Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1899-03-01

The MAKESHIFT OF JONAS KEMP.
BY Annie Hamilton DonnelI.
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Clarissa Kemp-late, very late
Clarissa Collins-carried each pot to
the back door and inverted it briskly.
The little heap grew high and un-
stable. There were a good many pots,
and it was quite distance from the
sitting room window to the back door.
Clarissa was tired when the stained
green-painted shelves were emptled
aud all the litter swept up.
'Therer" she breathel with little
gasp of relief, sinking into rocker,
sI'm thankful that jobs done with!
It's been staring at me ever since l
came"
CIarissa invariably spoke of the day,
few weeks ago, when she and Jonas
drove from the minister's into the
little trim side-yard, as "when 1
came" Since that day there had been
good m ny reforms at the Kemp
place. Tue heap of discarded gerani-
ums and fuchsias was only one OF
them.
.sI can't and I won't abide mess
of plants round, littering! There's
enough, goodness knows, that's got
to litter without putting up with what
ain't got to. You've got to water 'em,
and you've got to putter with 'em
and coddle 'em, an there's always a
mussy, wet place under 'em and sprlgs
and dry leaves. I can't abide 'em If
other folks can. Those that like 'em
are perfectly welcome-I don't"
Clarissa rocked backward and for
ward in the capacious, calico-softened
chair, communing aloud. Her come
ly, middle-aged face had look OF re-
lief upon it. Once only slight shade
of remorse quivered across it and was
gone.
"He'd ought to know I'd do it, I"
she muttered, ':and he ought to have
got his mind made up by this time.
I've given him time enough ever
after, that Icouldn't fellowship with
mess of plants. I guess that was
good and fair warning!"
The rockers took to sudden creaking
as if pleading in Jonas behalf. In
the sunny windows the green shelves
looked bare and lonesome. There
were little round circles, smaller and
larger, side by side along their lengths,
where the pots had stood. The big
gest circle Of all spoke pathetically Of
Jonas pet cactus that bore the dainty
pink flowers among its spines-that
s'Alwildy" had set store by. Alwilda
was the wife that had driven from the
minister's into the trim yard first.
Even Jonas was hardly fonder Of
plants than Alwilda had been.
''There's some sense to having
windows to sit by that you can see ont
Of" unused Clarissa contentedly, gaz-
ing out on the strip of meandering
roadway stretching bleakly away up
hill. 'sNow I can see the people
passing-there's Deacon Pottle COM
ing already! I can tell it's the deacon
by the way the horse wags his head
and meeches along down the hill.
Seems to me I'd have creature with
some kind of spirit to him. Why, no;
it's Jonas-as L live!
With a sudden accession of nervous
ness, Clarissa Kemp snatched rug
and hurried to the back door. Jonas
aud the old horse were turning into
the lane. She could hear the pound,
pound of clumsy hoofs on the hard
clay. She threw the rug over the
heap of broken plants and waited to
pull down one corner across the tiers
ofinterlocked earthen pots beside it.
'tI don'twant it to come on him all in
heap" she murmured. "Jonas has
to have time to get used to things. He
amt sudden man, Jonas amt. I've
found that out since came.
Then she hurried hack to the rock
ing chair by the window. Jonas was
just plodding past.
"Why, amt you early, Jonas?"
Clarissa called, little breathless with
hurrying. 'Tt's only 8 o'clock. I
wasn't looking for You back till sup
per time
eyes, am early--whoa, back, Dem
mis-. VIII o-a!-but the town meeting
ris' early. We got through our doings
sooner'n we expected to. They ap-
pointed me moderator.
Jonas voice had o ring of modest
pride in it. Clarissa laughed appre-
ciatively.
ST should say you'd moderate splen-
didly, Jonas, "she said, "but I shouldn' t
We supposed you'd We moderated so
fastp'
The old horse started up and went
staidly on toward the barn, with the
trail of Clarissa's laughter in his wake.
"Clarissy's real humorous
: woman" pondered Jonas; "she's got
all of it that Alwildy didn't have.
Whoa, back, Dennis"
IfJonas noticed the unwieldy heap
under Clarissa's rug on his way back
to the house he said nothing about
it. 1t was not Jonas Kemp's way to
say things. In the trig little sitting
room the barred shelves aud the un-
wonted inflow of sunshine across them
appealed dumbly to him, and Jonas
answered as dumbly. His scanned
old face :urned doggedly away from
the wind,ms, and the pain on it was
only visiD to the faint, sweet face
OF Alwilds looking out of the daguer-
reotype on the wall. Clarissa's keen
eyes did net see it.
y Twenty years divided Jonas and
Clarissa Kenp, and Clarissa was not
young. Shehad tailored and stitched
away all her young years in her small
village shopbefore she came. 1t had
been aseyen'a 'ays' wonder to Clarissas