The Taney County republican., 1913-03-27
HAD PLENTY OF TIME
BY CHARLES PLElNs.

Don't waste any pity on US for be-
ing up here in the woods at this sea- |
son of the year." wrote the girl to |
her best friend in town, who had
been sympathlzing with her by letter
I'VE are having a perfect time, and
I'm beginning to find out what leisure
is--at least / should be finding out
II weren't busy every minute. That
sounds contradictory, ! know, but the
truth is that l am reReling in the
kind Of leisure that gives me oceans
OF time to do AL the things that I've
always been wanting TO DO.
Just fancy the delight of having
four solid hours Of reading every
night and then being in bed at 1O:3O!
You see, we have an early dinner and
the evening begins promptly at g.
and mother and / sit with our needle
work in hand while Brother VIII
reads us chapter afterNchapter Don't
you wish you had a chance to get ac-
quainted with Little Nell, Colonel
Newcome and Maggie Tulliver again?
while mother is working on her
silk quilt in the mornings | take an
hour or two for magazines and mod
ern novels and I've actually found
that I have a taste for poetry.
you mustn't think, however that
reading furnishes our only amuse-
ment. We have a great deal Of other
entertainment. The bird banquet
which we have set outside our dining
room window IL constant source Of
interest. We have a piece of salt pork
tied to a cedar hough and every morn
ing as we eat our eggs and bacon a
black and white woodpecker with a
dash Of scarlet in his topknot comes
and pokes his beak into this brand
of breakfast food, which appears just
to suit him. He Is usually followed
by two blueJays that, not being adept
at pecking, content themselves with
the crumbs which mother keeps un'
der the cedar tree for them,
I'VE feed the squirrels also. They
flash back and forth In front of our
windows all day long jumping from
roof to bough and scampering across
the snowy lawn with their tails high
in the air, like graceful red plumea,
| Brother viii declares that mother and
are pauperizing these little neigh
bors of ours, but we insist that our
donations will not interfere with their
self.reliance.
"But the recreation that Brother
Will and I enjoy most is mother
talk Think of it, in all the years
that I've been her daughter ! never
realized until this autumn what
brilliant talker mother IS. Until now
we have always been too busy witt
the everyday affairs of life to con
verse about anything more important
than clothes, housekeeping, entertain
ing, lists OF guests and all the othe'
never ending details OF existence. !
we hadn't stayed In the country thi'
autumn | might never have knowT
what a wealth Of reminiscence anc
anecdote Is stored up in mother
memory She remembers the stirrini
days Of the Civil war, she passe'
through the great Chicago fire an,
she pioneered in Alaska before tn
gold rush. Brother VIII and | hav
heard some thrilling stories these aft
ernoons when the snow or rain ha
kept up close to the wood fire.
you mustn't think Of us as entirel
cut off from the outside world Ever
once in a while we see some one fror
the village. 1t was only night befor
last that man went by with a lar
tern! Brother VIII and had hea
ed argument as to whether 1t was tn
hired man from the nearest farmhous
or the village clerk who is said to b
! waiting on the farmers daughter.
This morning Brother viii calle
me from my book to look. out Of tn
] window to see how Congested the ira
+ flc was on the highway with the ruri
!. free delivery mans cart and a wago
e load Of hogs, both in sight at once.
= 80, you see, life is far from dull.
Brother VIII has just inberrupte
/ my writing to tell me that his NOR
I ing mail has decided him to NOV
{ into town early next week.
2 "Of course I've enjoyed every mi,
!. ute of this long autumn here, but no
y that I know | shall be back in III
I midst of things so soon | can hard
, wait Whv I haven't even decided G
v winter suit yet and as for ha
!. or, dear! suppose the shops al
|. crowded to distraction with Christm;
}. buyers, but shall not mind that
n the least | shall enjoy minglirg ar
mixing with my kind.
THE country is all right, but
we'll, It seems century since "
been to the theater."-Chicago Dai
10 Nouro