The Savannah morning news., 1903-12-20

ure of the shortest for he lodged
around a corner like the wind; and
! although--through an idleness OF mind
! to see him going--I made speed to be
! at his point of disappearance, he, so
to say, had eXhaled. Into what dark
( crevice he crawled to hide from me
4 have no hint; but as if that street
| corner We're a corner of the universe
and he spilled therefrom into the very
abyss of eternity itself, l never after
ward caught the picture of his tallow
! cheeks and fostering, munchlnB lips.
This peace for Peg was something
due to desertion of the town; for
/ eVerybOdy--and Women-fOlk especially
/ not tied by the leg to duties, went
seeking cool comfort by the ocean or
on the mountains.
Eaton himself made one of those who
went away; he would have had Peg
for company, but she urged-what was
true, since the old lady had grown
| frai and weakly-that she ought not
! to leave her mother for so long a
I space. Eaton agreed with entire good
humor to this, and so left Peg behind,
and never a qualm or mark of hesi-
tation, while he sought his ease by
! the sea.
Eaton from his own viewpoint might
we'll spare Peg from his plans; he was
extremely a mans man, and owning,
! withal, a hand for the bottle and a
! mighty promptitude for cards, would
J the better amuse himself with no wife
to be a mortgage on his liberty.
! Summer is for society what winter
is to war; the forces lie all in quar-
ters, and beyond caring for their arms
| or practicng a drill against the cam
/ paign day to dawn, there arises nothing
/ to be called a movement. Indeed, as
/ I've explained, the women-who, as
| Peg would have it, are the fighting
] fgys In aVsf nn6 n
| beach and hill. The town was in its
| sleep, and society would awaken it only
with the advent of the SHOWS.
In the last there were still our three
/ cabinet wives, that is, the ladies Ber-
rien, Branch and Ingham, to be left
/ about US. These would soon depart
! but by this claim or that, they had
been brought to lag behind when the
great covey of their fiounced fellows
! went Whirring away to be cool. Peg
/ never had visited these folks, nor they
! her, and on those few occasions when
official eXigency threw them together,
/ the cabinet three, who, like the Cen
/ erals fleeing niece, were utterly beneath
| the sway Of the Vice Presidents wife
! herself a woman of unquestioned place
! and breeding, and a natural queen, be-
! sides-toolI heed to hold aloof from Peg,
/ on her side, Peg passed them by or
/ looked them through as though they
| had not been, and, if / am to judge,
| came off from these fitting with pres
! tige all undimmed.
1t would have been as good as the
! play We're l not prey and spoil to so
| much soreness in the business, to have
! watched those taCit joustings of Peg
| with our old mailed warriors of the
drawing rooms. The dauntless Peg
! crossed glances with the most seasoned
! OF her Wishers, and left them ever
! n fnn
! she were wounded, no one learned the
( bleeding fact; and not even l should
know. From the laugh to ring true,
! and the fine spirit of her, l was fain
/ to conclude that Peg, so far from
shrinking, joyed in such silken combats
TO take place among the flowers and
with the music of orchestras stirring
the blood; and in the last l am sure
she did.
Berrien and Branch, and for that
matter the clumsy Ingham, would with
an invariable politeness, nicely meas
ured to a hair, greet Peg whenever they
| met with her; she would accept their
| courtesy in a cold way of elevation and
as though our cabinet gentlemen came
of the general press about whose very
names she did not know and never
would. On such lofty terms fair
peace was maintained, and nothing to
rancorOusly rise above the majesty of
a ripple to beat upon any ones
shore.
The General might have preferred a
better cordiality, but he could make
no interference.
IF to step between a man and his
enemy" he would say, lis to invoke a
risk, how much more is he in danger
who hampers with the feuds of wom-
! en?"
For one, I much agreed with him,
md hot 81 \
and tongue, while Pc. met and foiled
the "Redsticks." as the General named
them.
Nor would Peg need our aid. I've
seen no prouder Drawer woman walk
across a room, or one of a more MIN
BILE faculty or fertitude more broadly
| planted, than our Peg. My admiration
spent its days to weave new wreaths
tor her.
1t was the doting Ingham-he of our
treasury-to be witless enough to
breach this business of feminine ice
with Eaton. Ingham was a gritty per-
| son, and ones briefest considerat ton
disclosed him for the vulgar Pennsyl-
vania paper maker he was. Short and
thick of body, with thick legs, thick
neck; even his tongue was thick, and
his slow wits thickest of all. OF Ing
| ham l shall not forget Jims estimate.
1T amt for JIM" said that worthy,
ito go talkin' sassy about no white
gentleman; but as for dish yere Mr..
Ingham, thars a notion agin him
which goes gropin about through Jim
like d grace of heaven through a camp
| meetin'. That Mr.. Ingham is mean;
he's that mean if he owned a lake he
wouldn't give a duck a drink. He's
| jes' about as poplar with Jim as a
wet dawg; an that's dmortual fac"
You don't appear to carry a high
estimate of our Secretary of the Treas
ury," said 1.
"'Deed Jim don't, Marse Major" he
replied. "An' jes' let Jim warn you-all.
You don't want to disrecollect, Marse
! Major. that Jim's a heap sight older
| man than you be, an while Jim don't
deny he's been gettin' duller an duller
ever since you locks up that demijohn
still it's mighty likely Jim's wise an
wary TO a pint where you-all oughter
listen"
Go on" said I, I'm listening"
Course you-all is listenin'," agreed
Jim; "of course you listens, cause you
has got listenin' sense. That's what
Jim likes about you. Now, let Jim
tell you, Marse Major; that Mr.. Ing
hams plum selfish. Jim can see it in
his eye. He's all right whilst he's
hauling fodder for his own stack, but
you let your intrus run ag'in his, an
you hyar Jim that Mr.. Ingham 'ud
burn your barn to boil his egg quicker
than a mule can kick"
Ingham took up the subject of their
wives GOODNESS with Eaton I'm an UNI
expected fashion. / have heard that
he was thus set in foolish motion by
| a fear of trouble at ten PAGES with