The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-06-15
THE EVENING STORY
A Cold Proposal.
By Mary McKeon.)

$50 MN d year Tor grieving, but not
another day. All they had to go on
was that the two We're neighbors ana
mad Deen for five years, and that the
deascn always stood ready to hoe the
WIDOWS garden, doctor her sick COW
ana nan the pickets back on the fence
When the boys had knocked them off.
II was known that his wife and the
widow were good friends, and as the
o oes 20 was only middle-aged ard well
OH IL was hardly to be expected that
ne would remain single the rest of mis-
days.
AS a matter of fact, the deacon did
seem 10 De looking the widows way
aIter rev months had gone by They
were seen sitting on her doorstep in the
Sloam1ng: he hunted the fields for cat
mp Tor the cat; he set rattraps in her
Darn ne gathered her fall apples and
puttled In new panes of glass in the
broken windows. The widow was known
to nave carried to his lonely kitchen
custards and pumpkin pies and jellies,
to nave said that she pitied him from
the bottom of her heart, and SO there
seemed every reason why the two should
make a match of it. There was one
reason to the contrary. however, and
was straight-haired Methodist and
the WIDOW was dyed-in- the-Wool Bap-
list. His wife had been buried from
the Methodist church and the Widows
husband from the Baptist, and for these
and similar reasons each was ''sot' in
his way.
thousands of MethOdiStS have mar
ried thousands of Baptists without
landing in the divorce court, but this
happened to be an exceptional couple.
They couldn't be together a quarter of
an nour without discussing the ques-
ton of religion, and both were plain
takers. The deacon's year was pretty
near up when he made up his mind
that he was in love with the widow
and had better secure her before she
f1oated off. Her pies were good and her
buildings excellent, and every Monday
he saw by the clothes line what fine
washer she was. He had also taken
notice that she was no gadabout but
was always at home and busy with the
domestic duties. She couldn't drive a
nail, and she couldn't get the hang
of the axe to split wood, but as an
offset to that he had heard folks say
that her picked peaches were simply
delicious.
One evening the deacon went over to
sit on the steps and propose. He felt
perfectly sure in his mind that he would
be accepted. He felt so sure of this
that he brought up the religious ques-
ton before proceeding to business.
There were two or three things that
proved the deacon was not good
Methodist. He did not believe that the
whale swallowed Jonah, and he didn't
believe that Daniel was cast into the
lions den. He had been "disciplined''
he still remained obdurate. On the con-
trary, the widow believed in every
thing between the covers of the Bible,
and there were times when she called
the widOwer a heather and barbarian.
They had scarcely got seated on this
evening when the deacon removed his
hat and wiped his brow and began:
mo, 1t don't stand to reason that the
whale swallowed Jonah and that Jonah
was spewed up again. How did he
breathe down there? How did he exist
for five minutes? And when the whale
spewed MIN up again, why didn't he
fa
shore, and how came it that there was
boat handy? You see, wilder
Deacon Grirnshaw, I refuse to see!"
she interrupted.
II tell you that no man could live in
side a whale"
And tell you that Jonah did, and
that ends it. l wouldn't want to be in
your shoes when you come to die
You'll grunt and groan and kick around
in the awfullest manner"
"Widder, I'm surprised that you
haven't more sense. Take the case of
Daniel in the lions den. Do you
IF you come over here to argue me
out of my beliefs you can go home
again. said the widow.
I'll be hanged If I DON'T
And he did. Five minutes later both
parties were sorry, but the deed was
done. There was a quarrel on between
them, and each knew the others OBJ
stinacy there wasn't much hope for
reconciliation. The deacon shouldn't
have started off, and the widow should
have called him back when he had
reached the gate, but things went as
they went. During the next month
the deacon kept scrupulously on his
side of the fence. When he passed the
Widows house, which was about six
ard didn't seem to remember that she
was on earth. He also did considerable
talking in the grocery store and down
at the sawrnill. A woman with proper
r1rid iS N a
can only wait. While Mrs. Spooner
regretted her hasty words she wouldn't
take back enc of them. AS she thought
the matter over she gave her head a
toss and said to herself:
THE deacon is a good man, but as
obstinate as mule. He knows I'm
right here, but If he don't want to sit
on my doorsteps he can go to Jericho.
I don't believe I could ever live hap
PLY with a Methodist, any how"
After holding out for five long weeks
the deacon could stand it no longer.
One October night he made up his
mind to at least have a look at the
widow through the sitting room win
down. He saw the usual light. and
he softly climbed the line fence to get
a peep. He fondly hoped to see her
pale and emaciated and in tears. If
he did, he might possibly enter tina
house and give her chance to ask
his forgiveness, and promise never to-
do so again.
On that day the widow had called n
carpenter to make repairs to the plat
form of the well. He had torn the
old boards up, but had not nailed down
the new. AS the skulker softly ap-l
preached the window to get look he
suddenly found himself treading on air.
and the next minute he landed with a
great splash at the bottom of a 20
foot we'll There was four feet of wa
ter to break his fall, but he knocked
against the wall going down and was
some time in ascertaining that he had
not been killed and that the water was
not deep enough to drown him. When
he had got this through his head he
began to ehfver and to yell for assist
ance. He had a voice that had Jump
Cd 1-cal feet hut the