The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1910-09-01

| III was q ClOEh on the morning Oh
a beautiful winter day. Out in front
OF the house Crittenden Lee stood
! talking 90 a neighbor, his handsome
young face glowing with color, his
/ blue eyes looking about contentedly
at the sparkling trees and bushes 1t
was good to be out here in the sun
shine, breathing the sweet air. He
! listened with indulgence TO Colonel
Dents somewhat scurrtlous stories. In
( the sitting room Anne. Crittenden'S
sister, bent over an old magazine. She
had forgotten everything but the story
that she was reading. For the time
being her dark countenance had lost
its habitual look of Sullenness and dis
pathetic triumph In her bedroom
lay Crittenden's wife-with death in
her heart
Fourteen days before she could get
up Fourteen days, How can /
stand it? How can / stand it?" she
her pale cheeks She wiped them
away with the corner of the sheet
She had asked Anne TO bring her
handkerchief a while ago. but Anne
had paid no attention TO the request:
The nurse who had been with Mildred
when her baby was born had been
obliged to leave three days later No
other nurse could be got in the little
village. so Crittenden'S sister had been
brought from the farm to stay with
which Mildred wanted. jerking the
bedclothes into place with angry vio-
lence. At other times she came
promptly TO do what Mildred asked,
but with sheer on her face; drawl-
ing, sarcastic comment Still again
she gave no sign that she had heard
Mildred until she got streng. She had
come unwillingly, not daring 10 re-
fuse. She hated Mildred. as did all
of Crittendens people They had not
1 -
needed every cent that he earned to
| true feelings when Crittenden was In.
supplement the scanty living got from
their poor little farm
Anne was careful not to show her
! Mildred's call. but sat and rocked and
hummed in apparent obliviousness-
And so il happened that Mildred only
/ asked for the things that were i'm
/ peratively necessary, and Tor them
| only after a resolute stiffening OF her
| self for the ordeal
! She looked around the room now
with desperate eyes. In one corner
was a bunch of withered roses; their
! sickening smell came to her as she
l lay there, Her dressing table, which
| she kept so eXquisitely neat, was all
in disorder; there was a great brown
peel. soiled towels. Anne had fasten-
! the house; but Crittenden was in the
house comparatively little Of the time.
| When he was not there Anne did not
lift a finger for Mildred except in re-
! sponse 10 a definite request. Then she
was often rough and impatient set
| stain on its ruffled white spread; II
| was cluttered up with glasses, orange
| ed a comforter at one of the windows
| yesterday to keep out the cold; II was
half down now; il had an lndescriba-
| bly, shftless look as il hung there.
Mildred's eyes returned TO it again
| and again. Once or twice her hands
| went restlessly to her hair. 1t was
| beautiful hair; but il was now in
| reelected tangle. Finally, with
leep sigh, she turned to look at the
| uzzy little head on the pillow by
ers; she kissed her baby's tiny hand
: With a sudden tenderness. For her
sake she must be strong. For her
sake she must be patient.
She turned resolutely away from
the disorderly room and bent her gaze
| on the tiny triangle OF window not
frosted over. Through il she could
see a bit OF the village street-in the
distance Judge Benefits big house,
| with the shrubbery about il whitened
with frost flowers. AS she looked Mrs
Enrol, Judge Benefits half-sister
came out Of the front door. Mildred
watched her slow progress down the
street with vague interest Anne,
glancing idly up from her magazine,
caught sight of Mrs. Errol's flaming
veil, and peered out Of the window
curiously. Colonel Dent stopped in
the middle of story and stood with
his eyes fixed on Mrs. Enrol, a smile
of mockery on his face; and Critten-
den, too. turned a grave, impersonal
look upon her as she advanced slow
ly toward them.
She was a bizarre figure on the
sober village street. The hat that she
wore was huge in size, and had on
ii most astonishing display of feath-
ers-not five or six, but fully a dozen
long ostrich plumes, spreading in all
directions. About this hat was twist
ed voluminous scarlet veil; beneath
Mrs. ErrOrs skirt, held carefully out
of the snow, was visible tie ruffle of
a silk underskirt. of the same blazing
red, and feet incascd in extravaganza
~ high heeled, pointed shoes. Her
hips and waist, plainly defined by her
close-fitting brown dress, had the
lines and curves Of a corsetnaker's
advertisement; something about her
stin walk suggested at what effort
the resemblance had been acquired.
Her dark hair was fastened in a girl
ish knot low on her neck and friZzed
out on all sides of her face in an
enormous pompadour. She had about
her an air of overweening pride; she
bowed graciOusly, but with marked
condescension, to an old woman plod-
ulng along in the opposite direction
The old woman returned the greet
ing with eXpreSSiOnleSS face; but there
was scorn and mockery in her heart
She knew that Mrs. ErroFs silk un-
derskirt, whose ruffie still made such
brave showing, was in rags above
the ruf1e-that il had to be mended
after each time that it was worn; she
knew that under that SNOWY gown
Mrs. Enrol was still wearing her thin
summer muslins-because she had nc
money 70 buy anything warmer; she
knew that the color in Mrs. Errol's
cheeks and the hair on her head were
! both false; and that when that mas.
siVe pompadour had got a little askev
; one morning, Matte, the maid, haC
seen a bit of clOse-shaVen hair, quite
gray. She knew that Mrs. Enrol was
no better than a beggar; that all tina
Z kept her in this little town was the
fact that she had not yet succeeded
in screwing out of her brother tn,
money 10 take her back to Paris; anC
that she had terrible fits Of rage anC
gloom over it.
All this Judge Benefits servant
a had fonud out; they hated Mrs. Enrol
y and her despotic rule; and they hat
" spied, and listened and compare,
notes, and had told freely what the