El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-05-13
HE FOUND THE WORD.

table that stood III the center OIL tHe rooib,
a perfect monument to uglincss, and With
out unwrapping it or vouchsafing any OK
PLANTATION as to what it was she went into
the alcove adjoining their little parlor and
began to remove the dust and clnders she
always carried home with her from the
down town district.
Her mother regarded the package on
the table with increased curiosity. She felt
it and lifted it and tried to tear off a cor
ner of the paper covering, but she did not
remove the wrapper.
Ruth came back into the parlor at length
and sat down near the window. Mrs. Gull
berson looked from the package to her
daughter and back again in silent agony.
Presently she could endure the strain no
longer.
what did you get today, Ruth9' she
asked meekly.
Ruth turned round with wondering
air, as if not fully comprehending the i'm
port of the query. Her eyes followed her
mothers to the ugly center table, and,
"Oh, that, " she said, with a smile that S
a dictionary
Mrs. Culberson'S dismay could not have
been more complete had she been informed
that her daughter had brought home boa
constructor.
"And what did you get that for,
Ruthie?" she asked.
because needed it, =" returned Ruth.
hazarded her mother.
eyes, sighed Ruth eft cost 9 cents -
Mrs. Culberson APP cared relieved, but
not entirely satisfied.
cit seems to me- Ruthie, " she went on
ENORMOUSLY, ''that a girl who works for
$40 a week, which is the only income two
people have to depeEd upon, ought not
to be spending her money for Il dictionary.
If you had 10 cents TO spare for books,
| why didn't you buy three or four of those
paper backed novels that would he of some
interest to me, instead of a dictionary"
The Culbersons lived in a boarding
house where dictionaries were rare COM
modify. Indeed, Ruth's was the only one
about the house, except Mr.. Winters,
! which was an exceedingly small pocket
edition, that contained only the words in
most common use.
But somehow soon as 1t became
known that there was a large dictionary
| in Mrs. Culberson's room on the second
| floor and that everybody had been given
| free access thereto the desire for knowl-
| edge was given a wonderful impetus
But the person who found occasion to
| refer to the big book most frequently was
MIR. Winter. Mr.. Winter was a grocer
| OF course in his business he daily met
with many terms that required elucida-
| ton. Hitherto he had found the pocket
| edition perfectly satisfactory, but after the
advent of the unabridged dictionary the
much worn, green backed little book sud
| denly lost it's usefulness and never an even
| ing passed that Mr.. Winter did not rap at
Mrs. Culberson's door and politely request
| to ''come in and look at the dictionary q
minute
His prolonged visits annoyed Mrs. Gull
| berson at first. His presence prevented
her scolding at Ruth and as he, himself,
| seemed deeply immersed in scholastic lore,
| thus forbidding opening a conversation
| Wit tha nj 1a6 he
| came seasons of exquisite torment.
| 81 don t know what makes him come
| up here SO often, r" she said pettiShly, one
night after he had closed the dictionary
and gone away. "He's an awful bore. -
Its your own fault he comes" said
Ruth "You invited him."
"Of course I invited him." retorted
Mrs. Culberson. II invited all of them.
| Doesn't he annoy your
NO." she said softly. 81 don't know
that he does
AS the spring days took on the heat of
summer Mrs. Culberson became more fret
| full, Ruth grew younger and prettier and
Mr.. Winter studied still later each evening
in blissful oblivion of the added heat of
the gas jet.
Mrs. Culberson had long since ceased
sitting up waiting for him to go, but babe
him good night and went to bed in the
| alcove.
passed and Mr.. Winter had as yet made no
movement toward going away. Ruth
| watched him closely, she always did
| when he seemed engrossed with the words
before him, and she noticed that he had
not turned a page for more than an hour.
He looked up at length and their eyes
met. Ruth felt her face flushing again
and with the realization of her weakness
the flush grew deeper.
Its pretty knotty problem that
have been pulling over tonight, - he said,
with sigh.
"Couldp' t you find what you were look
ing for?" she asked softly.
81 hardly know. 1 found the word
wanted. Whether it will ever mean to me
what 1 would like it to mean do not
know. Here it is. I have been looking at
it a good deal lately
He turned the big dictionary around till
she could read the line over which his fin
ger rested. There was one word under
lined with pencil and she knew it was
the one he wished her to see. 1t was
spelled love.
is that ever to be for me?' he asked.
The blush had deepened into scarlet
then. For a moment u look of exceeding
happiness TRANSPORTED her face, but a mo-
ment later the old troubled expression
drove it away. She turned the leaves of
the dictionary till she came to the word
mother
"That's all right, " he said, end nodded
toward the alcove.
Away over near the back of the book
her next answer was found.
Ruth, called out Mrs Culberson a
quarter of an hour later, ''what made Mr.,
Winter stay SO late this evening2'
He was looking at the dictionary
MOTHER
did he find what he wanteds" asked
Mrs. Culberson.
eyes, MOTHER said Ruth, sI believe
he did. "-Chieago News.