The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1911-01-07
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
THE CHAIN
By JEANNE o. LOIZEAUX
coD,rish,. 1910. BY Associated Literary Press

After she had prepared her hus.
bands early breakfast and, while he
was eating it. packed his dinner
bucket lest he be late to his work.
Mary Sherman ate a little herself.
with her ear alive TO rthe expected
waking wall of Fred Jr.. She hoped
to get the dishes washed, the sitting
room tidied. and other parts of the
work finished before that squirming
replica of his father should awake
and demand food, bath, dressing.
and more or less attention until his
nap at IL.
She knew what to expect-she was
getting used to the household round.
And it was ironing day, too. A big
basket Of dampened clothes awaited
her. and she was still weary from
washing them the day before. For
that matter, she was tired Of cooking
meals. and washing dishes and mend
ing. Life had after two years of mar
rage begun to be a burden. She
dragged the chain.
But today was the first of her con-
scious realization that she was sick
and tired of It. She loved Fred; he
was kind to her, but was that all?
Life had somehow fallen short of her
expectations. Every morning with
his bucket he went to his carpenter
Ing, and when there was day OF by
chance. he hammered steadily at
some improvement on the little cot
tage on which he had Just finished
paying the last installment. He had
been five years buying the place
three before they were married-and
the two afterward. And some day it
would be worth something to speak
of-the city was rapidly building out
that way.
But Mary did not care now. What
she felt was that 1T was half mile
from street car. and eight blocks to
the nearest neighbor, and that truck
patch, though convenient for food. was
not much company
She began to realize that she was
lonely. Now she put both elbows on
the breakfast table, and leaned her
head on her open palms. And in the
mirror on the wall opposite she could
see herself plainly. She was still very
pretty-much prettier than when Fred
had taken her from the store almost
by force just in time to save her from
cough that had an ugly hold upon
her. They had met at dances, and he
had made love to and married her
In q sort of whirlwind of love and
compassion. He had transplanted her
to his little raw cottage. and made
her at first ~putter," and then really
work. about the garden. until in six
months she was rosy and, for all her
slenderness, plump. And a year and
a half later the boy had come.
Since then her life had been in the
child, and she had not known that
she neglected the man. She did not
love him less, did not fail to keep his
house and cook his meals, and care,
for his son-but she saw him through
mist of motherhood. She forgot to
be sometimes only the wife and girl
companion. So he. thinking with a
sigh that It was only natural, thank
ing his lucky stars that she was a
devoted mother, left her more to her
self, and gave himself more to his
work
He was being rewarded. A month
before he had been made foreman on
a carpentering job. The pay was bet
ter. the position more responsible.
He still carried his dinner bucket,
still wore the little jaunty cap over
his dark curles. but his young face
had set in older lines.
Presently the baby did wake. cooling
and laughing at first, then fretting
and fussing until he was fed, object
ing to being washed, struggling
when she tried to dress him. And
then he went to sleep again. and she
remembered what she had been cook
ing and found It burned to a crisp.
Then she had to slip away, locking
the house behind her. and go Q half
mile to order the groceries. Fred used
to do It, but of late he had seemingly
forgotten 1t, and she had done It her
self without a word. She hated to
leave the baby. but he was Just
asleep and unlikely to wake.
She hurried until she was out of
breath. and by the time she was near
~ home again. was sure in her own
mind that something had happened.
though as usual she found everything
all right. She resolved not to do this
again-Fred would have to do the or
dering-or get her a telephone. That
was another grievances phone
would have made her less lonely.
The girl was sensitive about ex-
pense-she had always felt It that
he had married her half sick, with
nothing save the clothes she stood in.
She was an orphan. but she had a.
ways wished she could have come
to her husband with trousseau. with
linen for the household, and some bits
of furniture all her own. He had
never thought of this. but she did. He
naturally paid all the bills an thev