The Sully County watchman. (Clifton, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1894, 1893-01-07
THE x|vTH CHAPTER Of JOHN.

The warm spring sunshine lay in a
white patch on the kitchen floor
through the open door and lilac bush
nodded its purple plumes just outside.
A tall. straight, noble-looking girl
came in from the garden with spring
ing step and hung her sunbonnet by
the door. Then. pausing moment
before a small mirror, she brushed the
smooth masses of nut-brown braids
and tidied the neat folds of her calico
gown. Evidently she had been hard
at work.
Bring me some of them laylocks,
Hester" said the invalid.
Her daughter obeycd. and as she
laid the fragrant clusters on the snowy
pillow she bent over and kissed the
face SO worn with suffering.
Seems like it has taken me so long
to get the washing done, mother, but
Mrs. James little baby burned her
hand-that was while you were asleep
and they sent for me to dress it, be-
ing as the little one made such fuss
and wouldn't let any body else touch
her. And that's what put me back SO.
Now. what do you want me to read to
you?"
As she talked Hester had been
smoothing the pillows about her
mother, and had gently placed her in
new and easier position, and now she
was seated beside her with the bible
in her hand.
Il guess you can read the fourteenth
chapter of John, Hester. It's been
runnin' through my head the whole
time this mornin'. In my Fathers
house are many mansions"
Hester looked up quickly, and her
eyes-witb a new and troubled shade
in their hazel depths-rested on the
branch of sweet lilacs
Don't you want them where YOU
can reach them, motherp" she asked.
Seems to me they are sweeter this
year than common"
Then she began reading, very slow
ly: Let not your heart be trou bled ;
ye believe in God. believe also in me.
In my Fathers house are many man.
sions; if it were not SO / would have
told you. | 60 to prepare place for
you, | will come again and receive
you unto myself; that where / am
there We may be also. And whittier
60, We know and the way ye know"
Here she paused for SO long that at
last her mother broke out with the
petulance eXcusable in the sick:
We'll. / do think you might be
willin' to read to me anyways! |
won't be here much longer to bother
you"
"No, mother, it isn't that" returned
the daughter in her smooth. calm
tones. for she knew her mother was
aware of her Willingness. Il was
thinking about something I've often
wanted to tell you. And this morning
tit all works together so-the wash
ing and the lilacs and the reading this
that guess will tell you now Do
you remember Eben Havward?"
"Eben Hayward! Why. he's been
gone from these parts nigh ten years
ago."
Yes, ten years ago tomorrow"
And the younger woman sighed. She
was more than a girl in years, yet she
was young. "And he came to tell ME
goodby that day just as | had got the
washing out. | remem ber we were
expecting Cousin Johns family to visit
us, so | thought I'd be little fore
handed and look over my Sunday
school lesson, being as ] wouldn't have
much chance again before the next
Sabbath. So | took my testament and
sat down on the bench we used to have
out there under the lilac bush and was
studying the lesson when Eben came
around the house and sat down by me.
He said he was going west that night;
his father had given him $50 to begin
on, but he didn't know then just ex-
actlv where he would settle down. If
you remember, he was an awful bash
full boy and after he said that much he
just sat there, red and simple-like, till
he spied the testament in my lap.
".I'll read you little scripter afore
CO. says he. trying to be funny, but
he was all in tremble and had a
good mind to laugh And then he
opened to this chapter and read down
this far when he quit and looked at
me to see ii took on to his meaning.
And when he went away I'd promised
to wait for him until he came back"
And then there was another long
pause.
"And that there was the reason YOU
wouldn't ever keep company with no.
body!" said the mother, finally. IN q
softened voice. "And didn't you never
hear from him, Hettie?"
"Only once-I got a letter from him
when he got to Kansas City, but none
afterward. And scme way-I hated
to tell you until it come out all right,
for-for you know folks say that the
Haywards are shiftless and all that,
and Eben was just like his fathers
folks. And couldn't say any differ
ent so long as ! didn't know positively
anything about him."
The girls eyes were full of tears. |
"'And if | 60 and prepare place for
you," she repeated softly. Il will |
come again and receive you unto N.Y.
seh, that where am there ye may be
also" And the whole heartache and
longing, so long suppressed, burst
forth in passionate sobs as she knelt |
beside her mother. Presently the
clock struck l. and she arose to her
feet and dried her eyes and again
smoothed her hair
In 60 get dinner now," she said,
trying to control her voice rs there
anything you want, mother?"
Mrs. Long shook her head. and as