Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1908-09-03
Mrs. Scarritt'5
Crusade.
Copyrighted. 1908. by Associated
Literary Press.
BY W. F. BRYAN.

sponslblllty. ana Roy Barnes declared
it a bore, a fad and some other things
to which he did not give vocal utter
ance IN Mabel's presence.
To Roy It was matter Of supreme
indifference whether women voted or
not. but * seemed to Mabel that it was
the vital question of the hour,
She attended all the su6fragette meet
tags advertised and even formed a suf-
frage club among the girls Of Cowdrey
House. an establishment for self sup
porting girls ia which she bad made
her home since the death of her par
ents.
The Cowdrey Suffrage club was at
best lukewarm organization The
girls had joined for the fun of the
thing" and Mabel had 10 work hard to
hold her converts in line
This prevented her from giving much
Of her time to Roy, and his opinion Of
the sufragettes was the natural result.
For five years he had begged Mabel to
marry him. but even before the cry Of
votes for women" became a fashion
able slogan Mabel had had pronounced
ideas as TO the independence of her
sex, and Roy waited patiently while
Mabel demonstrated her ability to earn
her own living
Then she had fallen under the influ-
ence Of Mrs, Grace Brown Hazard and
bad been welcomed 10y the leader as an
addition to The cause The approval Of
this famous woman had the effect Of
making Mabel the more enthusiastic.
and presently she was devoting every
evening to the Cowdrcy branch Of the
society. ana Roy was left out In the
cold
1t Was the rule that all lights were
to ba out az II in Cowlrey House, Int
with the aid Of candles Mabel wrote
far Into the night on the speeches that
Mrs Hazard delivered and
dragged herself unwilingly to her
work the following morning. sadly
feelins the lack Of sleep.
Mrs Brown-Hazzard found in her
new disciple valued assistant and
her demand for speeches that offered
a departure from her own stereotyped
thoughts was insistent
The more she praised the harder Ma
bel worked until at last the inevitable
breakdown occurred, and Mabel was
forced TO resign her position and go
into the country, where her scanty saw
ings rapidly diminished The pile of
manuscripts for her idol. however. In
creased greatly.
Mrs. Scarritt, her new landlady, was
much Interested In the girl, and her
protests against the manner in which
Mabel was overworking were loud and
emphatic
Better step that foolishness,' she
argued, "and put some flesh on your
bones"
But the cause needs my work.
cried the tired girl. Mrs. Brown
Hazard writes me that these speeches
are doing a world of good; that | am
making thousands of converts. OF
course she fatters me there. for it il
her magnetic personality that counts
! | merely save her the worry of mar.
shaling her arguments"
Mrs. Brown HazzardT' unused Mrs
Scarritt "Grace Brown married Ben
Hazard You don't happen to know
what your friends husbands name Is
do you?"
at is b. Henderson Hazard" re-
sponded Mabel
| Named after his ma" explained
Mrs. Scarritt Ellis ma was Luella
! Henderson. We always did say that
change of name and not of letter
meant change for worse and not for
1 better 1t was Gene Hazard that got
the worst OF it My, hut he was hen
pecked! Lived over in the hollow
Grace BroNa lived right down the road
piece that first red house on your
right as yon 90 to the postofiice."
"She never said anything about hav.
/ ing been born herer' cried Mabel In
surprise she did say In one OF her
letters that she knew that Cadyville
was a beautiful place.
Grace Brown amt Dragging about
us. and We amt Dragging about Grace
Brown" declared the old lady. Grace
always was fraud" she went on
! "She used 70 get me to write her com
! positions for her. and Ben Burrows
used to DO her sums. She never did
anything that she could coax some one
else to DO for her. | must say that
she had nice ways about her She
could coax even the teacher into Civ
Ing her good marks when she'd been
kept la after school the whole week"
"She Is Ihe leader III great cause,
said Mabel reverently "She has de
voted her gifts to great battle, and
J she will win for us We shall get the
vote before long, and the name Of Mrs
Brown Hazard VIII 20 down through
the ages as the woman who worked
this great revolution Ia favor of wo
mans rights
Mrs. Scarritt shifted scornfully; Their
4 she looked down into the deep blue
eyes glowing with the fires OF enthusl
assn. Mabel's cheeks were thin and
white. and there was little CULVER OF
the chin that bespoke nervousness
Only the eyes betrayed animation
/ Mrs, Searritt laid her hand gently upor
the girls arm.
There's just one real right that 1
Eoman has" she insisted softly
THAT'S the right to marry good mar
and have him love and protect her. II
she can get that she doesn't need to vot.
I, or do any OF those fool things. she Il
content with her home and her babies