The newspaper., 1906-05-04

the people OF Smyrna vaguely puo IL.
She came promptly to take possess
sion and proved to be widow OF a
frankness of temperament never be-
fore experience in reserved Smyrna.
.I'm forty-five," she said to the
first neighbor who called on her
Though l could well pass for thirty
five, and l know it. l weigh two
hundred and thirty pounds, though
you might not suspect it, and Pm
going to hire help and run this farm
and Lord pity the man that tries
to loaf when I'm payin' him days
wages! I'd knock him fiat with a
sled stake. And it might as well be
understood that amt in the mar
ket for Number Two"
Before two weeks had elasped she
had tried all the days work men of
the village and had Indignantly dis
charged them.
"If there was only three days in a
week-a rainy day, Sunday and pay
day." she declared, that kind OF
help would get along all right. But
| don't propose to have a man that
works for me put out all his muscle
shoveling into his mouth my cook
ing and then go out and stand
round and suck an old pipe and for
get that I'm paying him a dollar
and a quarter day for getting my
crops into the ground. I'll do the
work myself, first
Therefore, Widow Briggs, in her
gown became a familiar spectacle in
her fields. When she struck a prob
lem that she didn't understand she
was promptly at her fence to hail
the first passer-by and demand in
formation with a brisk brusqueness
that permitted no dilly-dallying.
Up to the time the widow had
come to town the most picturesque
farmer in Smyrna had been Cap'n
lothian Sprague. The Cap'n had
become tired of the sea and its hard
ships and had come to Smyrna and
bought a farm with a small part OF
his generous savings. He kept bache-
lor's hall and cooked queer sea
dishes and Dragged of his duff and
lobscouse and ran his farm "to have
fun with 'er," as he expressed 1t.
He had no need to seek profit, and
his experiments and new departures
in agriculture excited gusty mirth in
all observers. However, since the
time he had nearly scraped the ear
off a neighbor with n hoe because
the neighbor stood and leaned on
the fence and laughed at the way
the skipper was hoeing beans, merri-
ment had been carefully concealed
behind broad palms.
One bright morning the Cap'n
came rolling along the road past the
widows farm putting his curved
pipe with great content. From the
other direction, and much farther
from the widows. plodded "Mourn-
| full Mullen, with hunched-Over
shoulders and down-hanging head.
| The widow came out of her barn
door with face flushed and the light
OF excitement in her eyes. Here,
sir!" she called to the Cap'n, Il want
YOU to come in here at once"
The Cap'n stopped and surveyed
her, hands thrust deep into his big
pockets, pipe smoke curling under
his ruddy nose. All his quarter
deck dignity was aroused by her
sharp command-and he didn't like
women anyway.
"Do you hear?" she queried.
"I've got pretty good ear for a
hail." he retorted; "but / amt ever
been in the habit of being ordered
aboard no craft"
81 want you to help me, and 1
want you in a hurry" she said.
It's your hurry, then; faint
mine," he replied calmly.
From the barn came the sound OF
violent threshing and pounding.
'Do you hear that?' she demanded.
"My horse is-is-well, farmers call
it something, ! don't know what.
But he's down in his stall and can't
get up"
"Well, / don't want to see no