Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1912-07-12
THE WORD OF A MARVIN.
[Reprinted by special permission fro
McCalls Magazine.l

| IReprinted by special permission from
| McCalls Magazine
| All the fine good nature had retreated
| from Salie Marvin's plump face. There
was a spot of pink on each well-rounded
| cheek and points of light in her steel
| blue eyes; her chin was quivering spas
| medically and her voice was pitched I'M
| naturally high.
"Once for ALL Jacob Marvin" she de-
manded, ARE you going to or amt
| your"
Jake thrust his hands deep into mis-
trousers pockets and spread his legs de-
| family apart as he backed up against
| the kitchen stove. His face plump like
his sisters, was alphabetically red.
NO" he roared, II amt, and there's
| the end of it,!
Sallie arose. The pink dropped out of
| her cheeks. She stopped hastily and
caught UP Tabitha, burying her chin in
the cats fur to hide it's increased culver.
She spoke jerkily, but with note of
fnality of which her brother took
stormy cognizance.
Tomorrow, then, I shall start for
| South Bend. l shall board with cousin
Belle. And 1 shall never set foot in this
house again until the front is painted
white"
Jake Marvin never flinched being
Marvin. He stared stonily into his sis
ter's eyes as he declared slowly, 81
amt to blame for that side being made
| the front side now, and it will never be
touched with white paint as long as I'm
| alive
Sallie moved to the stair door, Tab
| itha struggling in her tight grasp. She
paused and looked over her shoulder to
give her brother time to reconsider
| I'm not one to go back on my word,
jake
Nor me either" promptly retorted
| Jake"
He started for the outer door His
eyesight was unusually good for one of
his age, but he fell over a chair and
two cats on the way, snorting wrath
fully.
This ended the quarrel, the first in the
| long history of the brother and sister
1t had begun with the beginning of the
state road, beside which Sallie stood res
olutely with her baggage on the day fol-
lowing her decision.
Around the curve beyond the house
came the stage. the wheels rolling
smoothly over the new macadamized
road. the pride of Pleasant Valley, and
came to an abrupt halt behnd-or ratn-
, er, in front of-the Marvin house. For
the new state road had not followed
the lines of the old road across the long
slope. and the results were decidedly I'M
| pleasant.
Nioiiiih odillS, lHe QTlVeT.
Coin away?"
Sallie Marvin nodded briefly. Her
back was turned squarely toward the
back-now the front-of the house which
had been her home for fifty-five years
The high wall behind her was of a dull
brick color, unrelieved by porch or blind
blank ugly surface three stories high
rising not ten feet from the road.
Looks like you was goin' for quite a
spell" the driver continued, raising the
side flaps of the stage and slowing away
Miss Marvin's luggage. Are your"
With difficulty Sallie unlocked her lips
II am"
The driver gave her a side glance of
curiosity as he asked, where's Jake?
| I'd like boost here with these trunks"
The answer came with even greater eff
fort than the last, II don't know where
| he Isl
With many grunt the driver slowed
away her luggage the larger pieces con-
s!sting of two trunks, one of which was
new and covered with brown denim, a
canvas protected suit case, a shoe-string
bag bullying with packages, and large
covered basket swaying under the move
ments of two frightened cats
After these and minor articles had
been deposited in the stage Sallie climb
ed agilely to the front seat. Gathering
her linen "duster'' about her, she set
one foot atop of the basketful of cats,
clutching an umbrella firmly in one hand
and small handbag in the other, every
line of the back she still turned toward
the house rigid, every line of her usually
supple figure tense, and every muscle of
her comely face stiff.
In this attitude of mind and body she
was conveyed down toward Pleasant
Valley and out of sight of the missing
Jake, who was stealthily watching from
an upper window.
Presently he came out of the front
door-formerly the back-and stood for
a moment In the front yard which, be-
fore the advent of the state road had
been the back yard. He drove his hands
deep into his trousers pockets and
stared up at the red wall, his round face
flushed and wrathful
IAN ALTERED fuss over nothing!" he
burst out finally, And If Sarah Beasley
Marvin expects I'm going to give in and
paint this side white she'll wait til
Pleasant Valley changes places with
Marvin Hill!-which won't be today nor
tomorrow
Stuffing his hands more deeply and ag-
gressively into his pockets he made a
slow tour around the house. It was set
on the side HILL consequently was three
stories high on the down hill side, two
and half on the up slope and two In
front-or rather, at the back The sides
and former front were painted white
SAME favorite house color. Across the
former front ran a wide porch. the Wild
est In Pleasant Valley, shaded by ira
: grant honeysuckle vine and facing Mt
tie square of leveled yard filled with
shell bordered flower beds. In front of
the yard was the bed of the now I'M
used dirt road.
AS Jake turned his gaze downward to
the new state road intruding on the pri-
vacy OF his back yard, skirting his hen
house, barely avoiding his barn and cut
ting his domestic peace off short, he
scowled darkly, and wished heartily that
in the years gone by he had painted the
fourth side of the house white-red had
been the original color OF the entire
house.
Both he and Sallie had been vexed
over having the road come back of their
house, and when their vexation had
awaited nothing with the road makers 1t
seemed to turn on each other, centering
in a quarrel over the color of that side
of the house which heretofore had been
hidden from the public.
Having finished his view of the out
side of the house Jake went into the
basement htchen--now the front room
and began to get his dinner calam-