Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1902-04-11
A Farmers Wife.

~ would be married before any OF
~@ the rest. But Marion only
laughed and said nonsense" Was she
not welded to her art? And did she
not scorn the masculine sex. individ.
ually, collectively and in the abstract
What possible else could a girl with
ideals. with an object In life. have fol
q man? A life of dependence for her,
Ter world to be bounded by four
square walls? Never!
So she went ON her way rejoicing,
young, beautiful and heart-whole; re-
fused the men who were unfortunate
enough to love her, laughed in their
faces, not that she was cruel by ma
ture, but their ardor amused her-she
could not understand it.
When June came, and the girls talk
ed over their vacations. she astonished
them all by quietly remarking that she
guessed she would go down to Ray
mond.
What, that pokey old place" ex-
claimed Anna. What in the world
will you do there? Four miles from
nowhere. Why. l wouldn't spend
week in that tumbled-down old farm
house. And then it's so dismal. that
pine grove is enough to give one the
shudders. Oh. don't go there. Marion.
come with me-"
But Marion remained firm. To Ray
mond she went. The quaint, charming
little town of Raymond, Nesting at the
foot of the green hills close to the bor-
ders of the beautiful Sebago Lake,
and there she met her fate. 1t ap-
peared suddenly and unexpectedly one
June morning, in the shape Of a man.
overaIls and basket of setting hens.
Now IL there was one thing more
than another Marion detested it was a
hen. and next to that a farmer and far
above both she abominated overalls.
She always associated them with the
street department
But this glorious summer morning,
as she was wheeling down steep hill.
taking the narrow path. and keeping
we'll to the side of the road to avoid the
mud. around a sharp bend she ran
bump into her fate-farmer, overalls.
setting hens, basket, wheel and girl,
all scattered and mingled in the dust.
She, woman-like, was the first to re-
cover her voice. Good gracious! l
hope haven't killed you." she gasped,
as she sat up and wiped a splotch of
mud Off her nose.
He picked himself up out of the de-
bris, surveyed the wreck about him,
the wheel standing on it's handle bars
in raspberry bush, the hens squawk-
ing and huttering on the ground. the
and then he threw his head back and
laughed-a deep, ringing laugh, that
floated out on the still morning air,
over the quiet waters of the lake and
took the girls heart with it. She loved
him from that moment. One swift,
furtive glance into that frank, hand
some face. and the girl knew by an
unerring instinct that he was gen
tleman.
KILLED me. oh no. just temporarily
fioored me. that's all. 1 hope you are
not hurt"
II am awfully sorry. really" Marion
began to hide her confusion. Il beg a
thousand pardons."
BY this time he had gotten her wheel
right side up. and without another
glance, she mounted it and disappeared
around the bend.
That night at the supper table when
she recounted her adventure she learn
ed who he was. Harold Martin, a
young man who had lately taken the
Martin place" a beautiful farm two
miles from Raymond. After that she
often met him and the acquaintance
50 abruptly begun ripened into friend
ship.
1t was strange how the enchanting
allurements of art and life of indie
pendence faded into oblivion, how
when love and art were weighed in
the balance how much more ayoirdu-
pois love seemed to have. And life on
a farm with the man you loved wasn't
half bad after all.
So one quiet evening in September.
just as the sun was setting over Mt.
Washington, turning the silver of the
lake into flaming red and throwing a
halo of glowing light and color about
them, they stood together on the brow
OF the hill. watching the sun set.
Marion" said Harold. suddenly,
don't you think you could stand the
farm? l love you with all my heart
and soul. and I'll prove it to you if you
will only let me-"
Maroin's eyes wandered out over the
Slittering sunlit waters, out beyond the
dark purple mountains. till they rested
upon a tiny star that cleaned just
where a moment before the sun had
been.
Art beckoned to her with her white,
shapely hand. Just then a demure
brown biddy, scurrying homeward.
clucking to her belated brood. brushed
against her dress. With a happy little
laugh, Marion stopped down and caught
up one Of the soft down little chicks.