The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-01-15
THE TRANSFORMATION
Of HYMEHIL BASS
By Edna Foster.


knees; they did not cast the fly to
catch the floating gossip Of the town.
but allowed It to drift toward them
BY the great law OF chance. Capt.
Tracy was not dismayed by the ST.
lence; ne knew his listeners, and he
stepped into the room and made ready
to divide his spells.
"Hymeny Bass has always been
terrible meek sort; she has had
large, wide idea OF the cap'n and his
judgment: she's believed he was so
great that when he went east the west
would tip up, and that his opinions
were inside information from the very
keyhole Of the universe. Now think
his ideas on a subject are likely to
hit about as near as the Farmers
Almanac comes to getting the weather
right. There is always a pretty wide
range to allow room to turn. Hy-
meny hasn't bought a yard of calico
or baked cake that he hasn't super
Wsed for 40 years. She would no
moro dare to set bureau angling
than she would dare to set fire to
public buildings. The whole house is
full OF ruts in the floors where she has
stepped in her own tracks.
But she's out of bondage now" con-
tinued the narrator She's gone up
into the conning-tower, and Cap'n
Bass is only firing when he gets the
signal. And Mary says she is wig
wagging an everlasting message of
freedom to them that can't under
stand.
It's all along Of a present they got
from the old Bass property. When
the estate was divided there was a
bed and two chairs for Elmiry, pung
and a ox-goad for Jonathan; but Hy-
meny wasn't named in the regular
will, and she got only q longish kind
OF looking-glass.
1.-THE cap'n is tall, and he has al.
ways hung the mirrors SO high that
Hymeny hasn't seen herself since she
was married, and when the cap'n came
home and brought the glass he set
1t on the floor, tipped back against the
wall. TIL he could get chance to buy
a cord, Hymeny, 1t seems-according
to Mary-saw herself for the first time
in years. They do say she gave a
kind OF a yelp and stood like one
stunned; she had to get acquainted
With haroaiP oil ovar
"She saw how downtrodden she
looked and meeching, and she saw the
fires quenched out Of her eyes, but
what she most wilted Aft so be
there was left any room to wilt-was
the way her hair had wisped all down
to nothing. She dwelt on that, and
dwelt on II until she almost lost her
sense of fear OF the cap'n. So one day
she up and away over the fields like a
girl going to the fair. and she en-
gagged Betsy Spooner to make her a
false front.
"Hymeny is a changed being. Boys,
when that front came home, Hymeny
perked 1t up on her head as fine as
you please. and Mary was there, and
said she seemed to undergo a kind OF
q transforming, blooming process. She
sat up straighter, and the first words
she spoke was to contradict the cap'n
and three times she upset him in ag
germint. and then Mary very wisely
got up and came home.
Now. did any Of you ever hear any
kind OF superstition as to false hair
Mary and kind OF remember some
thing to the effect that II combings
are taken from = persons hair un
beknownst to the person. that the per
son getting that hair, as a. switch, will
develop all the traits OF TIE person
that 1t belonged to heretofore"
II guess you will have to say them
words over again. and say 'em slow
err" said Capt. Jed, nudging his neigh
Dor.
We'll, to put II palmer, the hair In
that front piece belonged to Mis- Mir
am Gay, and Hymeny has seemed kline
OF possessed Of her ways ever since
She has got the cap'n completely
cured of buster Why, she set GU
yesterday that he must take her t
that menagerie that travels through
here every year. Mary was there. an,
stood near them when they were look
ing at the bear. Hymeny took he
sunshade and sort Of poked into thu
cage to wake the bear up, and tn,
cap'n told her not to. Mary said sh,
sort OF tipped up her head and said
pretty Arm: 'Cap'n Bass. have wante'
to poke the animals for some years
This year | shall poke!' and she did
"a spell after some one heard hin
| say to her: There. you set there til
come back, and she said: No,
won't set' and away she went Of
toward the kangaroo. Time was whel
4, she would have set until the menae
erie moved along and come agat
another year, II he hadn't told her I
get up"
2 The net was mended and the me
!. rose to 60 to the shore. Capt. Trac
was satisfied with the interest he ha
, created, for, by a freemasonry of tn
= eyes, he knew the sentiment Of tn
, little circle. Capt. Ben Jagged b.
r hind. "Ysu--you don't think" he salt
e hesitAtingly, that this ere Bets
$ Spooner 10 going to work up muc
Of trade in this town, do your"
"Haw! haw" derisively laughe
= Capt. Tracy. as he climbed the hill.
} II guess It's nothing but his go
y alp" said the man to himself, in