Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1893-01-06
TIE OTHER MOTHER.


terly. In more aristOciatic part of the
city her screams would have brought many
mothers to doors and windows; but here
she cried on unheeded except by her play
mates, who stood about her with stolid,
speculative faces. Finally woman who
had been busy in the back of one of the
shops heard the cry and came hurrying out
of the door and down the street toward the
little group. She took the child in her
arms and cuddled it against her bosom,
soothing it with grooming words and gentle
touches that one would hardly have ex-
pected from such coarse. rough hands.
The other children stood about in a kind
of wonder and surprise, offering eXplana-
tions.
1--WE amt touched her. Missus, one
observation-disclosures, we amt"
''She jest done it herself" put in anoth-
er; "she alters is tumblin' about, any
how"
The woman was still comforting the
child, and would have taken her back into
the shop with her, had not a woman lust
then come out upon the opposite doorstep
and called to her in angry tones and words,
spTinkled with oatlis, to 'leave the child
come to her-she'd teach her to trouble
folks with her yellngm and "Other folks
had better look out for themselves and not
NEEDLE with her young Onesw Her voice
was thick, however, and her brain dull
from drink, so that she was satisfied when
she had thus delivered herself, and crawled
back into the house when the child was
put down on the pavement again. When
she had disappeared the woman Rugged
the child to her own childless heart once
more, and touched caressingly the tangled
heads of one or two others. Then she
turned and entered the shop again-the
one with the three gilt balls over the door.
1t was unusually quiet there in the shop
this afternoon, for her husbands brother
had gone off to the races for the dav and
her tather-in-law lay in half drunken
sleep in one of the back rooms. She took
up her knitting, which lay on chair be-
mind the counter, seated herself in the cor
ner, and the needles began to click. A
meagre light crept in in streaks through
the dingy window panes, and Swallowed
the curious collection OF objects about the
shop as though 4 ,shed to discover their
business there. = rested on the widows
homely face, sof.ening its rugged lines and
discovering latent sweetness there. She
was Scotch woman, and had the patient,
steadtast blue eyes of her race, set under
brow that in more fortunate and appre-
ciative sphere Of life would have been
termed intellectual.
Hers was strange presence in this place
OF degrading associations and this suualid
street. IL was as though fresh breeze had
Iound It's way into stagnant inland
swamp. She gazed absently about the
shop as she knitted. Many of the objects
That her eyes rested on suggested strange
associations to her A number of musical |
instruments lay on the shelf and orna-
mented the walls near the windows. and
she could see the gentle face of the shah [
oy, starving old man who had brought the
Stradivarius violin that hung among them:
he had died, she remembered hearing. a
few days later. She recoclleted when the
French horn was brought, and knew that
It's owner, young German, was drinking
himself into the grave. Watches and
rings and odd bits of jewelry Law in the
glass case. They were not very valuable.
surely, but she recalled the face of the
young girl who had wept when she had left
one OF the pieces-the ring with the single
pearl, which she said she was coming for
next week." that was three months ago
There were bits of furniture, too; a quaint
carved chalr, lacquered fOot-stool, an old
piano, whose cracked tones with their rel
cs OF sweetness reminded one of the voice
u a NIUE Old prima donna, still struggling
% hold her place in the musical world. A
'lch crimson China Grape shawl hung over
carved oaken hall-stand; and there were
olhe me gowns that had been part of ,,
VI actresses wardrobe. An old musket !
toou against the wall beside these, stiff
Inu sIalght and taciturn, as though it ,
we're guarding them ,
But the XVOnaD ooo.ol 4. 49, ~
hese things as she knitted on. She was
linking of her far-away Scotch home. ..
hat she had left when her husband brought ;
Ter away to America. 1t was only little !
lshing cottage perched on the crags. but !
he longcd now for breath or that salt !
lr, and glimpse of the wild free waves, ,
nd she thought of the kindly faces gath !,
red about the fireplace. But it was not
his picture that filled her eyes with tears '
/ was the emptiness in her arms, where a .
precious burden had lain for 50 short a |
ime-only for that short three months. ,
lust long enough it had been for them to
ROW accustomed to its sweet dependence, ,
% that ever after they would feel the in
'isible presenceAnd look for the warm hui ,
nan touch. 1t was the mothers heart of
he woman, which no life of harshness or
oppression could subdue.
The footballs in the street outside the
open door grew more numerous as the
icant daylight waned. They were tired,
leavy, often unsteady footsteps. Now she
heard them, and now, busy with her
thoughts, she did not notice them. She
was almost startled when a young man,
with quick, sharp tread, turned in at the
door. His step upon the floor tore the
cobweb of memories from her brain, and
with an effort she brought her mind back
10 the present. His manner was nervous
and excited as he thrust his hand into his
vest pocket, and she saw that he looked i'll.
A feeling of pity came over her as she
noted, too, what a handsome, boyish face
it was, not really bad, and not weak either,
as were so many of the faces that came
there, although one could see in his eyes
the unmistakable restlessIess and fever of
the gambling man, who almost always
eOmas sOOnar mr. later tn haunt the DaWn