Meade County news. [volume] (Meade, Kan.) 1900-1918, 1911-10-19
IN THE
NIGHT

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when he heard his wife's voice. Her
tones seemed distant and smothered
and unreal, but the words were plain
enough
Charles! Charles!" she said.
You'll have to get up and wheel the
baby!"
The baby belonging to the Shawberk
family had cold and for three days
and nights had been, to put 1t mildly,
restless. Shawberk and his wife had
been so long without sleep that the lit
tie respite they had just been enjoying
seemed heavenly. At the fatal sum-
mons Shawberk, like craven, feigned
that he had not comprehended.
What did you say, Mamie?" he
asked, drowsily.
THE baby" repeated his wife. Hes
awake-wheel him!"
The Shawberks kept the baby car
rage in their large bedroom and It
was commonly utilized as a crib by
their son and heir, who was extremely
young Since his cold the baby had
slept whenever he condescended to
close his eyes, which was rarely.
There was no help for It. Shawberk
pried his eyes open by main force, put
out one foot into the night chill, shiv-
cred, shook himself and arose.
He stumbled against the carriage
and little feeling Of irritation at his
wife Immediately surged through him.
She had been very careful to put the
carriage where 1t shouldn't escape
him. Then she crept under the warm
covers and left him to face the music!
Wasn't he every bit as tired and sleepy
as she was?
Then Shawberk had the grace to be
a little ashamed of himself as he be-
gan his tramp back and forth across
the floor. Long practise had made him
perfect In the dark and he avoided the
furniture skilfully. He was wide
awake now and enduring his martyr
dom Ike man. His wife already was
wrapped in heavy slumbeT.
OF course there was no reason why
she should keep awake, but Shawberk
somehow felt bitterly that he had
been abandoned to hard fate
There was some satisfaction In see-
ing that his ministrations had had
an immediate effect, for quiet was
reigning inside the baby carriage.
Poor little duffer! The baby GER
tainly had had hard time of It. Shaw
berk pushed the carriage more vigor.
ously as he recalled the baby's general
unhappfness of the past week. II he
was getting any comfort out Of being
pulled back and forth across the floor
Shawberk was very glad of It.
His heart swelled a bit with the
pleasant realization that he was
able to do something for his child.
There usually was so little a father
could do and sometimes he had even
been a little jealous of the babys
preference for his mother.
Shawberk suddenly realized that he
was cold and miserable. He stopped
wheeling the carriage long enough to
search for his heavy bathrobe Hear
ing slight rustic, however, he has
tened back to the carriage. Now that
the baby was asleep he felt that 1t
would be shame to let all his work
go to waste by permitting him to wake
up.
Whenever Shawberk tentatively
slowed down his ears would catch a
suggestive stir and rustic. Then, be-
fore the protesting cry which he ex-
pected had a chance to ring out, he
hastily began wheeling again. Still
his wife slept quietly.
In spite Of himself Shawberk felt
cross and indignant. 1t seemed to
him as he stumbled on that she at
least ought to want to share his weary
vigil. Some women, he thought, would
even get out of bed and let their hus-
bands rest
Shawberk yawned till his jaw
cracked and then In a moment Of dis
traction he struck his toe against q
chair.
"oo-o-ooch!" he moAned, dancing
about.
When the pain was somewhat a.
Iayod he realised that the baby car
riAgo had stood sttI three or four
minutes with no protests from the
baby.
Shawberk wondered II he dared stop
and got some Sleep himself. The top
Of his head seemed cavtng in, his
veins ran Zoe water and he ached all
over.
"MAmie!" he whispered hoarseiy.
"Can I stop now? Isn't no All rightf
I've been wheeling him for hours!"
"What?" asked his wife, startled.
Then she awoke. "Why, Charles
Shawberk! What on earth do you
mean? What have you been doing all
this time? The baby's sound asleep in
bed here by me-you did not put him
in his carriage at ALI"
me put him in the carriage!" ex-
claimed Shawberk. why. I thought
you had done that when you called
mel"
well, didn't" said his wife. He
must have gone to sleep again Of his
own accord. Where are you going?
"Me?" said ShaWberk in tones of