Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1907-10-03

"Oh, I'm busy" replies Nell. tartly.
from the depths Of the closet where
she is selecting baDys clothes, kiss
Carl instead, that will do as well. I
don't doubt you think a good deal
more OF him than you do of me any
way" with perversely bitter intona
ton.
II she thinks he will hasten to hen
and coax her out Of her pet, she ia
greatly mistaken; he is not used to
any such moods in his bright little
nelpmate, so does not know how ia
take them. There is sudden silence.
then she faces round just in time to
see him give baby Carl one long kiss,
and he turns away mute and hurt, and
is gone. She hesitates a moment, too
proud to call to him even then, till
at last her heart conquers and she
runs after him. but it is too late;
he has passed out of the side-door,
| gone down the walk and is just step
ping on board the waiting horse-car.
How heavily the day passes after
| this, only tender-hearted woman
mastered by the same failing can
know. Never before has she spoken
such words to the husband she loves
so dearly; never before since their
wedding-day have they parted for
| even few hours without kiss and a
loving word.
Theirs has been a very happy mar.
riage, too, having in it all the ele
| ments OF prosperity and content
| Charley Burt Is house-carpenter by
| trade. tirst-rate mechanic, sober, in
| dustrious, earning good wages ano
constantly advancing at his work
They have coy little home, a pref
ty cottage in the suburbs.
To-day she goes about the pretty
rooms tidying everything as usual
and for the first time takes no pride
or pleasure in them.
She gets through her routine-worI
somehow, doing all she thinks of OF
finds time for, because to leave any
thing undone would only add to the
suffering Of a mind i'll at ease; blu,
there is heavy weight of misery a,
her heart.
Will night ever come-and bring
her Charley home? At last every.
thing is done: she has prepared a
most inviting supper for her good
man." saying to herself:
TN take baby Carl and run down
to the gate and meet him when he
comes-then we'll kiss and make up"
Still he does not come, and it Ia
quite past his usual hour. She sits
patiently holding her boy, her face
growing all the time more white and
drawn and anxious.
"Oh, how / wish had said good-by
just as ever to-day" she whispers fol
the twentieth time; then as the slow
minutes creep along, Il am afraid
oh, so afraid something has hap
| pened," for though he is sometimes
a little late, it is very seldom that his
time Of coming varies a halfhour-
and now it is two hours, and her
vague presentiments of evil are grow.
ing to dreadful certainty.
She gets up and walks the floor
tired out as she is; another hour
passes, and in the extremity of her
distress and terror she is about to
run across to her nearest neighbor
when a muffled tramping approaches
and stops-"the feet of them that
bear him are at his gates"
1t seems to Nellie Burt that she
dies a dozen deaths in that moment
while she stands rooted to the spot
and sees them bring in the man shs
loves, senseless, bleeding, broken;
then she rouses herself, and It is he,
ready hand that arranges the bed and
smooths the pillow under the poor
unconscious head.
Not dead-no-that would have
been a punishment greater than poor
Nellie deserves, and more than she
could bear; but. there has been an
accident-a scaffolding has fallen, and
among the half-dozen men killed on
injured Charley Burt has Jared best
of any-only broken arm, dislocat
ed shoulder, and some cuts ant
bruises. He has been well cared for
too, and only conveyed to his home
when the attending surgeon has decid
ed that there are no internal injuries
and that he can safely be moved.
But the dread might have been"
stands out before her then SO clear
and plain that it leaves its Impress
on her very soul; and In all the rest
of her life it helps to teach her the
great lesson Of patience and self
! control.
Go matters might have been much
worse, after all; as 1t is, Nellie Burt's
bad day ends with perfect recon.
ciliation between husband and wife.
and most grateful thanksgiving to
God from one tender heart that she
has been spared that sharpest pang OF
| all-the utter misery of knowing that
for this world her penitence has come
too late.