The Jennings daily record. [volume] (Jennings, La.) 1900-1903, 1902-05-08
The Weakness
~ of Mary

When Mary Phillips married Tom
Dawkins and moved to Chicago from
her village home in Iowa 1t was the
first time in her life that she had been
in a city larger than Des Moines
Tom was telegraph operator and his
work kept him out almost all night.
That was hard on Mary. for almost
every day she read in the papers
stories of highway robberies. mystic
rious murders and terrifying disap-
pearances. To her, of course, Tom
was easily the most important man In
Chicago and she lived in constant fear
lest the criminals who love a shining
mark might pick Tom out for VIC
tim.
For the first few months Mary slept
little until Tom had reached home in
the gray of the early morning. She
tried her best to conceal it from Tom,
for she didn't want him to be worried
and she didn't want to make him think
her "cowardly cat" But she wasn't
a good actress and Tom knew how
she worried and sat up for him. He
used to talk to her and even make fun
of her fears.
But that wasn't as hard to stand
as were the well-meant circumstances
of Mrs. Elliott. the fat woman who
lived in the fiat above and who, in
some mysterious way, had become
aware that Mary was a young girl
from an Iowa village and that she was
frightened by the mysterious dangers
of the huge city.
90, my dear" Mrs. Elliott would
say in her patronizing way. you
mustn't take on so. After you've lived
her for ten years, as l have, you'll see
how foolish it is. OF course people do
get slugged and murdered and run over
by street cars, but worrying about 1T
won't do a bit Of good. Brace up, my
dear and stop crying. You'll find
plenty OF real things to cry about.
Don't be such little coward"
I'm not coward" said Mary. Il m
not bit afraid of anything I can see
or of anything 1 can't see either, if
it's only / who is in danger. But when
Toms away and L can't help him and
1 don't know what might have hap
pened to him, I am afraid. and can't
help it,
One night about week later Tom
was kept downtown an hour later
than usual. When he got off the ele-
waited and started to walk to the fiat
building, over through the snow drifts
il was 5 o'clock in the morning. The
air was full Of fog from the lake ana
he was tired. He had walked two o
the four blocks which lay before him
when he saw somebody with Ian
tern poking around in snowdrift
few rods ahead. AS he grew neare
he made out that it was a woman,
forlorn little figure, scantily wrapped
up with some kind of shawl tie
over her head. Then she shrunk asd
to let him pass and as she raise
the lantern Tom saw that it was hi
wife.
Mary he cried.
80, Tom, Tom she gasped, throw
ing her arms about his neck. 9
thought you were killed. 1 woke u
dreaming that you had been robbie
and thrown into a snowdrift, and
just had to try and find you"
She was crying and Tom put his bi
arms about her and half carried he
the remainder of the way home.
Poor little girl" he said as b
soothed her into quiet.
But next morning at their II o'cloc
breakfast he made unmerciful fun {
her and declared she must never d
SuCu d lOOl again uO uldIle
what happened.
Tom went out for a few minute
during the afternoon and almost il
stantly Mrs. Elliott came down-stail
and rang the bell. Mary had begun
hate the woman. There was som
thing uncanny about her. How ell
should she know all about what he
happened the night before OF cour!
the janitor or somebody might ha'
seen a part and guessed the rest, b.
at any rate it was enough TO NAL
anybody mad" She could stand Tom
fun, though she thought it rath
heartless, but it was too much to ha
this strange woman continually pryil
into her private affairs. And Mrs. Z
lot was so persistent and so free wi
her unasked advice that when s
went away Mary was crying again.
She told Tom when he came bac
but he was not bit sympathetic.
Mrs. Elliot means all right, Il
dear" he said. 81 wish you'd try to
little more like her IN some wa,
Why her husband is a travelling ma
and she doesn't see him for weeks
a time, yet you never hear her carr
ing on like you do. You must try Il
to be so foolish. l am sure nothi
would make Mrs. Elliott go all
pieces like you do"
That made Mary so angry that S