The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1912-07-04
this lifelong custom into cooked

{! "You cant mean"
But do! Put on your hat ~
walk over there this afternoon ~
size him up. If you like the look
of him camp on his trail" sly
Mercy, mani"
ASK him for his heart and han
Why not? Tell him that you Ia q
him as no woman ever loved Il A
before, and that life will be a DIRE y
desert without him. got that Oil "a
the girl who is now my wife. h.na
men out Of ten do. Why shouldr' I
It be turned about? II he don't ~.
turn your love-if he says that you
are TOO late. and that his heart has
been given to another, there's no
great harm done. 1 got the knockout
punch twice before was made happy.
Men never die of these things, and q
woman won't. It is better to have
loved and lost than never to have
loved at ALL" .. ~
But what will folks say-what viii
they say!" gasped Abigail, as thd
peddler arose to depart. ~.
But If you get husband through
It? Woman, rise to tho occasion.
Give the world and your sex q new
deal just as I did when brought out
the dishpan with two ears. People
said the world was not ready for tho
chance, but we know It was. You
may travel for year now and not
find one-eared dishpan. Think ID
over. Good-day." "
It was not that afternoon, but tho
next. that Abigail Jones appeared al
the Bascomb farm. Farmer Thomas
was working in tho fields, and half
an hour after her arrival he came I'd
the house for drink Of water and
found her sitting on the steps She
introduced herself and said she waa
resting after q walk. Mr.. Thomad
sat down beside her, and they chatted
for half an hour, and he gathered
her bouquet when she departed
She intimated that she might calf
again. Why not? She liked tho
looks of Mr.. Thomas. As she walked
homeward she thought to herself
that he would make a very good hus(
band.
One day., a week later, as M1l
Thomas was hoeing corn, Miss AbA
gail made her appearance in the field
She had taken walk for the purpose
of gathering materials for dandelion
tonic. Mr.. Thomas hung up his hoe
on the limb of a crabapple tree and
assisted her, and then they sat down
and talked. She drew him out on
this and that question. Men do thd
same thing with a woman. They want
to know if she can sew and darn and
patch and cut over. They want ta
know If she is good cook and if sha
can cut carpet rags and put up picked
peaches.
Miss Abigail found Farmer Thomas
up to her ideal. True, he had too
many whiskers, but little diplomacy
and a safety razor would fix that
after marriage. Perhaps one of the
best things she drew from him in an
hours talk was the assertion that he
never had to have an alarm clock in
the house to get up by. That showed
ambition and industry. He was not,
the man to be snoring away while the
hogs were squealing for their break
fast. ..... ...,...@
The spinster didn't hustle things
too fast. Many man has lost d
good wife by his impetuosity in court
ing She had walked out to the
Thomas farm at least ten times BEL
fore the crucial moment arrived. She
had grown holder and holder with
each visit. That is, she had come to
realize more and more that she was
only giving herself a square deal. And
when the moment arrived she was
ready for it. She walked out to the
farm to find Mr.. Thomas mixing tho
dough for loaf of bread. He waa
making a botch of it, and it gave hen
the courage to say: Il
z Ezekiel, you must know my fee11
1ngs towards you. I love you, and
hope that I have inspired the same
sentiment in your heart. If you wish
to make me the happiest woman in
the world say that you'll be mine" !
And Mr.. Thomas rubbed the wet
dough off his fingers on the roller
towel and put his arms around heA
and replied:
III be hanged II I WON'T"
Talk? OF course there was talk1
They said that Abigail camped on hid
trail; that she had run him downs
that she had scared him into it. Obi
yes, they talked and talked and talked
and rolled up their eyes, but Abigail
mad husband and Mr.. Thomas had
wife, and It was q happy MARRIAGE
49, To Treat umbrall..