West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1906-10-25

they were brown. co. that they wcra
tOillug over the sand AMID dissolution.
or that her name was Many Carmichael,
or indeed OF anything. -Four days In
the train and what syVmed like four
centuries i'm the stage eliminated AMY
certainty as to anything. Shc could
only sit huddlcd ga heap ana wait
for things to become UdjuStc1-by time
Chugg was behaving I'm most OK
emplary manner. lie drove rg.dly rs
an automaton, and apparently he
looked no longer on tine lightning
when Il was bottled. once or twice
he had applied his cy, 10 thc pane that
separated him from his passenger ana
asked questions rC,at.Vc TO her com
fort, but Mary was too utterly defect.
ed to reply ir, more than monosyllablcs.
AS they crcpt along. the sun dried TIM
bers of the stage crcakel and grOaned
in seeming protest at wearing It's life
away In endless jOurneylngs over this
desert waste then settled down into
one OF those maddcuiugly monotonous
rcitcrations 20 which certain lnanimatc
things are given IN seasons of nervous
tension. This time II was, "All the
worlds n stuge k-screoch-all-
the worlds stage creak -screechw
over ana over till Mary found herself
fast succumbing 10 the hypnotic effect
OF the constant repetition.
At sunset the intcrminablc mOnotOny
of the wilderness was broken by
house of curious architecture. the Ike
OF which the tired young traveller had
never seen before. and whose singular
Of Ia hon Tntr1 fn
evidence OF her own thoroughly TX.
hausted faculties. The house seemed
20 consist OF series of rooms thrown
or rather blown together by some
force of nature rather than by formal
design OF builder or carpenter. The
original log cabin of this composite
dwelling looked better built, more fin
ished, neater OF aspect than those they
had previously stopped at in crossing
the desert. Springing from the main
building. like claws from Il crustacean,
was series Of rooms minus either
side walls or flooring. Indeed. they
might easily have passed FOR porches
of more than usually conmOdious size
had 1t not been for the beds, bureaus
chairs, stove with attendant pots. ket
ton. Seen from any vantage point
in the surrounding country the effect
was that OF an interior on the stage
the background OF some homely drama
where pioneer life was being realistic
ally depicted. The dramatls persona
who occupied the center of the stage
when Mary Carmichael drove up was
an elderly woman in rocking chair.
She was dressed I'm faded pink cali
co gown, limp and bedragglcd whose
color brought out the parchment like
hue and texture OF her skin IN mer-
ciless contrast Perhaps because she
still harbored illusions about the per
ishable quality of her complexion,
which gave every evidence of having
borne the brunt of merciless desert
suns, SHOWS, billiards. and the ubiqui-
tous alkah dust of all seasons, she
wore pink sunbonnet, though the
hour was one past shutdown, and
though she sat beneath her own roof
tree, even If lacking the protection Of
four walls. From the corner of her
mouth protruded snuff brush, so
constantly In this accustomed pace
that II had come TO be regarded by
members of her family as part and
parcel of her attire-the first thing
assumed I'm the morning the last thing
laid aside at night. Mary Carmichael
had little difficulty in recognizing Jul
dith ROdney's stepmother. nee Tumlin,
she who had been the heroine of the
romance lately recorded.
Mrs. Rodney's interest in the girl
alighting FROM the stage was evinced
in the palsied motion Of the chair as
1t quivered slightly back and forth in
place OF the swinging seesaw with
which she was won't to wenr the hours
away. The snuff brush was brought
into more fiercely active commission,
but she said nothing till Mary Carmi-
chael was within few inches OF her:
then, shifting tie snuff brush 20 a posi-.
ton more favorable to enunciation. she
said; "Howdy? We Ice Mlz Yellett's
gov'ment, amt YEP There was some
thing threatening in her inspect as II
the Office Of gOverness 10 the Yelletts
Carried some challenging quality.
Government repeated Mary vacuc.
ly, her head still rUnbling with the
noise and motion Of the stage "Tm
afraid I hardly understand"
Amt you uns goin' 70 teach the Vel
lett outfit Their spellin', writin and
about George Washington. an low tho
Yankees ken along arter hc was On his
grave an fit us and broke up the ken
try so we had ter leavc our home I'm
Tennessee an ken TO chs yere outda.
-eious piuce where nobody knows the
diffunce between Olg bread an corn
dOdgerI / war n Miss Tumliu. from
Tennessee"
The rocking chair now began g. re-
cover its accustomed momentum This
much heraidcd educational expert was
far from terrifying Indeed. q, lfra
ROdney's hawklikc gaze. that dov0u~ad
every visible item Of NIIy's extremely
modest travelling Dress. There r-as n1th
INK so very wonderful rb0rt ".I. r9v'
ment from the east" with 90 Of .tuas.
compatible only with long p ol 1rrt
Rodney HOW put a foot c t.o folnd o
IN adjoining chair and shovel ~ tower,
Mary Carmichael in ho.u la rHu
tomiinc. never once reisv'r. ilr CON
tinual rocking in the mollit MARI
took tho chair and Mr Uomrt 1f'u
fresheuing uD the SNUFF brush r5m
small tin box in hcr Dap pr, lrr 6.
her rocking chair go to apc1t r,
started OF nc 81 brisk c8n'er
II low it's mighty rloor SOU m
don't recognize the fob you WB t.r
out ycre 20 take WHOM call ~ a
name" From the ahctar.ne f.r %
the pink sunbonnct She furc1 pri
Of black eyes FUN Of 600 concealed
picion. "Aiiz Yedett civin herself a
many 0irs bout hirir ~,r'r.rf
Sic WIZ goin' To- cougrr D..cr .l.