Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1911-01-27
The Village Bellies Baby

His chums asked him how he en-.
| joyed his two weeks vacation.
'The village belle who was mar
ried year ago in the little church
of her father and mother and grand.
father and grandmother" he said,
returned home while was occupy.
ing room in her fathers house.
She was accompanied on her return
by her first baby. N
"The house where had a room
was not in any sense summer
boarding house. 1t was the home
of people who would scorn to take a
boarder. 1 was taken in because my
doctor knew the people and asked
them to take care of me for a couple
of weeks as personal favor l was
told that what l needed was COM
plete change, and l got it.
THE young mother arrived sew.
eral days after me. The only time
that was entirely at home, by
which l mean all alone in the house.
was the half day before the young
mother got in.
THE household went to the train
to meet her about seven hours be-
fore the train was due. They acted
as if they believed that the train
would get into town by some short
cut across country. Most Of the
young people of the village and a
number of fathers and mothers and
a few old maids also closed their |
homes early in the day and went to
train when it pulled in.
when I heard the whistle of the
locomotive went to my room.
Motor cars, buggies of the old type,
and people who preferred to walk
soon arrived. The express wagon
brought up the rear. 1t was piled
high with great trunks and on top
was the baby wagon. n
Il am no authority on the baby
question but I question if any kid
ever had such reception as that
one had. The grandfather had the
baby, the grandmother had the
assisted by several of her
kin, and most of the boys had charge
Of the baby cart. There were some
people in the village who failed to
be at the station when the train
arrived, but they reached the house
learly as soon as the others.
THE reception was on for several
hours. The next morning I asked !
bout the baby. The young mother !
informed me that her aunt had Dor.
owed the baby for a little while. r
Il said l didn't know that mothers
ent their babies. reckon l made {
break in saying that, for they all
aughed. Just then the telephone :
urned in an alarm. The young !,
lother answered. Then she ap-
ealed to her mother. The minis T
er's wife wanted to know if she
ould borrow the baby when auntie T
as through with him. OF course it
as all right, for, as they informed 7
lie, the lady was the wife of the min 7
ter who had married the little
lother year ago.
Then there were calls by young
omen, who were awfully disap-
ofnted when told that baby had G
cen lent. I got away from the
ouse and took long walk. I met T.
range people, who seemed to know r
lat didn't belong in the town, and
hen they learned where 1 was T.
opping they asked me if 1 had
en- the baby. They told me about !.
e wedding; what pretty wedding
was year ago. I wondered If she
as the only girl who had ever been r.
arriei in the village Or was she -,
e first who, being married, re- -
rned a year later with a baby?
81 think that kid was loaned to
cry woman in the town, and
pecially to the girls. The little
other would go out to make ~
Il, leaving the baby with it's p
andma or the nurse, and return to ~
told that one of the girls who was We
the wedding had called and bor- ;.
we'd the urchin. ~
II was finally called home sud- Y
1ly. I had been so nice to baby ~
It I was taken to the train in the e
n1ly auto; and the little mother ~ ~
! her mother and the baby went -- s
vn to see me of. ~.
You fellows asked me how en- ~,
ed my two weeks vacation and l -
re told you, but-well, yes, I had -
omplete change. My doctor told a..
that was what I needed" -