The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1905-02-10
Ole Yellow Trousers.
By IDA REED SMITH.
N&AN%N O NNAQ@RN

horse block was within easy stepping
distance OF her old-fashioned covered
buggy Miss Lodusky Ellis wound the
lines carefully twice round the wnlp'
which she never used, shook the dust
from the gray linen lap robe ana pre-
pared to descend from her conveyance.
"William!" she called, when she had
progressed as far as the horse-Dlock'
"Willyum!"
"That's a dreadful awkward name TO
holler," she thought, impatently'
And by all accounts, boys have 10 De
hollered at a sight, | mistrust ~
be sorry that while l was a-plcklng
didn't pick an orphan named john
"Will-yum!" she called again.
A freckled urchin of twelve, VINO
was risking life and limb hunting
swallows nests in the great barn, hearo
the summons. Leaping from the 100
der window" upon the straw-stack, ne
slid to the ground in a twinkling ana
appeared at Old 'Liza's head, his Keen
little face alive with curiosity.
Miss Lodusky, with the aspect OF a
craven image, beckoned him with one
lean, brown forefinger.
Take these bundles in to MIS-
Cobb" she said, pointing to the pack
ages, big, little and middle-sized, that,
reposed under the buggy seat Don I
drop 'em or spill EN- or stick your
fingers into em. Then come back ana
unharness Old Liza an turn her into
the south pasture. And don't go
trespesin' off anywhere else till Mis-
Cobbs taken your measure.
"Yes'm-no'm answered William,
briskly, appearing in his arms lofty
brown paper pyramid, the base and
apex of which we're, respectively,
dollars worth of sugar and three nut
megs.
But when the bundles were deposited
on the kitchen table he selected one
with unerring instinct and handed 1t
to the little tailoress who had ar
rived the day before.
"Thats it," he exclaimed, with eX-
element "And I'll be back to be
measured soon as l tend to the horse.
His bare feet flew down the path
to the horse-block When Miss Lodu-
sky entered the kitchen Mrs Cobb had
united the string which bound the
package, and stood obviously inspect
ing a piece of heavy wooden goods OF
most peculiar hue.
rs that what you got for William
trousers?" she asked, holding the fab
o+h nd 1nnl(inO at
1T over the tops of her glasses.
yes" said Miss Lodusky, COM
placently, untying her bonnet strings
and rolling each carefully before
placing the bonnet Sin it's box. Good
cloth, isn't it, Malviny?"
"'Taint what I'd call handsome
color" answered Mrs. Cobb cautiously.
"'Twan't color l was after" re-
marked Miss Lodusky, with superior
air. For boys everyday trousers
color's no odds. Wears the thing to
look out for, and | got it, too, if Pm
any judge o. cloth Now get William
sewed up soon's you can, Malciny. 1t
frets me to have him going round
looking like " rag-tag an bobtail. If
I'm going to raise boy, / want him
clean and whole"
'T'll do my BEST" said Mrs. Cobb,
trying to rub out the anxious wrinkle
between her mild blue eyes with a
thimbled second finger. But l mis-
trust William won't be over pleased
with his trousers. If this was brown,
now, or gray, or most anything but"
well amt it brown, Malviny
Cobb-a lightish kind of brown? And
if William isn't pleased with good,
whole clothes after what he's been
wearing, he's got less sense than l
give him credit for, to say nothing of
gratitude.
Miss Lodusky sailed into her bed
room, frown upon her forehead, the
bandbox in her hand. Mrs. Cobb
shook her head as she spread the cloth
preparatory to laying on" her pattern.
Bingham apron in hand, Miss Lo-
dusky re-entered the kitchen just as
William, breathless, but full of joyful
anticipation, bounced in for his meas
uring. Miss Lodusky was not an adept
at reading facial expressions, but no
one could have mistaken the boys
look when he saw the cloth spread
upon the table. Surprise, disappoint-
ment, anger, resentment!
Miss Lodusky knotted her apron
strings as one who girds himself for
the fray, and set her mouth in more
determined lines. A crisis was at
hand. Like Napoleons bugler, Miss
Lodusky was one who could not sound
retreat" She therefore charged in
trepidly
Come right in and let Mis- Cobb