Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-02-11
all our othergirls have had"
NO." Mrs. Ward answered, thought
fr111u

all our otherg girls have had"
NO." Mrs. Ward answered, thought
fully. But
well, what?"
IF she had, we would ask her to in
vite them into the parlor. OF course,
we can't expect girl as attractive as
Barbara is to go through life without
attracting some one"
sunless her place as servant"
began Mr.. Ward.
But why should that make any diff
ference?" Mrs. Ward asked, irritated
by the suggestion. 20 dear, don't sug-
gest my losing Barbara. Whoever gets
her for his wife will get a perfect
housekeeper and q 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.
II don't think she's done anything
lately. 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, 10
might have encouraged her to confide
had begun to trouble her somewhat,
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 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 a 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-
|
on the sofa, book in hand.
"Of course It's. That's just i'll
What a numskull I must be! Wish
! you'd translate the whole thing for
me- the college youth ventured t.
hint.
THANK you, no, sir!~ I have other
work to do" Barbara had laughed.
But from that little incident she
began to note little irritating atten-
tions paid to her, at first insignificant;
but the last few days before the
young man departed for college they
were unmistakabl BILE, and Barbara was
annoyed and even angered. She was
really much relieved when he had
gone.
But that experience was not at an
to be compared with a discovery she
made as to Alfred's habits, and it was
a matter of regret to her afterward
that she did not inform Mrs. Ward OF
it. 1t was the fact that several times
she felt certain the young man had
been drinking. She had never known
him to be intoxicated; but she was
sure he had more than once been
dangerously near it, and it was a
matter of surprise to her that Mr.
and Mrs. Ward seemed so Indifferent
to it,
"Oh dear!" Barbara sighed, as she
went the rounds of her daily task.
carrying this added burden of knowl-
edge. ''Is there no family without its
skeleton? Ought to drag it out for
their inspection, if they don't know
of its existence? It hardly seems ia
be my business. And they must be
blind not to have noticed as much as
has been apparent even to a servant
TO BE CONTINUED IN. NEXT
wednesday, EDITION