Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1900-08-09
TheLOVe OfRuth and Ezra

TheLOve of Ruth and Ezra
Some years ago, in a certain New
| England town of few pretensions and
little fame, Ezra Hager loved Ruth
| Willard and asked her to be his wife
| The circumstances under which the
marriage proposal actually came to be
! spoken were as follows: Ruth S
mother, who was an invalid expressed
wish that she might have steamed
custard for her supper. She knew
| that there was not an egg in the house;
indeed, that there were none in the
| immediate neighborhood, a fact which
doubtless made the very thought OF
custard most enticing to Lucinda
| Wizards capricious appetite.
81 will go to Abby Preston's for
Them said Ruth. Abby always con-
triyes to have eggs when they are
scarce, so as to get good price for
| them"
Without waiting to hear the
answer, Ruth ran across the
fields to the brown farmhouse that
stood half-hidden in a clump of
| beeches.
Her prediction that Abby Preston
would have what she required was
! fulfilled; but to get away from the
speech of Abby herself was not an easy
matter, for the thrifty woman dearly
! loved to hear about all the neighboT-
hood doings and to give in return
many crumbs of gossip which had
come to her knowledge. AS a result
Ruth stayed a full hour, during which
she said little and heard much.
So it happened that she was return
ing homeward along the road when
ezra Hager came out of the black
smiths shop with a neWlymended
chain strung over his shoulder. 1t
would be hard to repeat the exact
words of their exchanged greetings for
neither Ruth nor Ezra could have told
what they were five minutes after they
were spoken. Ezra slaCkened his
swinging stride to match Ruth's pace,
- in a moment, almost, he found
himself SAYING
We U6Su IuIIlh1uS lately IIdI
would go away from this town for a
year or two and see what the outside
world was like
He cast a sidelong glance at Ruth as
he spoke; and, heartless as it may
appear, he was delighted to observe the
blank misery THAI whitened and sad
dened her sweet face. In another mo-
ment they had stopped there among
the cool leaf shadows, and, with her
hands held in is, he told her how long
| Querulous protest from her mother
and how we'll he had loved her, and
that with her love in return he would
gladly stay in that town, or in any
other that she might choose, as long
as he lived.
Ruth had a girls natural liking fol
dissemblance toward a lover, but she
was likewise scrupulously truthful
So when Ezra spoke so plainly and
with such impassioned pleading she
frankly confessed that his words
| brought her the brightest happiness
that she had ever known.
Before l saw you this morning
had quite resolved never to tell you o.
my love-" said Ezra, as they walked
slowly along the road.
And why should you have been sc
foolish to run away from me?' shf
asked.
Because l was certain that l was
the last man in your thoughts, Ruth
At the singing school you would
always choose to sing the duets witt
Joe Anderson instead of with me-
4 could never keep my voice from
quivering little when I sang alone
with you, Ezra,-that was why
Then you would always look int
Joe's eyes so straight, letting him set
the laughter in your own Ezra com
planned. The shadows of the uncon
fessed lovers passed grievances crowd
ing upon his memory When yol
spoke to me you never looked at me il
that way
How could 1 look at you, Ezra, with
out letting my eyes tell my secret?'
said Ruth.
sometimes you would hardly speal
|
others
rs that so?" Well, love makes on
silent until it is confessed. And ever
now. Ezra, I do not feel most Xix
laughing
Thus, little by little, was he per
mitted to fathom the mysterious way
of a maiden when in her heart she be
. gins to prefer one man over another
; and before she dares even to ack
. nowledge the truth TO herself. Tn
distance back to the Willard dwelling
which was more than a mile by tn
roadway, seemed to be annihilated A
| by a pleasant dream, from which the.
/ were not awakened, until they came t
/ the Willard gate, which was Away
! closed by a latch that baf1ed strangers
The picket fence forbade leaping o