The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1898-02-01

had to stay that night, to keep AIMS
tremors company with her own, which,
after all. was why she came over.
But when il was sunny and only a
soft southwest breeze signing through
the old garden. Rhody's heart was as
light as the wings Of the birds that had
that old garden all their own way. 1T
was a spacious place, long since run
wild. here and there Il bed Of Old fash
Toned flowers or pOt-herbs that Rhody
gave the little care they needed saving
the lunches of sage and mint ana balIn
AM pennyroyal. for she was already De
coming the village nurse: mt mere AT
odd times she sat in the back porch at
her sewing, the breath of the undylng
old roses and honeysuckles blowing
about her. and all her soul as tranquil
as the summer seas where her fancy
went out and hovered over VIII plowlng
his ship along under full flowing snowy
sails.
Rbody's father had been the lawyer
of the shore. but he had not been par
ticularly obndient to law himself, that
is. the law of healthy living, and he had
early left her to buffet the world as she
could. with nothing but the old house
for her portion. 1t had long fallen INTO
disrepair: but when it leaked too ser1-
or,sly in one room, Ithody moved TO
another. 1t was said that IVY
Hodge once paid court to her TIL he
found in her complete unsusplclousness
of his wearing the negative Of his de-
sires. But he cherished no Ill VIII on
account of that. On the contrary, with
considerable circumlOcution. he induced
the other young men; once when WIN
was at home. to help him. and with
Will and Humphrey Layendar ana Tom
Rripr and Joe Burns, he had the OLD
roof shingled and the back porch re
built for Rhody. Poor Ivy, of course,
had small credit for it with RhOdy. FOR
though she thanked him very prettlly,
in her heart of hearts she was sure L1al
it was Will who first Thought or the
kindness and put it into execution; ana
She was the happier thinking of the no
bility and generosity Of his nature thus
manifested than she was in the repairs
themselves. And as she sat in the porch
now. this poor. silly Miss RhOdy, she
had an unspoken sense that it was
| Wills protection surrounding her, and
| she dropped her needle and leaned back
| and dreamed so long that the low-hying
birds regarded her no more than If she
were the silver aspen which had sprung
| up wild in one of the old paths.
BY some virtue of her temperament
there was hardly any trail of selfishness
in Rhody's dreams. Now she was
! building Il bark of which Will was
to go master: or now she was collect
ing bright strips to make the carpet
for AIMS new parlOr; or best of all
! she was having Wits portrait painted
and hung up in Il big gold frame III
the same splendid ROOM, for all AIMS
belongings partook of the character
with which Will had been invested.
| And dream as she would Rhody could
do Ann no wrong. for in reality the
being of her thoughts differed from the
rude sailor that followed the sea and
drank his jOrum of grOg n SwOre his
round oath ON occasion, as a piece of
sculptured marble differs from a lump
Of soil; except for q bit of flashing color.
Il big stature. and a name, they had
, nothing in common.
SO. when in good time, Ann and Will
Mather were married and went off to-
gether on the mex voyage. if there were
! any tinge of melancholy in Rhody's
thoughts. it was only that sweet. poetic
melancholy which is almost Il pleasure
in itself. And she welcomed them back
joyfully. and gave them a little tea
! come. and at which she served her
! ounce preserves. that had candied
through long keeping, in the old
L~owenstahl ware that she sold next
year to a fancier for a sum sufficient
to let her have that portrait painted
the portrait she had SO long felt the