Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1896-11-26

the birds and the ants, and so not bt
wholly wasted.
Her lamp threw its light upon e
shabby man who shouldered his way
in, much to her terror.
Shut the door, Tempy," commanded
he. Don't you know Your brother
Reuben?" and he advanced to the
! window and drew down the curtain
You don't seem to be very glad tc
see me. Can't you get a fellow some
thing to eat?"
You are welcome, Reuben, for
mothers sake said Miss Tempy
graVely. She set down the lamp and
turned up the leaf of the table. She
quickly made some tea, and brought
out some bread and butter, some cold
fried ham left from her dinner, and
Hopkins.
The man who had been warming
himself before the stove, drew his
chair to the table and ate and drank
greedily. Miss Tempy sat down and
watched him. She tried to think he
"~tAo c'AA 1hlpOoIOI, Jul dS SlIt lOOhcu
the likeness to the old Reuben grew
and grew, and she knew in her heart
that the shamblirg, slouching figure
before her was indeed her brother.
At last he laid down his knife and
fork with a sigh of satisfaction, and
came over to the stove again. How
long did the old man live after | left? p
hn ocIyo 81
Mother, too, l 'spose?" She nodded.
Then she rose, looked into the tea
kettle, went down cellar and returned
with washtub.
You must want a bath after your
Journey" said she. She brought out
soap and towels and hung some cloth
ing by the fire. These things were
fathers. 1 will get you some as SOON
as I can. Your room has always been
kept aired and ready"
Then she shut herself into her bed
room and sat down and shook as with
an ague. After while, when she had
heard him go UP the kitchen stairs, she
went back and gingerly gathered up
everything he had taken off and
carried it out of doors and hung it up.
THE air and frost will sweeten them
some" said she to herself. Then she
restored the kitchen to it's accus-
toned order, and went to bed, where
she wept instead of sleeping. And
tomorrow was Thanksgiving day!
Seen by the light of day, in clean
clothing and a loose coat his father
had been accustomed to wear about the
house, with his hair and beard prop
erly arranged, Reuben looked rather
more prepossessing than on the pre-
ceding evening. But Miss Tempy
found it very hard to reconcile this
aging man with the boy she remem-
bered. She asked him few questions
about his wanderings, and he vouch-
safed little information except saying
that he had been in that indefinite
locality, "out west" ever since the
war He certainly had brought a
healthy appetite with him, and it be-
came speedily evident that the Sunday
dinner would not be furnished from
the remnants of the Thanksgiving
feast.
She could get him no clothing on
that day, for every store in town was
relfgiously closed, but as soon as pos
sible on the following morning she
went out to purchase a supply.
Guess they must be going to send
off a home missionary box up to the
orthodox church, remarked the cloth
ing merchant, to his wife. Miss
Tempy came in and brought a lot o
stuff Don't know how she knew the
size, but she seemed to-" She had
measured the old suit in spite of her
repugnance to touch it.
Great was the surprise in the village
when it was known that Reuben Bax-
ter had really come home. A new
genera ton had grown UP since he
went away and to them he was an old
man. But there were plenty among
their elders who RENE mbered him, and
spoke little good of him. They spoke
even less when they found he replied
surlily to questions and jokes about
his long absence. He made no effort
W. ObId1u "Olh anu c1C ClIc1I cCcoo1j III
the year it would have been hard to
procure it. Once Miss Tempy asked
him what work he had been aCcus-
toned to do and he replied with short
laugh, ga little of a good many
things"
He certainly was not an agreeable
inmate. His disposition was sullen
and uncertain. He grumbled at the
quality and qua nifty of his food and
made frequent demands for money.
Miss Tempy supplied his wants as best
she could, though they made SAD in
roads upon her means and she was
obliged to curtail her charities. But
her mothers injunction was ever with
her and she tried hard to ''be good to
Reuben.
She complained to no one, but it was
not necessary. 1t was soon plainly
apparent that Reuben Baxter was
worthless vagabo1d, if nothing worse.
Summer passed and autumn came
agan, and Miss .Tenpy had aged visi-
bly,. That her fathers name should
be dragged in the mire in the very
community where he had lived his
honored life, cut her to the heart. No
one Jared to pity her openly, but she
read peoples sympathy in their faces,
and it was humiliation unspeakable.
Reuben seemed lost to all sense of
shame. He used to threaten to go
away again or to consult a lawyer and
claim his share of the property, but in