The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1894-11-07
The WOMAN
WHOM THOU GAVEST.
A REALISTIC STORY.
BY FRANK IRONS.


their part toward it.
This man was not idle; he was not prof
igate; he was not foolish-Sut he was not
prosperous. He was a farmer and, in the
beginning, owned some rich acres. He
thought that he farmed well-he did farm
diligently.
He sowed his seed and it grew. There
sprang from the earth crop of beautiful
green wheat blades; in little while they
became headed wheat plants and the yell
low of maturity bgan to show. In an hour
the clouds seemed to burst over this wheat
field and great hail stones beat the grain
into the earth The crop was destroyed,
the years labor of the man gone.
Then. a spark from passing locomotive
set fire to his house and it burned. He
spent half of the value of the house at
law and gained nothing; SO that his money
was i'll spent.
He was married. That should have COM
pensated for much i'll fortune. He had
children, that should have settled for
more
The wife was the daughter of farmer
who was the son of a farmer. She was
born on the prairie, in the sod house
which her pioneer father had built when
the country was new.
Her "oduca ton" had been looked after
little and she able to read, to write
and TO discuss. She looked at things from
her own point of view, OF course; and she
argued without definitions. People who
have mere pretensons do that If the
methods Of Spino..a We're adptcd there
would 10 less Argument.
Tho ".craGcs are very low, so that it is
not sayit,, much to say that the woman
vas above ;Ee average. The children DO
not mattcr much here, except the eldest
nam ~! : sa.,, lovely girl, aged r. This
wos TIC fan.,s Peter Jetfries, Martha,
his VIC .;lG Susan his daughter, with
some sInailer children not counted.
When TIL loJSe burned down and his
la"- c1!.i ia:!. 2. Ictcr was much cast down
Martha -n6trsi NJ him. was her habit
He Should i...-e had INSTRUMENTATION was
true-:1G 10 houid rot have failed in the
la. SINH winch failure w&s hot hi; fault
pcos I>.oU san. who was a sensible
girl, gave lr word OF sympathy to her
father @Gt for this was torgued dashed
by the iaott.r
YOU'D he'a4 slliftless as be is, when you
GO 20 'oi2..; +" Yourself" said the irate
mother = never could abide shiftless
IL 5Pis. Whatever ! married Peter Jeffries
Tor / don't kGoW; for he always "a
never IL Wei"
u hitch speech Lad a smack of truth in
it aa to Peters continued turn at not do
h5 wei. it wasn't The fun truth for he
h&d saved and got together the farm
wherein the family resided; but the wo-
man Cid not consider that. If sEe had
ben II i Httle n.ore prosperous clCss, she
woG'i E:ve cnv:e,l thosc N thu rank
above and would IL 70 complained as she
did rCu. If IL, had Laen the possessor
OF a III Il,Cn sne Wolld have thought a
million rothne ana made loud lament be
c2uS. Nta Two Millionaire had more than
she Al i ! nos at all improbable that
Sic would have regretted poverty, if she
c9sid klNc thuUght Of nothing else 10 re-
grct.
Meantime Peter was struggling, suffer
inG. CortriIim% to rebuild his house
I'm not going to live in a little stuck
up sharty, | can tell YOU that Martha
sad.
'''Fhc other house was small enough and
lnhandy enough. conscience knows. I am
not gons to poke mys-lf into den, just to
please somebody"
But my dear said Peter from whom
JOB misht arm no.,, if that an n,
life in this time, ''if do the best l can.
you Will have to be satisfied You know
that if l could [ would build palace for
YOU
''Oh, yes / know about the palace" said
she; mighty little likelihood of you ever
building anything like palace Other
people do; but then. of course. other people
have ideas of pleasing their wives.
''You don't care for that. You want to
stick all Your family into a wretched little
hut where there isn't room to turn around"
What could he say to that? What reply
can be made to appease the unreasonable
lanSuags Of ~ envious and wrathful Wonl-
an?
his credit little further to meet the re
quiYements OF his wife, and working away
to get the home nest made again.
When ii was finish d Trey moved in
There was everything the matter with it
according to Martha.
"Such cubby holes Of rooms. And Il pins
floor in the dining room: l am sure nc
girl would eyer work in that kitchen, and
l wouldn't lut dog in the place YOU have
fixed for her to 81 ep.'
# nor
withstandinG his consultations with her al
every step in the building proceeding.
And of all the furnituren'
1t was better than Peter could afford in
is circumstances in the present and with
his prospects for the future: but his wife
had made so much comment. had compla in
Ell and gfUmpled SO much about the matter
that the credit was again pushed to m ct
her desires and requirements.
SO they weYe fixed up again; but in debt
with crop mortgage on for the next year.
Ola Gay there came Il man to the back
door; there had been a conversation be-
tween this man and his companion on the
road u few minutes before:
81 say, Jack" the one had said, Il am
goin up to the house TO pull their leg for
duSsy. Flop in the grass over there and
kip until / come back ard IN see if 1 can't
get humps foT BOTH
"All right pard,'' said the other. "Id like
to chew before | drill furder.''
The American tramp-"industrials, these
called Observation-Disclosures a dialect of thej,
own. Not all ''industrals are tramps anC
not all tranps are ''irdustrials' but Jack
Brant and Jerky Mont were tiNmps with
ribbons pinned to their rag signifyine
they belonged to the "Coxey army march
ing to Washington.
Jack Brant had once been John Bryant:
JSrky Mont had once been Gerald Mont
vile. These men had not fallen from a
great cmncnce in the social scale during
their own life time. II lad taken more
than one generation to bring tn m down
They bad once been worllingmen but they
had long ceased to work
I'm rot grating now IerIey had said
that day to D woman who wanted him to
saw some wood for Il meal. TO have spol1-
ell correctly after the manner Of the West
ern tramp, he should have said Kidding
instead Of "graftins;'' that being applied to
Woodsawing. the other to work generally
Jacks application at the back door OF
Martha Jenlies had been successful. Mar
tina herself had come to the door and had
supplied his wants generously. He had told
her of his companion lying over in the grass
and lunch had been provided for both
way1arcrS.
They wek. lying at ease, eating. The
woman watched them from the window
She was putting them in place She was
weay wing = romance of which tattered Tacl,
was tie hero.
1t IS curious that she did not see clearly
his bloatcd features. made weak through
lack of discipline. and because of criminal
indulgence. His walk was a souch his
garments were fitted to cover a scare-crow
He was unkeInpt, unshaved, dirty and dis
agreeable.
In nis own image?" We'll. if SD it was