The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1913-10-02
terest in all his schemes to help f

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| terest in all his schemes to help folks
folks at distance, you understand
+. She just devoured that Telig-
ious magazine he edits-yes, III adj
nit, his religion shows up beautifully
in print; the pictures of it are good,
| too. Old Mrs. Jefferson tool pride
| in being wheeled to church where she
could see her son-in-law leading the
music, and where she'd watch every
gesture of the minister and catch the
sound of his voice at the high places,
where he cried and, or nevertheless.
| Sometimes Mrs. Jefferson could get
| 1ozen ands and butts cut of one dis
course. Then comes your Grace Noir. "
Abbott listened with absorbed atten-
| ton. 1t was impossible not to be in
huenced by the voice that had grown
to mean so much to him.
"Grace Noir is a person that's SUI
perhumanly good, but she's not happy
| in her goodness; it hurts her, all the
| time because other folks are not as
| good as she. You can't live in the
house with her without wishing she'd
make mistake to show herself hui
man. but she never does, she's always
right. She's so fixed on being a mar
| tyr. that if nobody crosses her, she
Just makes herself a martyr out oil
the shortcomings of others"
"As for Instance"
GAS for instance, she suffered mar
! tyrdom every time Mrs. Gregory
nestled in an armchair beside the cozy
hearth. when a Ladies' Aid, or a Rally
was beating it's way through snow
drifts to the Walnut Street church. Mr..
Gregory was like everybody else
about Grace-he took her at her own
value. and that gave the equation: to
him, religion meant Walnut Street
church plus Grace Noir For a while,
! Mrs Gregory chung to church-going
| with grim determination, but it wasn't
any use. The Sunday-school would
have button contests, or the Ladies'
Aid would give chicken pie dinners
downtown, and Mrs. Gregory would
| be a red button or a blue button, and
she would have her pie; but she was
always third-in her home, or at
| church. she was the third. 1t was her
husband and his secretary that under
stood the Lord Somehow she seemed
to disturb conditions, merely by being
present"
Fran, you do not realize that your
words-they intimate"
"She disturbed conditions, Abbott
She was like a turned-up light at a
svance. Mr.. Gregory was appalled, be-
cause his wife quit attending church
Grace sympathized in his sorrow 1t
made him feel toward Grace Noir-
but I'm up against a stone wall Alb
bott, | haven't the word to describe
his feeling, maybe there isn't any.
Fran Nonpareil! Such wisdom
terrifies me such suspicions!
in this moment of hesitancy between
conviction and rejection, Abbott felt
oddly out of harmony with his little
friend She realized the effect she
must necessarily be producing, yet
she must continue; she had counted
the cost and the danger. If she did
not convince him, his thought of her
could never be the same.
abbott, you may think / am talk
ing from jealousy, and that l tried to
get rid of Grace Noir so ] could better
my condition at her expense. l don't
know how to make you see that my
story is true 1t tells itself. Oughtn't
that to prove it? Mrs. Gregory has
the doves nature; she'd let the enemy
have the spoils rather than come tC
blows. She lets him take his choice
here is she, yonder's the secretary
He isn't worthy of her if he chooses
Grace-but his hesitation has proved
him unworthy, anyhow. The old lady
her mother-is fighter; she'd have
driven out the secretary long ago. But
Mrs. Gregory's idea seems to bell
he can want her, after I've given him
myself, I'll not make movement tc
Interfere
Abbott played delicately with the
mere husk of this astounding revela
ton: Have you talked with old Mrs
Jefferson about-about it?"
"She's too proud-wouldn' admit it
But I've shyly limited however
it's not the sort of story you could
pour through the funnel OF an ear
trumpet without getting wheat mixed
with chaff. She'd miiTunderstand-tht
neighbors would get it first-anyway
i she wouldn't make move because hel