New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1914-12-02

iAk not her own. She had committed
herself to Jenny almost without will.
But. Mary felt no exultation. and the
weight within her did not lift.
II really couldn't do anything else but
take him, l s'pose," she thought. II
wonder what'll come on me next?"
All the while she was conscious of the
raw smell Of the clover in the hay Of
the managers. as If something OF sum
mer were there in the cold.
Mary Chavah sent her letter of blum,
directions concerning her sisters head
stone and the few belongings which
her sister had wished her to have.
The last lines OF the letter were about
the boy.
Send the little one along. am not
the one. but don't know what else to
tell you to do with him. Let me know
when to expect him and put his name
In with his things. l can't remember
his right name.'
When the answer came from John
Blood fortnight later it, said that a
young fellow OF those parts was start
ing back home shortly to spend Christ
mas. and would take charge OF the
child as far as the city and there
put him on his train for Old Trail
Town. She would be notified just what
day to expect him, and John knew
how glad his mother would have been
and his father, too, and he was her
grateful nephew. r. SHE would
send some money every month ito
ward him.
The night after she received this let
ter Mary lay long awake. facing what
| it was going to mean to have him
thereto have child there
She recalled what she had heard
other women say about it-stray utter.
ances. made with the burdened look
that hid secret complacency, IA kind
Of pleased freemasonry in universal
lot.
The children bring so much sand
into the house. You'd think it was
horses"
The center table looks loaded and
ready to start half the time, but
can't help it. with the children's books
and truck
Never would have another house
built without coat closet The chill
dren's cloaks and caps and rubbers
litter up everything"
Every one Of their knees out AMI
their underclothes outgrown and their
waists soiled the whole time. And
do try so hard
Now with all these beWilderments
she was to have to do. She wondered
If she would know how to dress him.
Once she had watched Mis- Winslow
dress child and she remembered what
unexpected places Mis- Winslow had
Observation-Disclosures that went up
and down in the skirt bands and so
on. Armholes might be too small and
carriers too tight, and how was one
ever to know? II it were little girl
now-but little boy. What would
she talk to him about while. they ate
together?
She lay in the dark and planned
with no pleasure, but merely because
she always planned everything. her
dress. her baking. what she would say
to this one and that She would put
up a stove in the back parlor and give
him the room or She WAS glad
that the parlOr was empty and.clean--
mo knickknacks for a boy to knock
around" she found herself thinking
And child would like the bedroom
wall paper, with the evil border. When
summer came he could have the room
over the dining room. with the kitchen
roof sloping away from it where he
could dry his hazelnuts-she had
thought Of the pasture hazelnuts first
thing. There were good many things
a boy would like about the place
the bird house where the martins al
ways built. the hens. the big hollow
tree. the pasture ant hill. She would
have to find out the things he liked to
eat. She would have to help him with
tis lessons: she could do that for only
little while until he would be too old
to need her. Then maybe there would
come the time when he would ask
her things that she would not know.
She fell asleep wondering how he
would look. Already, not from any
impotence to have this done. but be-
cause, that was the way in which she
worked. she had his room in order, and
her picture of his father was by the
mirror. the young face Of his father.
Something faded had been written be-
low the picture and this she had pains
takingly rubbed away before she set
the picture in it's place. Next day
while she WAS working on Mis- Jane
Moran's bead basque, that was to be
cut over and turned. she laid it aside
and cut out Il jacket pattern and
plated waist pattern just to see If she
could. These she rolled up impatient
~ and stuffed away in her pattern
book case.
Il knew how to do them all the
while. and never knew 1 knew" she
thought with annoyed surprise. II
S'DOSe I'll waste = lOt NJ fimc nOttnrin,,