Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1908-02-18
CHAPTER VII, (continued).


$50 Mrs. Brenton was right she
said to herself, "and he is angry. 1t
is very unreasonable and rcther ah
surd! suppose he expects every
body to give him the oued1ence 81
slaves, that any sort of Independence
is Objectionable to him. Well, he Is
mistaken as far as I am concerned.
1t is my business to be independent,
to think and act for myself, and l am
assuredly not going to throw UP this
work just to please Mr. Haverford."
She read the letter through twice.
He makes no mention of his
mother this time" she mused and her
look took smile that was half a
sneer. Perhaps it vexes him that
should be with one of his friends"
was her next thought After all, he
is Octavia Baynhurst's son. so there
must be a good deal Of Objectionable
element in his composition
She made up the fire quietly, and
then sat staring into it till late
hour.
This letter not onls annoyed her, it
disquieted her. She realised in this
moment that she was changing, that
the innumerable new sensations
through which she was passing had
taken from her altogether that kind
of sullenness. that apathy that had
fallen upon her like cloak during
her stay with Mrs. Baynhurst.
AS school girl she had been very
high spirited, and even intolerant Of
restriction; it was wonderful, all
things considered, that she had not
been called upon to suffer for her
strong will, her hot temper, and her
defiant spirit. She was very grateful
now to the woman who had guarded
her and trained her all those years
True, there had been no pretence
of affection, softness, or gentle
thought, but equally there had been
no unnecessary repression, no hard
ship.
Katherine had been allowed freedom
up to certain point; her love of
fields, and trees, and flowers, anil
young animals had never been curb
ed In that deserted old school gar
den (that now gave her pang to re-
member) there would be found a plot
that had belonged entirely to herself,
and where. with seeds and plants beg
ged from the gardener, she had reared
to herself little world of flowers, as
dead to her as human beings.
The change from this simple and
health giving life, to the unnatural
confinement, the irritating atmos-
phere of Mrs. Baynhursts house, had
worked great ill to the girl
United and utterly unprepared to
carry out the work Mrs. Baynhurst
expected of her, she had shivered like
whipped slave beneath the bitter,
biting sarcasm Off her employers
tongue; she had been scourged all the
time by the sense of her own imper-
fectious; another year of such life
and katherine Granger would have
broken down in mind and body.
She was nervous in these days, but
only in a purely sympathetic way.
The generous affection of these lit
tie creatures, who were already as it
were dependent on her, brought from
the depths of her heart hot flood Of
Womanly tenderness; awakened with
JOY the knowledge that it was given
to her to be blessed with love, to be
permitted to give protective love in
return; wondrously beautiful gift to
one who had never known love in any
degree.
Then again, contact, with Camilla's S
charming personality was. like her
brief intercourse with Mrs Brenton,
an awakening influence.
To have been treated as she had
been treated by these two women.
sympathetically, courteously; to real
ise that they recognized in her an