, 1905-03-15

She Strengthened up as Mrs. Peters
entered and waving a large iron spoon
with what was probably intended as a
gesture of welcome she said:
well. Lod, | see you've come, bag
an baggage, though your baggage Is
purity scant. | amt sayin' you've done
right. for a %husban's a husban'. but eff
you've made up your mind, they amt
no use talkin' now"
Lod made no reply to this frank
statement of feeling.
where is Mose?" she asked.
"He went away early; had to go out
all day"
"You take your clothes an go up to
the east room; thatll be your ROOM
Mrs. Peters picked up her bundle and
went upstairs to the room they had
said was to be hers. Hers. Sam
would have no place or interest in
that room. She locked the door and
took off her black straw bonnet be-
fore she looked at her surroundings.
The windows were up, and a soft wind
gently moved the white swiss curtains.
The bright sunlight struggled through
the leaves of the huge maple trees and
fell in notified patches on the red and
green ingram carpet. 1t was a pretty
room, she thought, but it was not her
room. Some way she did not feel so
sure of herself as she had early that
morning. She would never go back,
she was sure of that. but she did not
feel so hard toward Sam now.
She put her clothes away in the
closet in the somewhat gaudy dresser
and went downstairs to help Aunt
Cindy.
1--WE won't get much dinner, LODI"
said the latter. .'They's only you an
me to eat, an they amt no use a-goin'
to any fuss for just us two"
Lod assented YEARLY.
The time until the midday meal pass
ed slowly. The dinner was eaten in
silence, broken only now and then by
some remark of Aunt Cindy's, to which
Lod replied with yes" or mo or let
pass without answer at all. She did
not feel like talking. and she was be-
coming more and more depressed. The
old woman's senseless gable would
once have beer pleasing to her, but
now she wanted to be alone.
With the washing of the dishes done
the long afternoon began. There was
nothing for her to do, so she went up to
her room. She drew her chair to the
window and clasped her hands in her
lap. There was the house she had left.
She could see It's weather beaten and
messy shingles over the tree tons. and
through a break in the boughs she
could catch a glimpse of a little win
dow under the caves, the window in
Lafe's room.
Her will power was waning. She
realized that because she began to ask
herself if she had done right. To be
sure, Sam had not treated her right.
He had never supported her. Why,
she thought, in justification, she had
fed and clothed him for fifteen years!
A poor, weak woman had supported a
big, strong man for fifteen years! And
yet-and yet those solemn words spo-
ken by the old pastor so many years
ago, For better, for worse, for rich
er, for poorer" meant as much today
as they did then.
With all the burning thoughts which
filled her brain she was restless. She
was q woman who was used to work,
whose every waking hour was filled
with hard labor. She had labored for
so many years that, much as she had
wished to escape it a few hours before,
she now felt the need of something to
occupy her hands, and she chafed un-
der the idleness.
There off to the southwest, just yer
those low green hills, her husband had