Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1902-12-08


The worm turned on the morning of |
Sarah Sh;tws death. He sat upon |
box hidden FROM the street by q lilac |
bush. His attitude was that of one |
who morrns. but the expression of his |
face was that of triumph, strenuously
subdued. "A hand was placed on his
shoulder presently, but he did not look
up.
Eyes, Martha" he said.
won't you come in and have bite
to eat, Jim? Benjamin's here, and
we'd best arrange about-the funeral"
The worm stood up and threw back
his shoulders
Il made all the arrangements, Mar
tina, before you came.'
His sister gazed at him, a bewildered
expression in her eyes, her tongue tied
with sudden amaZement. Brother Jim
had actually gone ahead and done
something OH his own responsibility.
Jim Shaw. seeing her wonder. under
stoOd-and smiled.
Eyes, Martha; think III look after
my own affairs now" There was an
instant's hesitation, and he cleared his
throat nervously, then sat down on the
box again. "Forty-three years come
next Saturday Sally and me lived to-
mentioning. We fought our battles
against the world side by side, at least
as close as smart woman like her
and a dolt like me could. She was al
ways little ahead of me. Any one in
this village II tell you she was the
smartest Of us two She had what's
called executive ability. She went
ahead and done things. didn't. It's
been town talk for forty years."
Don't you think folks exaggerated
some Ben"
Exaggerated? Land, no! Many the
time has she throwed her head back
and said to me: James Shaw, twas
the good Lords providence that you
married me. II you hadn't, l don't
know what would have become Of you
l s'pose shessuffered considerable along
Of my shiftlessness. Poor Sally!
"'Twas only her way, jim"
II know it. Iain't layin' it up against
her. 'Twould have killed her long
ahead Of her time if anything had hap
pened to make her believe she wasn't
holdin' up everything on her shoulders
to keep 1t from fallin' down and
smashin' me. But she knows now.
She's gone where there amt NO mist"
Jim glanced at the silent house, then
ut the great red barn beyond the apple
orchard.
Most all there is to life" he re-
sumed after an interval, us thinkin'
you've done the things you've thought
Of dom. Take the barn there, for
instance. One day Crimson he met
me ON the road goin' to the creamery
and says to me, I hear you're goin' ia
have a new barn, Shaw Who was
tellin' youY l asks him. MY wife.
SAYS he, with sort of smoker. She
was at the Social Hour meetin' yester
day, and she heard your wife say So
Then l reckon it's true sayo AND
drove on.
"'Twan't no news to me. Two days
before that I'd completed little dea
in timber that had cost me in the engl
neerin' of it more than six nights Of
bad sleep. Sally didn't know nothin
Of it. I'd kept it from her. Lane
knows, she had big enough load tt
carry without bein' burdened with al
my business troubles. had the price
of a new barn fight in my ''":ae YES
| -oi,o I hroa1nht 1.S Sul1pC
that day. Sally, says l, I reckon
we've got to have new barn. 81
I've heard you say these five years
saws she, and well I'm aware, jim
Shaw, that we'll never get it till l g
ahead and do it myself
II let on to be r'iled then andl says
WELL why in tunket don't. you 60 OF
and do it? And she drew herself UP
like she always did when l spoke il
that aggravatin' way, and her eye
snapped and her lips set firm over he
teeth. 4 just will, you shiftless man
saws she. And she did. That barn
a monument to her executive ability
Martha. She went and seen the car
penter, and he come and seen me. an
the barn was built. Land, she wa
proud" ,
One of the gnarled knotty hand
, reached down and plucked white Gle
yer blossom. The woman said noth
= ing, but her gray eyes were brlmm'n
with an ineffable tenderness
"And twas the same way with mos
everything we done, Martha. Ther
Amt no harm in sayin' 1t now.
; won't be here long, and Eve got I
hump myself to get the credit that
due me. She had it all FOR more ina
, forty years, and thank the olesse
lord she never saw through the decel
7 was practicin' on her. Tm-iI
afraid I'm a sort of scribe and Phal
,see. Martha. Long at the last wo'
ried considerable for fear ia bust on
and spoil it all. 'Twan't no easy ma
ter 'holdin' in. Sometimes when ID
. liver was more obstreperous than con
- ,A.. I,l,o v,ulltn' teeth for me