Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1901-10-09
'Wnatu she say them"

just looked me in the eye and SAYS
calmly that if it was true she was sor-
~ he'd done WRONG, but that she didn't
consider one person had ought to Judge
says she thought it was hui
man nature to do wrong and that we'd
ought to be sorry fer each other and
help each other up"
"Why, the idea! What'd you say? L
hope you give her good one."
"Weil, did" Mrs. Hostetter spoke
with triumph. 81 told her / was
Christian and belonged to church and
she wouldn't ketch me upholdin man
that'd turned hisself out to be what
Mr.. Davenport had. l asked her how
you could pick out respectable folks If
they was on speakin terms with that
kind. Then she said somethin reel pro.
fame. She guessed that God could put
his finger on 'em! Oh, that made me
awful mad! said. well, wouldn't
speak to Mr.. Davenport and didn't
reckon Mis- Dean and Mis- Frazer
would neither, and that we was the
leadin ones in the church"
Good fer you! guess she didn't
have anything furder to say to that,
did she?"
Eyes, she did. That's what makes me
SO awful mad. She up and says then
still ca'mlike, that she didn't consider
1T would hurt any good woman to be
kind to Mr.. Davenport, even If he had
done whTt was claimed ag'in him,
which she didn't believe-the brazen
thing says that ag'in-and it might do
him some good"
The door opened suddenly, and Stat.
ternly girl burst into the room. She
stopped and stared at the guests. Then
she threw her hand over her face, gig
gled bashfully and exclaiming ooh,
now!" retired noisily.
"What do you think of that?" ex-
claimed Mrs. Frazer in n tone of eXas-
peration, after all I've talked to her,
a-trouncin in here that way before PEG
pie! A woman might as well be crazy
at once us to keep hired girl. They're
that mortifyin"
"Now, that makes me think" said
Mrs. Hostetter. II was sayin the same
thing to Mis- Graham the other day,
and what d'you s'pose she says? She
says she thinks hired girls have IN
awful hard life. She feels sorry fer
'em. She keeps rockin chair In the
Kitchen fer her'n and lets her go out
ten times week If she wants; says
she thinks it's awful hard fer girl to
have to ask every time she wants to &c
anywheres. She says she gets cross
sometimes and lets her temper go al
her girl, and then she always goes back
and apologies. She amt got any secf
word as servant in her vocabulary"
"Such Stiffness" said Mrs. Frazer
scornfully-"a-ruinin hired girls that
way!"
"Well, must say" admitted Mrs
Dean reluctantly, shat Mis- Graham's
hired girl is an exception to the gen'ra
run of 'em. She worships the ground
Mis- Graham sets foot to and would
run her legs off fer her."
"The worst thing she said," put in
Mrs. Hostetter, "was that she didn't
think women had ought to get together
and talk over girls faults; says she'd
just as soon anybody would ask hel
how she liked her husband as to ask
her how she liked her hired girl; says
she's been guilty of such things her
self, but she amt goin to ag'in. oh,
never heard such goin ons?
II guess she's crazy?'
81 guess she is. She says If we
caught girls a-criticisin our faults we'd
have a compton fit"
'There goes that express wagon bach
ag'in em'ty," interrupted Mrs. Frazer
| in a perplexed tone II can't imagine
where that trunk went to. Mr.. Brown
told me yeste'day that Mis- Brown
want comm home fer week. but
mebbe she just telegrafted and come
right on"
"But when you want real scandal
said Mrs. Hostetter In low tone, "yo,
have to 60 on piece furder than Mr.
Davenport"
Mrs. Frazer's pillowsham sank rus
Ting into her lEp.
us there anything worse?" aske
Mrs. Dean brepthlessly.
A little smile wrinkled Mrs. Hostel
ter's face. Yes" she said briefly
"there's somethin worse"
"What is tit" asked both women a
once.
| Mrs. Hostetter was tantalizingly sloy
in replying. She looked out the viii
dow with an air Of mystery gloomin
over her. II don't know as ought t
tell you-if you amt noticed"
II amt noticed thing"
Il atn't, neither. 1t can't be in thi
neighborhood.'
tits in this neighborhood. It's witt
in an airy Of two blocks. I've see
a-goin on for three months. I've see
with my own eyes,"
The other two women sat silen
crushed.
"You can both Of you look out of TIL
window without ever n-leavin you
seats and see the front door Of the VIZ
man it's about. It's as innocent lool
in a front door as you'd find a-goi
from one end of the street to the othel
It's little you can tell about people
their front DOORS"
The other two women had starte
and looked out the window. The glanc
Of each went jumping along from on
door to another. There We're n yello'
door and glass door and a graine
door and dove colored door. The
eyes stopped at the dove colored doc
They looked at each other, then at Mr.
Hostetter. Mis- Mayhewr they e.
claimed as one woman.
Mrs. Hostetter half closed her eye!
"Unh-hunhw she said.
The silence was intense. The tw
women's faces were working with sta
tied conjecture.
"a scandal about her!" breathed, oil
: Mrs. Frazer at last.
} "Why, you'd think sugar woudn
melt in her mouth" said Mrs. Dean.
"She sings in the choir"
"And's on the executive board"
"And the executive committee of tn
cooperative society,""
HSha's tho traoc,1ror oP fbo 10