The daily sentinel., 1913-05-24

o, You wouldn't think TO sec ii now that
MT CypressVille could get 10 stirred up" It
III q was Prudence Case who spoke. We were
sitting on her side porch sunny after
lEznS1gzskslT noon, and she was hulng strawberries
SgSAxE9k for shorteakc My mind was half on what
IL E&S1Ak she sad and half on the shortcake 10
ES$ AE3E come, for knew from delightful expert
E8YEE enec the kind she made. She dropped
1 eESES handful OF hulls into the basin and went
You sec, we'd just met in the hall over
4zHnGzt the post-ofice and organized the Cypress
-, vile improvement Society and elected
Miss Homer Jewell president when it happened" She
lifted one crimson-dyed finger impressiveiy. "Ive al
ways SAID there was providence in it.
l. 1T was an awful warm evening and we set there
canning ourselves when we heard it. / shall never
forget Ms Homer ewels face, If live to be hun
dred She knew and she knew we knew it was the
boy John Jonas asinging. and Luke Edwards a-mixng
in with the awfulest trls, and Jimmy Sawyer helping
And it wasn't hymn they was a-snging ! can tell
you. l went like this:
There was an old hen and she had a club foot,
And she made her nest in a mulberry root.
She rufhed up her feathers to keep herself warm
And another little drink wouldn't do us ary harm
Alice Jewell put her two hands up TO her face
and began 10 She laid considerable store by John
Jonas, who is her twin and if ever girl strong
Well we sat there and nobody made a move or
said a word. We all OF US liked Mis- Homer Jewell
as nice lad as ever gtepped. It as still time
as | ever heard in my life After spell Mis- Jewell
cleared her tlroat-t seemed 10 have considerable Of
lump in it-and says she real earnest-like she was
in prayer-mecting-La of the Improvement Soci-
ety. we was discussing Just what II best 10
improve and it kind of seems to me that drinking
fountains and watering troughs and trimming un the
park can wait SPELL and that wed better get right
down TO business nearer home She chokcd little
and her voice shook some she went
ladies OF the Improvement Society, there prob
lens which We as women are called upon 20 grapple
with and ,he worst one Of the lot seems me
whether husbands or brothers or sons-seems
TO me to be man and his gongs-on in decent COM
munity'
that Mis- Jewell had the floor, and we'd better begin
with this problem and what " do with
So'-she rose to, her feet-I move make ourselves
over into a secret session. and let us just tell right
out what fault We have to find and then lay to, all of
us and try to right it, II possible
mis- Jewell speaks up again quite sharp and ex-
a time to talk, and here declare this be
session, and let every woman who can't keep still
fore we begin
Everybody turned around and looked at Maria Per
kns; but Maria has nerve She just glared back, and
"Now! says Mis- Jewell, let's so right arod Ind and
each OF tell what she wants done 10 improve
the men of this community. You know well enough
what l want. and what Alice here wants and l think
I'm safe in saying that Phoebe Ayers wants the same
Everybody looked at Phoebe who got as red as a
beet but had spuuls enough to nod her head.
mis- Bamber.' went ON Mis- Jewell suppose you
tell US what you'd rather we'd do
Mis- Bauber got onto her feet It was slow
process for she has the rheumatic considerable She
began speaking quite deliberate
think and I've thought SO Tor some time, that little
reasonable employment or a little more staying home
and tending the woodpe would be good thing
for Jacob Bamber. But I've lived with him going on
forty years. and gin him up long ago and II the I'M
proyement Society can do anything with Jacob in the
improving line l surrender him up cheertuly INTO
their hands. She sat down in the midst OF thick
silence
After that it went around the room All OF the
women thought the general tone Of the town ought
10 be raised still they didn't have very clear notions
how to go about it. But when it come 20 me, l, not
being numbered with any husband, any hopes OF
any felt perfectly free sail in-and sailed" Miss
Prudence paused with twinkle in her eye.
''\Nhat did ypu saw" asked, hreathleSsy.
well ] didn't mince matters none. l said just what
/ thought | called their attention to the crowd OF
nen-most all OF them nice enough IN their own homes
who spent the day sitting around on barrels outside
OF Abijah Moorcs groccry-store blocking up the way
and staring at an the women who went by And then
the that filled up the chairs in front OF the hotel
and the long line that in and ont Of the saloon
all day-seemngy with nothing else TO do. It's Just
such actions the part OF their elders, says, hat
encourage decent boys 20 50 round the streets sing
ing about hens and mulberry roots and before we
the and hoary sinners who are setting the bad
There was n regular babel at this Mis- Sawyer
owned M that she afraid Old Sawyer would get
so attached his barrel that he would forget 10 go
home at all some day. And Mis- Tillinghast said that
II we could keep Joe Tlinghast from beng treated
she wasn't afraid OF his doing much treating himself
she would feel hadn't organized IN Vain And
then Mis- Homer Jewell. who IS as much lady as any T.
bofIv in town and who never raises her voicc-she
doesn't have to-got onto her ieel ana sa4d sAe Nad
!She reminded us all that was secret session; aud.
when it was as still mice. aud we'd all promised
eternal silence. she up and told When she had
nall, Everybody looked At everybody else Of