The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1910-06-17
in THE
BIOGRAPH
What Old Abner Carter Learned
at the Moving Picture Show.
Cw. r. Rose in Cleveland Plain Dealer)

The last man on earth TO admit that
Abner Carter lived narrow life would
have been Abner Carter himself. That
was an admirable form OF proof Of hi.
narrowness. All his fifty-four years Of
existence had been passed on farm in
a Vermont township not far from the
Canadian line He was two miles from
the nearest village-and tiny village it
was-and eleven miles from the nearest
railway. He sold his produce in the vii
lage to buyers who were understood TO
come from faraway Burlington and that
two miles radius enclosed his little world.
There had been talk Of another railway,
the line to take in the village on its way to
Montreal. Abner Carter had resented
this proposed intrusion. The village had
done very well without railway for a
century and more A railway meant
smoke, and smudge, and noise, and cattle
killed and MANNED, and depot loafers
He liked the railway still less when good
looking young surveyor at work on the
coming route saw Sylvia Carter in the
lane beside the Carter homestead. Sylvia
was pretty, very pretty and smart too
and Abner Carter was proud of her
beneath the shell that hid his emotions.
Well, the railway didn't comet may
have been all a financial bluff, but the
surveyor kept on coming and one day the
good looking fellow faced him.
"Mr. Carter, he said, 81 want you to
give me Sylvia"
Abner Carter face grew hard.
"When Sylvy marries, he said, "she S
goin' to marry some steady young Teller
who was raised in this neighborhood-an'
it i'll be young Teller that Sylvy knows
an l know"
"I'm little sorry, :" said the young man
q that l WASH t raised in this neighborhood
but that can t be helped now. I'm gen.
orally considered pretty good fellow,
as it is, and my prospects are excellent.
There's fine position waiting for me in
New York-assistant engineer in big
railway office-and | want Sylvia to go
with me-
Abner scowled ominously.
"You can't have her, he snarled.
The young man drew deep breath
"Then it S up to Sylvia" he said and
turned away.
"You get off these premises as quick
as you know how" the angry Abner
roared after him.
Then he stormed into the house.
"Sylvy," he cried, "that jackanapes
Of chain toter has just been askin me eff
he could marry you. sent him packin
mighty quick. He turned to go and
then looked back. II dunno what fool
shness you We got in your head, he said,
''but you'd better get it out as quick as
you know how. You re good as promised
TO Cyrus Roundtree's boy an you II
marry him or nobody. If you was to go
50 far as to take up with this engineerin
oafer d never want you to darken these
1oors again an I'd never want to hear
your name any more" And he stalked
away heavily and expended his surplus
energy in vicious attacks on the woodpile.
Sylvia's pretty face had turned very
white and her heart beat hard and fast,
)ut she held her temper and made no re-
by.
That night she ran away with Richard
Merriam and her name was mentioned no
more in the old homestead
A year later Abner Carter received
etter.
At the top of the sheet was street and
luIIlDeT anu lIlt lctttI WAS uttcu Ill NEW
FORK. The message it bore was brief
me, written in a weak an waving hand. {
"Dear father" it began. II am the
mother of a baby girl. Her name is
'ylvia. wanted you to know about my
reat happiness. Sylvia"
Abner stared at this letter long time. 9
hen he growled something under his G
reath and tore the letter to fragments q
nd flung them into the fireplace. t
"They don t get no money out O me-" t
e growled. t
Then life moved along as before on the f
,arter farm as it had been moving for Q
xty years or more. Abner toiled and saved \
nd steadily added to his earthly treasure il
nd his neighbors looked upon him as a n
bid member of the scattered community. v
Ten years had passed when he heard n
ON Sylvia again.
The letter was also from New York, T
ut it bore the name of another street h
nd another number.
"Dear father" he slowly read aloud, v
l am writing to tell you that our little Ii