New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1893-01-04
MARTHA PHILLIPS.

She was dead. Old woman with
silvery hair, q sad, quiet face; a
patient mouth with lines that t i'd of
sorrow borne with gentle frmness;
and two withered, tired hands crossed.
That was all.
Fifty years she had lived under that
roof, q farmers wife. On her coffin
you will see aged TO-" and she was
only 20 when John Phillips brought
her home q bride.
A half century she had kept her
careful watch over her dairy and
larder, had made butter and cheese
and looked after the innumerable
duties that fall to thes share OF a farm
er S wife.
But underneath her quiet exterior
there was a story that John never
draemed OF. She did not marry for
loye. When she was 10, a rosy,
happy girl, g. stranger came on visit
to their village and that summer was
the brightest she ever knew Paul
Gardner was the strangers name; he
was an artist, and fell IN love with the
simple village girl and won her heart;
and when he went away in the autumn
they we're betrothed
Il come again in the spring" he said.
''Trust me and wait for me, Matte,
dear"
~ e.
him till the end Of time if need be, and
with a kiss on her quivering lips he
went away.
Springtime came, and true to his
word Paul returned; he staid only q
day or two this time.
II am going away in a few weeks to
Ita y to study" he said.
He put a tiny ring upon her finger,
cut q little curly tress from her brown
hair, and telling her always to be true,
he went away.
The months went by, and Matte
was trying to make the time seem
short by studying tie improve herself
SO that she might be worthy OF her
lover when he should come back to
make her his wife
One day she glanced over newspa-
per; her eyes were attracted by his
maine, and with white lips and dilated
eyes she read OF his marriage to all
other.
An hour afterward as she sat in the
twilight, she heard a step on the gray
Fl walk and looking up saw John
Phillips coming up the steps. He had
been to see her often before but had
never yet spoken OF love, and received
no encouragement to do so.
Now he seemed to have come for the
express purpose OF asking her to be his
wife; he took chair beside her and
after the usual greeting, reserving
scarcely a moment to take breath in,
began in his business-like way. There
was no confession of love, no plead
ing, no hand-clasping, no tender
slances; he simply wanted her; would
she be his wife?
Her lips moved to tell him she did
not love him; but as she let fall her
eyes from the crimson-hearted rose
that swung from the vine over the
window she caught sight of those few
lines again.
The decision was made. Her cheeks
were ashy pale as she looked up into
his eyes and answered, quietly: eyes,
will be your wife"
Her parents were pleased that she
was chosen by so-wellto-do young
man; SO it was settled and they were
married during the summer. People
thought that she sobered down won,/
derfpIly; more than that, nothing was
said that would lead anyone to s1p-
pose that any change had taken~place.
Two years went by. A baby slept
IN the cradle, and Martha-no one
called her Matte but Paul-sat rock
ing with her foot as she knitted q blue
wooden stocking for the baby's father.
There was a knock at the half-open
door.
"Will you be kind enough to direct
me the nearest way to the village?"
said voice, and a stranger stepped
in.
She rose to give him the required
direction when he came quickly for
ward.
"Paulp'
"Mattien' .....s...s,.
His face lighted up and he reached