Evening star., 1913-12-07
THE DAILY STORY.
Feeding the Hungry.
Copyright. 1918. by W. werner.)

Old gray-hared Mrs. Walling started
guiltily and dropped to the kitchen floor
two thick slices of butter bread-gener-
ously buttered-that she was carrying 10
ohe back porch. She supposed that Al
thea the daughter with whom she lived,
was down the street making a call.
Now mother" Alethea upbraided from
the doorway, you're feeding another
tramp, I've told you time and again that
| won't have it. It's hard enough WORK
getting victuals for Your own flesh and
blood without throwing them away on
folks that are too lazy and shiftless to
work And l wanted TO make that pound
of butter do till Saturday. 1t does seem. =
reproachfully. las though / have to keep
an eye on you every minute. mother. Just
as though you We're q child.
Her mothers face-old and wrinkied-
dropped disconsolately. He's an old
man. Ally Awful old. He-he couldn
work at his age. And he didn't ask me
for anything to eat Just drink OF
water. And I'm giving him two slices
only
Alethea picked the two slices from the
floor. ION, they're no good for anybody
else now" irritably: sc you may as well
let him have 'em. But mind. mother,
won't have it again" She went to the
after her. And presently. when she had
handed the bread to the man, she re-
turned in time TO hear Alethea's angry
exclamation: Mother. you were going
to give him some meat. You've sliced 1t
off. And | just came in time. Now, l
will not have it,
But her mother slipped out and up to
her own room. There she sat in chair
and rocked hard. Her face was flushed.
of course. she oughtn't 10 give away Al
fi~anf = rfa-rr .F- I1rVt hn n
refuse and little bread and meat wasn't
much. Her mind Went longingly back TO
the old days on the farm when victuat
We're so plentiful that one fed 'em to the
hogs and no one had to be careful. Then
AletheaS father had died and Aletheas
two older brothers had married and gone
out west. The farm had been left to the
four. Alethea had married and lived in
town.
Her husband. q quiet taciturn man.
owned a hardware store-a prosperous
store. Alethea needn't be so terribly
careful. her mother thought. The farm
had been sold The boys took their share.
Alethea took hers. and also her moth
er's and deposited them both in bank
in her own name. Her mother hardly
knew how il came about At the time
It seemed natural enough. Alethea could
look after the interest and red tape bet
ter Her mother seldom was down town,
and. anyway, was not facile with figures.
And then. somehow-she couldn't remem
Der how that came about-the money
seemed to belong TO Alethea. OF course,
was keeping her and not charg-
ing a cent of board. Alethea limited at
that once or twice-hinted rather pettish-
Iy that she didn't see why her mother
hadn't divided the money among the chill
lren. OF course, they would take care
Of their mother. And Alethea in her way
was kind. She gave her mother the south
and furnished 1T prettily. She
wouldn't let her work too much. She
saw that she was well dressed. Althea
belonged to the church and was one of
he hardest workers in the Ladies' Aid
Society. Folks admired her very much
for her executive ability.
Her mother listened and wished that
,ne of the boys would write and insist