The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1914-02-04
The Evening Story
LIVING WITHOUT MARYEMM..

| goo-goodby!"
Maryemma lugscd the valise toward
the station. looking back often and
waving. to Mrs. Peel, who had fol
lowed her az far as the porch. She
could have accompanied MarNemma
to the station. but that would have
be rid of her. The instant Maryemma
had turned the corner Mrs. Peel ran
back into the empty house. slammed
the door, and, dropping into a chair,
began to rock violently. Rocking was
her substitute for dancing.
by the time she had rocked off the
first ~eftervescence of her freedom she
realized hat the day was young and
she had it to use as h pleased.
What should she do first? She de-
clded to make n tour of her domain.
Each time she closed Il door behind
her II seemed to shut herself in and
Maryemma out. She felt just as free
as M had expected to feel.
She a shredded cabbage for din
ner, eau Maryemma thought 1t
too indlgestible for her. She ate
heartily n afterward tried to deny
to herself hat she had any pangs.
She spent the afternoon looking over
her treasures, the accumulated me-
mentos of a long life time. At supper
sAAS AAAoO0 III Wy lSo
again disobeying Maryemma. She
sat up until an unearthly hour and
vent to bed with the ack door I'M
fastened. She could not sleep: her
stomach ached. and the strong tea
made her very restless. Toward
morning h fell asleep.
Maryemma never hurried her up in
the morning, so she had resolved to
rise carly. AT 6 she sat down To her
breakfast, hut She was not hungry.
.After breakfast she went to dig in the
garden. MarNcmma always did this
work, since she had ample strength
for it. Mrs. Peel found that she her
self had not. 1T was a task to get
Inner. She ate some more shredded
rabbage and drank some more Very
hot tea. In the afternoon she went
DOWNTOWN and treated herself to ica
cream. But the holiday effect WIS
somewhat spoiled by an uncomforta-
BILE interior feeling.
That night was Il nightmare from
beginning to end. She lay awake and
thought of Marycmma. She wished
she had not eaten the cabbage and
drank h tea. Maryemma had told
her not to, and perhaps Maryemma
was right.
Il must do different than this or I'll
set down SICK in bed" she sighed.
weeks" Somehow those two weeks
seemed to be intcrminable. She had
plotted to have Maryemnla go; she
mad managed and contrived and en-
~aggerated; she had so looked forward
to her W freedom and now that she
had 1t 1t was worse than captivity.
She dragged herself out of bed
weakly, made some more strong tea
and drank it because she could swal-
low nothing else. h felt dizzy, weak.
wretched. After her tea she went
into her next door neighbours and sat
awhile.
You look awful. Mis- Peel" said
her neighbor. what you been doing
to yourself? You ought to have
somebody in to stay with YOU. Shan't
lend you my Elsie for tonight:
You're kind of old. you know, and O
don't appear to feel WE'LL
Il guess l amt so old as j might
be and 1 feel tolerable," replied Mrs.
Peel.
She rose in all the dignity of her
seventy years and her %attenuated
stature n departed. She was stir
red to the lowest depths.
She could not eat at noon. Taking
paper she lay down on the lounge
to wait for the postman. She must
hear from Maryfmma today. Why
had she not Heard? 1t was very
strange that she had not. She be.
gan to be uneasy. Suppose Mary