Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1903-10-03
A SPINSTER'S TRIALS.

my uuIueIOu5 TbidLlfes. maven SUI
ceeded and now | am going to see If
hnnot get a little happiness and com
fort in my own way.
Twas like this: My relatives disap-
proved Of my attempt to earn my own
living, and said | would never be able
to do 1t. | did it, however, for there
seemed nothing else to do after certain
somebody and / had falling out and ]
renounced matrimony.
| Mother and father were both dead,
and had no home except with broth
ers or sisters where | was rot needed
and where | could not feel free anc
happy Mother had wanted to leave
her small property to nae, or at least
the income from 1t, as I, the youngest.
was alone in the world while all the
rest were prosperous; but | knew Z
would make trouble in the family for
her to discriminate in that way, so /
talked her out of the plan and when
she died was left with the income from
only a few hundred dollars.
| have enjoyed my independence,
barring the interference of my rela-
| tiyes, who, with the best intentions In
| the world have insisted on debating
what | should and what | should not
| do, Notwithstanding the fact that ! was
woman In years and experience and
was earning my own bread and but
ter.
When | came to Cincinnati In order
to have better treatment for my throat
than | could get in NJ, where | had
! been living, they were shocked. 1t was
terrible for me to leave the safe shell
ter of that little city where there was
second cousin handy to direct my ways.
When | persisted in Exposing my
self to the dangers Of big city" they
: insisted that | should board in the
suburbs with brother Johns son, who
had lately married.
| arrived in the summer, when cleri-
cal positions were hard to secure
doubly so for a stranger, and of course
| had to take what | could get. My
fate happened to be one where had to
work about half the evenings in the
month. Under some circumstances /
would not have accepted it, but doctors
bills are a heavy tax and needed the
money.
OF course | wanted to please John, so
| agreed to go to the country, and. in
convenient as it was, took up my abode
in the spandy new home of that young
couple. They meant well, but oh, my!
All their interest conferred in themselves
and their house. Every time l moved a
chair from the particular spot they had
chosen for it, they shuddered and could
feel their anxious eyes following every
movement l made In fear that | would
injure in some way their polished floors,
their shiny woodwork or their wedding
collection of bric-abrac.
To earn my extra money had to put
in certain number of hours. For that
reason seldom went out to supper I
usually took a nine o'clock train, and
the supper provided for me when
reached home CD was tomato soup, be-
cause that could be made quickly. To-
mato soup is something | have always
abhorred, and though l expressed my
sentiments as gently as possible. to-
mato soup was what I got and l went
10 bed in consequence hungry, irritated
and discouraged with life generally.
Their bathroom was the pride of their
hearts. 1t was supplied with soft water,
pumped into an upper tank by hand
from the cistern below. They bathed but
once a week, so the refreshment of
daily bath after escaping the dirt and
heat of the city, was denied me. No
sooner would I set foot upon the tiled
floor of that bathroom than there would
be protest from Louise against muss-
ing the clean tub and using up the wa
ter in the tank.
l used to lie awake nights scheming
how | could get away from there to
board in the city without hurting my
nephew's feelings or offending brother
John, but there seemed to be no way
so | stayed on and on.
At Christmas time | thought liberty
was at hand, for they wanted to go
away for a two weeks visit, but they
did not like TO leave the house un-
warmed, so they asked me to say and
look after the furnace. | was a fool
to consent, but l had the ever present
dread of Johns censure.
Imagine me, If you can, returning to
that lonely, dark house each night at
ten p. m. BY the t@le l had searched
it for lurking robbers, raked down and
replenished the fire, had little ambi-
ton left for the preparation of my sup
per, and that meal generally shrank to
bread and jelly eaten from the pantry
shelf.
l had to get up before daylight to at
tend to the furnace, get my cup of cof-
fee and take an early train for the city.
All this time, mind you, I was paying
for my board as much as 1t would have
cost me in the city, paying railroad fare
in addition. and getting very little to
eat. This to please members of my fam
lily who were doing nothing for me and
upon whom | was in no way dependent.
did finally break away. but not with
out nnlpasantneeE and tn this dow