Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1902-02-21

f! the care had been thrown upon Bar
bara. Mrs. Ward had now learned to
| trust her implicitly. This did not
mean that the sharpness of her man
| ner under stress of her headaches had
entirely Disappeared; but Barbara had
learned almost perfectly how to antic-
ipate her wishes, and the girls great
love for Carl and his complete trust in
| her, together with Barbara's cheerful,
| competent handling of the entire
kitchen, had all united to capture Mrs.
Wards affections. She was content,
even in her enforced idleness, to lie
still with her pain and indulge in q
great feeling of thankfalness for such
| a treasure in the house.
She was talking of it one evening
| with her husband.
'Do you realize, Richard. what a
! prize we have in Barbara?'
sShe is certainly most remarkable
girl. The most competent servant we
| ever had in the house, isn't she?'
without any comparison. And /
| want you to build that room as soon as
| you can"
Mrs. Ward had mentioned the mat
ter of the room over the kitchen, and
he had agreed that it was not suitable
| for a girl like Barbara.
"Or any other girl, Richard" Mrs.
Ward had said.
eyes, I'll have carpenter come right
up and look over the house. We shall
have to raise the roof over the kitch-
en-
"Why can't we at the same time en-
| large the kitchen so that Barbara can
have a corner of that carpeted off for
her own when she does not want to
run upstairs? / saw Mrs. Rice's kitch-
en- the other day. 1t is unusually large.
One end of it is neatly fitted up with a
| table for books or sewing material,
several comfortable chairs, and pic
lures on the walls-a very coy, COM
Portable corner, where her girl can re-
| ceive her company or sit down to read
or rest"
"But Barbara never has any COM
pany, does she?" Mr.. Ward asked, with
little amusement at the look his wife
gave him. 'She hasn't any beaus, as
all our other girls have had"
NO." Mrs. Ward answered, thought
fully. "But-"
''Well, what?"
eff she had, we would ask her to in
| vite them into the parlor. Of course,
we can't expect a girl as attractive as
Barbara is to go through life without
attracting some one"
"Unless her place as servant"
began Mr.. Ward.
"But why should that make any diff
ference?" Mrs. Ward asked, irritated
| by the suggestion. go dear, don't sug-
gest my losing Barbara. Whoever gets
her for his wife will get perfect
housekeeper and a rare, sweet girl in
| every way; but we shall lose the best
servant we ever had, and then our
troubles begin again, Mr.. Richard
Ward.''
| Mr.. Ward was silent awhile, and
then he asked about Barbara's plans
for solving the servant question.
81 don't think she's done anything
lately. 1 know she hasn't. Mrs. Vane
sent over the other day to inquire
when she was coming to see her again.
My illness has kept Barbara very close
to the house lately"
If Barbara had heard this talk, it
might have encouraged her to confide
in Mrs. Ward abc-t a matter which
had begun to trouble her somewba at,
and that matter was no less than the
action of her own son Alfred Ward.
| It was now nearing the end of the
college vacation, and the young man
would soon be starting back to col
lege to enter on his senior year. Dur
ing the weeks he had been at home
he had spent a great deal of the
time about the house. He was behind
in two of his studies, and was work
ing little to make up.
One day Barbara while at work in
| the diningroom heard him wrestling
with German sentence in Faust. He
seemed to be unable to render it into
good English, and Barbara naturally
| began to translate it for HIM without
| looking at the book.
isn't this the meaning?" she said,
| and then gave very good interpre-
tation, Alfred listening as he lounged
on the sofa, book in hand.
"Of course It's. That's just it!
| What a numskull I must be! Wish
you'd translate the whole thing for
me- the college youth ventured to
hint
.sFhank you, no, sir! I have other
work to do" Barbara had laughed.
| But from that little incident she
began TO nOCe HtIle 1rrltdLiHS dIleH-
tons paid to her, at first Insignificant.
but the last few days before the
young man departed for college they
were unmistakab BILE, and Barbara was
annoyed and even angered. She was
really much relieved when he had
gone.
| But that experience was not at all
| to be compared with discovery she
made as TO Alfred's habits, and it was
| a matter of regret to her afterward