"'e'S e''N
looking all, Whom
He was as awkward as he was ugly men nnt
spokcn 10 he was all hands ana fcet nc uiu nuu
know what 70 do with either. lie was nlMat 10
knocking things down. of which fact Llzoc'n
never failed querulously TO remind MN. :, .ha
Had there been any cheerful family III .me
peiQhborhood with 4 motherly woman 10 hasc
made allowance for his awkwardness. ana WET ,"st
he could have gone Familiarity his character nS n
not have taken the hopeless twist when was III
eyitablc But there not. A.,
lie never forgot the day when he trod upon t ,
pet cat of the three Miss Thinkers: ana tnoreuH
earned their eternal enmity Nor his %er
upsetting of Miss Calvln's mlLk-palS "po" "''
sYou are the awk'ardest boy ever SEQ in my
iife" screechcd that termagant, ana tie ,'o'nii
est and your rooms bettern your company.
These were the Iearcst neghbors, thiee-qua iVIs
of mile away: and after those experiences
Nathan kept away from them b0th. .eo,si,;,o
And so he grew up, solitary lad oversensi'.hho ~
and shy. with that miserable shyness when Is inc
result Of morbid self-consclonsncSs ,o.,,.
But there came day when Matnnn y, ioo LIS
good or i'll, ceased to be of importance 70 ms his
mother A day when she thanked God. after her
rather qucrulous fashion. that she had 50 goQu u
to lean upon 1t was tns a onS Tying having
allen under the wheels oil MS own nay C"IS an - ~
was coming In laden from the field; lie nag OF 0niy
time to say; as they aid MN on tnv vour r mother
wSen a merciful unconsciousncss overlook him, IN
which he died .
Nathan had loved his father But he was IS. a
man that spoke little and his COMPROMISING ucar
as il was to his son. had been silent one me
two would hoe or plant together for nan Gay
with hardly word spoken Get fSoimc sG n regard to
Nathan's looks. But he rarely commen'ed ,. 9p1h
them, or upon anything. in fact, that llzot In
chose to say or do He desired peace , sToI b,bv
hovs he had lost 10 quarrel with her somewhat
pecvish memories of them The trahsngula aoi'en
that death works is too common INN. ~ houId
~ronder in any thoughtful mind. That II shouId
have changed 'Lzbcths rather PLAIN 1aoles dnro
cherubs of the Raphael type was n1'n1hg word
aSam was yA f@r his boy Nathan Hes all we've
oot left. mother and faint for us 10 unoerva!uue
him There amt better boy livin ana as 70 ,b ,s
dead. they're with the Lord Ana whao NV
would "a ben if they'd lived, nobody knows but
Him"
The morning after the funeral Nathan was up
early His father had told MN 10 take c@ iio ~
Hoxn sentiments in regard to that duty, he di9
the thing that first presented itself lie kn otee
the fire. hung on tine leaheeh o lU' on m" 70 boil
Those were household offices Vhat hls Iatnei a.TaS
did, and he was now TO take ,i,at -, IurA. ,ho
place he did them also: linen ne TOOK uo"" '"0
nails and went out TO milk.
'Iizbeth came out from her bedroom havln.
passed wtkcfu and anxious night Inc sis io
OF the fire, however, ana the cheeriuI nov os r'
comforted her She stepped about. making the
coaee and setting the table, laying out the
dishes upon the shiny oilcloth cover ,,,.;,.
When Nathan came in with the mix pans;
and asked in his fathers own voice, Shali
strain II, MOTHER" she went mp to nm anu
kissed him-a thing she had not done SIM since ,h ne
could remember, and which so startled HIM that
he came near dropping the pals ana ~ Is
difficult not 10 speculate as to whether ihA5e.i :
ncwly-awakcned affection woHld have stood me me
strain had he given this additional proof OF his
awkwardncss
He strained the milk, washed his hands and
sat down TO the breakfast Of smoKed herrlngs,
potatoes, brown bread and coffee lie sat III lie
usual place while his fathers was empty.
As Lizbeth looked over at the empty place shc
wept silently, and the tears cropped INTO neil
coffee as she essayed TO drink. She began 10 pee
n potatoe but, dropping the knife and fork on 70
her plate with loud catter, she put her apron
to her eyes and leaned back in her chair; ,.o
Nathan chokcd. and was afraid thai he was 20
ing TO cry too. But "a herring-bone merclinly
came to lis relief by getting across ms throat
and bringing a fit Of etrangling. which SEM nun
md. nol q
'Iizbeth's mind from her sorrow.
Put your plate in your fathers place, Naty,
she said as he came back cant bear to see n II
chair. sat down in his fathers old place with his
back TO the tall clock
You're the very pictur' of your father, Naty,
rhc went on land he was gO0d-lookln man
md n good man AS ever breathed. lie Thought
he was dom all right when he put thar morgige
on to the farm, and | never blamed nm muc n
wouldn't never hear a word ont, and I'd oughtn I
10 spoke about it. but somehow II seems as though
twas father himself settn there bu, s h hara
him die and be left wilder, and have TO sell the
old farm, where I'd lottcd upon lIvln' ana dyi1
Oh it's hard" And with this old, old cry OF the
heart the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly
with me-" Lizbeth's tears again began TO flow, anC
she leaned back in her chair with her apron tf
Sell the farm" exclaimed Nathan dropping
knife and fork in his turn, and looking over to his
mother. What have you got to sell the farm
for z"
why. didn't I tell We, Naty, there was a
morgige on it?" replied Lizbeth, pccvishly
Father had paid off half ont already, workin
his fingers ends to the bone for them as didn'
thank him lie put II on for your Uncle EbcnezcT
him that went 10 lilo Jest before Asa was born
Twas for his Gt-out, and there was great promises
about what NE was gon 10 do, and how he'd pay
father somethin' handsome over N above tho
morgioe when he'd made his FORUM But M
sooner ID he get there than he died. and we never
re hide nor hair of that fit-out And father had
II n,.I nhnlN- I'M hnNy "a
nan worked and shaved TO do il. And killed
eettin' in the very hay that was goin' towards
the int'rst, and somethin more. 0 dear! ,
For moment or two there sound in the
kitchen save 'Lizbeth's sobs and the slow. meas
ured tick of the old clock. Then Nathan spoke.
How much Is the morcicc. mother? ?"
al fcrf, fhrac Ill est