Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1913-09-03
Tabitha
Interferes
II hugs Are Not What They Seen"
BY ADELAIDE BURNAAM

Lhl1ls LdbilAd StiAlpbSu ASoSAeA
shamelessly to the words that young
Frederick Lee was murmuring to pref
" Agatha, her niece.
TITS my duty by motherless girl
said Tabitha defiantiy TO her con-
science, and she turned her good ear
close to the curtains sagging against
the open window.
Tomorrow night, then" said Fred
ertck with long sigh Of relief.
YES" assented Agatha timorousiy.
AT IL o'clock. SurelyT
Yes
'I'il drive you TO Milton, and the
minister there will"-- his words drift
ed into an indistinct murrnur as the
wind rushed through the garden and
stirred the syringa bushes
Tabitha arose and went into the sit
ting room, where she blinked at the
lighted lamp She was a little, hard
featured. black eyed woman with
white hair and sprightly movements
than her fifty years Now her black
eyes snapped with anger as she sat
down in a rocking chair and picked
up some knitting.
Agatha came In and locked the front
door. When she appeared In the sit
ting room her blue eyes were very
bright and pink flush stained her
usually pale cheeks. ---A
II thought told You wouldn't have
Jacob Lees boy running here" snap
psd Tabitha, s-s~s.~.~--rse~---,
rsAgatha was silent
HAS he got job," pursued Tabitha.
Eyes. told you his father had taken
him into the bank" replied Agatha
spiritedly. Frederick is-is-nice.
don't see why you dis-dislike him 90.
Aunt Tab"
Il have my reasons
IF you would only tell me, Just tell
me what it Is you have against him.
Aunt Tab, might understand"
Its all in the past" murmured Ia
bitha somewhat vaguely. Her cheeks
Redeemed as II at some unpleasant
memory.
TITS not fair to keep me In the DARK,
and I shall never believe one word
against him unless you prove II. so
there!" Agatha whiried out Of the
room and up the stairs into her own
little room overhead
What Agatha did not know was that
once upon time Tahitha had been a
black eyed beauty engaged TO marry
Jacob Lee. But Jacob had proved a
hckle lover, and when he took bride
to his home 1t was handsome girl
from Milton who had money in her
own right That Jacobs wife died and
left him with little Frederick three
years after the marriage did not move
Tabitha Campbell TO pity. In the
meantime her hair had whitened and
her face grown sharp and peaked
Now she became the village dress
maker, and when Agatha came to live
with her every one said how nice It
was that Tabitha would not be alone.
Now Agatha was planning to elope
with Frederick Lee.
Tabitha's eyes burned strangely In
the darkness as she thought of these
things
The next day passed quietly. as usu-
al Tabitha sewed busily in her sharp,
,erky way in the room devoted to her
work Several customers came and
tried on garments and looked over the
pile OF fashion books on the table or
examined the tissue paper patterns
pinnea on q tape along the wall Aga.
ina did tas housswerk deity and Do
tween whiles stitched on the sewing
machine IN the corner.
AS evening drew near the two wom-
en- became distinctly nervous. Tabi-
tina cut Mrs. Demmet's gray cashmere
into three piece skirt by a twenty
two inch waist pattern when Mrs.
Demmet measured thirty-four inches
and was proportionately massive Il
was characteristic OF Tabitha's mood
that she first threw the mangied CASH
mere across the room with the scissors
flying In its wake Then she picked
them up and. tucking the cashmere I'M
der her arm, went grimly forth to In
terview Mrs. Demmet
When bedtime came Agatha came
and placed her arms around Tabitha's
neck. The astonished spinster did not
move, but silently endured the EN-
brace and If there were tears in her
hard eyes the girl did not see them.
She went to the door and turned
wistful gaze on the older woman
I'm sorry you don't like him." she
said painfully. and went slowly up
stairs.
Tabitha put out the light and went
silently about her preparations. She
went upstairs and closed the door OF
her bedroom and then returned to the
sitting room to enyelop herself In a
long gray cloak and tie white chif-
fon ven over her face and hair. She
slipped out Of the side door and went
across the grass to an opening in the
lockwood hedge that bordered the gar
den. Standing outside there on the