Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1906-02-03
HOW MIRANDY
GOT AHEAD.
By MARY STEWART CUTTING.


Author Of Little Stories Of Married
Life.~
Copyright, by Joseph 3. Bowles.)
Yes, my husband and / pulled neck
and neck together to earn living
All but once, and then / got ahead. /
was always great on planning. No.
you couldn't do the way did. Marian.
my daughter, she couldn't either. Bring.
ing ups different.
! was brought up to work. but I
never knew what work was TIL /
moved out west with my husband.
When he cut down logs, helped haul
EN-; when he built the cabin. | plas-
tered 1T; after he'd planted. | hoed:
and from then on there wasn't a pen
ny earned but I'd helped to earn IL
We had only one child-you know
what Marian is. She was Just the
same then-not big and large oned
like her father and me, but Just white
and light and dancey-never strong.
Perhaps I'd kept all the strength for
myself and hadn't any left to give her.
But even when she was ailin' II was
no trouble to take care of her-and
! planned for her. 1t was like living
in the grandest story that was ever
written to plan for Marian: and pull
ing neck and neck we'd thriven mighty
well, SOS as soon a. she got biz
enough we sent her to q school in the
east. She was our only child, and we
sent her away from US; but it WASN'T
hard-nothing was hard, for we were
planning for her; and we saved herr
and we gained there, and she had the
best, and By and BY Joseph sold this
piece OF land and that piece OF land,
and we came with the money to New
York and he began to speculate in the
stock market.
Ny, but the money flowed in! And
for the nrst time my heart went dead
tired. I sat In the hotel all day long
you know what a hotel bedroom IA.
! sat there all day long while he was
down specializing, and tatted-craxy
work, tatting! sat and tatted to keen
from thinking, for knew! He was
always giving me money for clothes
why don't you 60 out and buy YOU
camels hair shawl?' says he. .and
black silk dress and purple velvet
bonnet" Land, I just put him of,
saying I'd do it. Nearly every day he
gave me roll of money and told me
TO buy clothes; but l bought nothing
for knew. / never went out of the
room till he came home, and then
we'd take walk together-he all
smiling, and me in my old buds with
the heart dead tired in me. From the
first I'd warn him-Td worked for the
money, too--but he wouldn't hear to
me pow. SO shut my mouth. IT'S
Q good thing to know when to save
your breath on a man -s;~~a,.
No. my dear, you couldn't have put
that money by and never used penny
and neither could Marian; but there
was something into me so much
stronger than the buying of clothes
that the thought of it didn't brush by
me as much as fly's wing might.
was waiting-and knew. You can
get along without a sight of things,
If you only think you can. made
him send and pay up Marians school
ing way ahead.
Well, like woman in a dream, ]
lived. waiting-w aiting--for what was
sure to come; and it came! 1t was
called out in the streets while | SAT-
by the handicapped bureau, tatting;
and woman knew came in and said:
"Oh. there's a smash-up, an awful
smash-up in Wall street-maybe your
husbands ruined" And l rose from
my chair and | rolled up my tattiEs
and flung It down on the marble and
! said: ''Oh. if he is, I'm glad of IT,"
And | stretched my arms out with the
first free feeling I'd had in four
months.
Glad" says the woman. and she
looked as If I'd gone crazy Perhaps
had.
Then l heard Josephs step coming
down the corridor, halting--halting
When he came in his face was white
as clay.
"Mirandy," he said. and stopped and
stared at me; then he groaned. "On,
poor mother, poor mother You're
smiling so | can't bear to tell you.
We're ruined I've lost every cent we
had in the world"
SIS that all?" said /. well, let's
sit right down and plan where we'll
go this summer" Where well go
this SUMMER" says he, staring at me.
Cant you understand? We're ruined!
Mirandy. Mirandy! We've got to begin
again, hoeing corn and binding shoes
"Humph!" says I, what you need
is rest; you've been living on your
nerves for four months. You and nell
go away to some nice quiet place in
the country, and just rest up. All
you wants time enough to turn around
in, and you'll get on your feet again.
easy. Just take time to turn around.
who's to pay for it?" he says. con,
poor woman, your senses are gone."
and he hid his face in his hand. Il
went and pulled 'em down, and stuck
a big roll of bills into EN-
Here" says I, tits thousand dol
lars I've never spent any of what you