The National tribune., 1900-09-20
da would tease him. Sammy Wocgles

would openly flout him, an invisible some
thing come in to blemish his comradeship
with 81. and he could not stay In the house
day longer, but would bolt back to the
| front, and try to forget 1t all In the tur-
mol Of the army. Would it not be better
to postpone the decision until the moment
| of his departure, and so at least have the
| pleasure of being with her and seeing her
! as long as his fIIrlough lasted?
He went through all this as he rose
| from the table, and went out to where the
Deacon was sharpening the corn-slashers
with Sammy turning. the crank of the
| grindstone. He stood for moment look
ing at the grinding. when Maria's voice
| lifted up in the kitchen with 20, Mother
Dear, Jerusalem and he determined to
his fate.
How beautiful she looked. rs she stood
there, with her sleeves rolled to the elbow
from her white arms, her hands busy with
the breakfast dishes, and her voice filling
all the air with melody.
Miss Maria" said Shorty, awkwardly.
ARE you really glad to see me back?'
"Glad? she echoed, pausing with a
plate in one hand and a knife in the other
She was in her hooking mood now.
What question. OF course I'm glad
We're all glad. Everybody's glad. You
were mighty lucky to get out of that aw-
full Andersonville."
That's purity general, as the man said
when he was told that his share in the
driftwood would be all that he could
ketcb." mumbled Shorty. Il mean are
you yourself particularly glad?,'
best friend and chum, all the folks like
you. and I'm awfully glad to see you"
II mean something more'n that" said
Shorty, desperately. Now, I thought of
you every hour in the day, no matter
where l was: thought you was the
He stopped. hesitated, mumbled, and
was at loss what to say: Maria stopped
Scraping the dish, and looked at him
straight with her blue eyes wide open.
Shorty's fell before her direct gaze, but
somehow he felt that there was in it Meth
n the rebuke nor the raillery that he had
30 much dreaded. Sammy Woggles burst
N like juvenile hurricane.
Say, Maria, yer pap says that il you're
soin' to have that apple-paring bee here
his afternoon you'd better not take the
trouble to git a regler dinner, but git up
good big snack for him and the rest To
AIRY out with them to the field, and to-
ward noon I'll come back and git the cof-
Zee, and anything else you've fixed up.
But stir yourself now, and git as much as
ou kin ready for US to take out ourselves
Come on, Corpril. Mr.. Klegg wants you
light off"
aIaria's teasing mood came back, as she
iers.
Look out, now, Corpril, that you don't
hurt anybody today. 81 says that
:ou think that corn-slasher's saber, and
the corn-stalks rebels, and You wade into
EN- like You were charging a breastworks,
md there's nobody safe in reach o. your
.Ong arms"
Shorty managed to nearly hold his own
with the Deacon and ST in the field that
lay, for he made up in earnestness what
lie lacked in practice. The face of Maria
vas ever in his mind.
When, very tired, but content with the
Consciousness of a big days work well
lone, the men 0beyed the welcome call
% supper, and reveied in a generous wash
IN the back porch, they found the house
1verrunning with merry, laughing girls,
gathered in for the appe-paring bee of
he afternoon. The rich aroma of apples
lung all around, apple-parings covered The
door of the Summer-kitchen. and baskets
nd trays of the peeled and quartered
-ruit were everywhere.
Diyesting themselves of their aprons,
md hastily primping up, the girls swarmed
)ut, laughing, shrieNng, giggling erup
ion, to meet the men.
And the schoolmaster came also
Shorty face darkened as he saw him
walking beside Maria, and her listening
Ittentively to his chit-chat.
A slender, notwithstanding girl,
'ather older than the rest, rushed up to
Shorty, took his lind, and dubbed over
.ffusiyely:
20, Mr.. Elliott mean Captain-no,
10. Corpril, now-which is it? / never
an keep these soldier titles straight.
What is it you are? Mebbe Colonel
anyway, I'm awfully glad to see you
1ack-jest awfuly. I've thought so aw-
faily much about you, and what you've
in going thrOugh-that awful fighting,
and that perfectly awful prison. Why,
It was all just awful. / used to say. to
MAJ
Sally" said Maria, with a look and an
calculated sweetness of tone, that a cutter
man than Shorty might have understood,
where did you lay your knife, dear, when
Jou got through? l can't find it nowhere,
md need it for the table. Won't you
20 look for itT'
"Yes, dear, in a minute" answered Sal
~, not to be shaken off that way, and still
holding Shorty's hand. How awfully well
you're looking, Mr.. Corpril, or Captain.
So awfully big and strong, and good
nothing like some of the boys who've come
back from that awful place. They're just
awfully broken down, they are. l said to
ma
Sally" interposed Maria. a little more
decidedly, Il really must have that knife |
| can't set the table for all of us without
it. Won't you go right off and get it?
Sally had to 90 this time, and Maria in
Dictated to Amanda that she was to get
possession of Shorty, and protect him from
designing creatures"
But Amanda did not execute this trust
faithfully. She had little sisterly resent |
ment that Maria should appropriate the |
and then expect her to keep
watch over her preserves in another fel |
ler."
Therefore, Sally Wilcox soon found her |
way to Shorty's side, and began plying
him with eager inquiries as to his adyen-
lures, listening to his replies with up
turned eyes, and little explanations of pity |
md horror and what '.she said to ma" He |
took her into the supper-table, and through |
the clatter of knives and forks. and the |
chatter, would come Sally's repetitions of |
what she had said to ma"
Maria gave Amanda q little verbal |
scorch for this, and then. blaming Shorty
for being a too-wiling victim, began such
assduous attentions to the schoolmasterl
as speedily reduced Shorty to almost
speeches. misery.
After supper they played games, in
which the schOoimaster was an adept, and
Shorty's clumsiness and ignorance made
him feel more unhappy, if possible, than
the night before. .
The girls threw apple-parings over their
left shoulders, to find out the first letters
IF their future husbands names, but when
Maria's turn came she refused to partici-
pate in such foolishness."
Sally, Wilcox was the first to get ready