Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1901-11-09
HAROLD CAUGHEN
land THE.
TRAINED NURSE
By John H. Rafferty,

elu1neHIly proper young udtIoA'
who put their fingers to their ear
when papa says ''Gosh!" She wa
SO nice that her husband was afraic
to tell her anything about himself
and SOY a sort Of ;tacit reserve grew
up between them, which was no
conducive. to that old fashioned
style. Of domestic felicity which il
born Of absolute confidence and nur.
tured By a broad and kindly charity
for human frailty.
Mrs. Caughen had no frailties and
no children. Mr.. Caughen had
many frailties, but he assiduously
concealed them from his wife, not
because he was a natural hypocrite
but because he couldn't bear to
shock her high ideals. He was fat
and liked colored shirts. She was
thin and insisted on buying for him
black clothes and linen Of immacu-
late whiteness. She opined that
patterns were undignifed for a
married man." and he said: Cali
right, Jane. II you can stand it !
can"
She had been to college, and
sometimes she asked him whether
he never "yearned for the higher
opportunities Of a professional
life?' Being only a moderately
successful broker Of grain and hay,
he did not exactly appreciate her
aspirations, but he never gave him
self away by arguing the point.
She loathed gambling Of all kinds
and belonged" to a lot of societies
for the prevention Of games Of haz-
ard and for the promotion Of sure
thing enterprises among the young.
She regarded it as vulgar" to show
any tense interest in the CONNER
cial affairs Of her husband, and SO,
instead Of getting ''nearer" to him
in the old, commonplace way, she
gradually trained him into the sub
conscious belief that his home was
sort of compulsory training school
where he ate two meals day and
slept eight or nine hours every
night under penalty Of being Sup
lifted" toward the same intellectual
plane with Mrs. Caughen.
Of course there had been times
during the first two years of his
married life when he began to 'talk
shop" over the dinner table, but his
wife showed SO little interest in the
doings Hson the street. and display
ed such a frigid hauteur when he}
talked Of his associates Gin trade
that the good natured man, who. 4
was far from dull, gravitated into!
a condition of habitual silence
which convinced his wife that heI
was becoming "thoughtful." III
She never went near his business
Office, except once, and that's what
this story is about. She had been
out buying cloak, and her choice
fell upon one Of those sample"
creations.
''The only one in town Of that
color and fabric" said the saleslady, |
@and you'd better take it."
Mrs. Caughen being SHY about
81 pocketed her pride and high
sense Of @propriety and went to her
husbands Office to get it.
'He's at the telephone just now, /"
said the office boy, pushing out a
chair.
She sat down and in the silence of
the closed room heard her husband
discourse to some unknown friend,
thus: ,,
all right? Sure she's all.
right! I'm going down there with 7
her. WHAT : The trained.
nurse, yes. Got that? Well, you
can do as you please, But I'm going
to risk a few hundred on her.
- Yes, Sunday night; want: toi[
be on the same train, you know.
Got to look after her. And say
hellsl Hello! Say, old man, keep
This dark, will you? It's a dead
secret; nobody on but you. Good
BY"
When he came out Of the tele-
phone box, his wife was gone. s.,
"a lady called while you were in
here" said the office boy, ''but she
;aid she couldn't wait
fsWho was it?'''
Don't know, sir; never seen her
before. Kinda tall, skinny lookin'
roman wit specs. Looked kinda
nervous, but dressed swell .s.I5 81
ssYou weren't down at the Office Z
;oday, were you, Jane r. s5 S
~? The ideaY' ,.s].'
) That's .the:way the diHner COM
started that eNSsiIt on
leg, Mrs. 1ailghen was .ong sof3 thosea,
!. .t.r. q - ~ III IS TfEs 81