The Iola register., 1901-10-25

building were put up in Crawford and |
dedicated to the training of young
women for domestic service, prepar- |
ing them for competent cooks and |
that a great deal might !
be done to elevate the labor of the |
kitchen and bring intelligent Amer
lean girls into it. What do you think?"
81 think it is highly probable. At
any rate, anything is preferable to the
condition of things we endured before
Barbara came. Anything is worth
lying that will by any possibility tend
10 help matters"
"How much is Aunt Wallace's leg
Gcy?"
ar amounts to about $1,000 now
That would not go far toward such a
building as Barbara probably has in
mind
NO, but it would be a beginning,
and l think | know where l could get
more to go with it," Mrs. Ward was
growing very interested, and Mr..
Ward was obliged to caution her
against excitement; so the matter
was dropped there.
buI III a ANN . WI - 'dlh u Va ohb ~
it up again in Barbara's presence.
81 think something could be done
with a properly equipped building"
Barbara said in answer to a question
put by Mrs. Ward. They had discussed
the matter several times before Mrs.
Vane's invitation to Barbara to come
to her evening gathering. Mrs. Ward
nad not yet limited at any means for
realizing such project.
"How much do you suppose such
building would cost?' Mrs. Ward
asked, noting Barbara's growing in
terest.
80, I've no real idea. Almost any
amount. 1t would cost good deal to
maintain it, also. The greatest diff
Guilty would be to secure proper per-
son for superintendent"
"And then the next thing would be
to get the girls to attend the house
keeping school"
81 think we could find plenty of
girls"
I'm not so sanguine as you are, Bar
bara," Mrs. Ward answered, slowly.
"But Mr.. Ward and L are willing to
show our faith in such an attempt by
given $4,000 towards the erection of
such a building"
She explained to Barbara Aunt Wal
lace's legacy, and added that Mr..
Ward had offered to put $500 more
with it to make it $4,000.
IL think Mrs. Nane and some Of the
other ladies in our church and society
will give something, so that we can
begin with a pretty good building and
have enough to equip and run it. Sup
pose you go over and see Mrs. Vane
some day this week and have talk
with her about it,
81 will" said Barbara, tingling with
eagerness. Something real and tan
| gible seemed about to come to pass in
her career. She grew excited as she
thought Of possibilities. building
of the kind she had dreamed of was
not by any means an answer to the
servant girl problem, but it was at
east "a real thing, and if the idea was
/ properly worked out it might result
in great things.
| So she talked with herself as she
sung at her work that afternoon and
/ resolved to so over to Mrs. Nane's at
/ once, and yet even in the midst of her
growing excitement and her genuine
| interest in her career, Barbara was
not altoge her free from a depression
! that had It's origin in the best feeling
she had ever known. This feeling
was her love for the young minister,
| Nj. Morton. barbara no longer tried
| to coAcea! from herself that he had
| become real Part of her life. The
trouble in the Ward household had all
tended Indirectly to increase her ad-
miration Tor him. With the tcnderest
sympathy he had entered into the
family's grief. 1t was only natural
that in the weeks that followed Carl's
death Mr.. Morton should call fire.
quently at the house where he had
become such familiar guest in col
lege days. Scarcely day passed
when he did not drop in for meal,
or to spend part of an evening.
In one way and another Barbara
met him a good deal. He was always
the same earnest, gentlemHnlv kindly
speaker a.I listener Gradually in
little moments oI conversation when
Mrs. Ward was not able to come down,
and Mr.. Ward and Morton had lin
gered over little talk on social ques-
tions after tea, Barbara had taken an
unconscious part in the discussion
More than once she had with almost
guilty haste gone out of the sitting
room after one of those important
q dscussions in which she had revealed
part of her ambitions to the young
minister and Mr.. Ward; and in the
midst of her work, as she finished
some kitchen task, she reproacheo
her heart for yielding to what seemed
like a hopeless affection. But the
girls life was opening into full bios
som under the spell of power as ole
as the human race, as divine an in
stinct, as religious a hunger, as hu
manity ever knew. She was more
than dimly conscious of all this, even
in the midst of her self-reproaches.