The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-09-14
The EDening Story
Freda's Fiction
(By Grace Faislie. J

dainty supper Freda served, but she
drank every drop of the black coffee.
Freda gave her mistress many an anx-
ious side glance as she removed the
dishes. She set the tray down on the
kitchen table ard shook her head
slowly.
"Ah, something's wrong she
unused. 'tShe amt been like herself
since she come home from the noun
tains. I'll just wager there's man
back of all these blue spells. Well,
wish he'd turn out to be the right
man, for she ought to be married and
took care off,
Freda kept Miss Markham's bunga-
low immaculate and served whole
some meals, but felt that she ought
to give additional service in lessening
her MISTRESS indifference toward
matrimony. Miss Markham owned
the bungalow and the twenty green
acres around it, She owned King
Cooper, the sorrel horse, and Scotchy,
the beautiful collie. Until recently she
had seemed abundantly content, but
since her return from a summer in
the mountains she had been creature
of many and unaccountable moods
While washing the dishes Freda
tried to think of some way to rouse
her mistress from the dependency she
had shown that evening. just as she
thought of a plan that seemed possible
there came from the living room
sounds so unusual they almost startled
her. There was a light touch on the
piano, and in a voice that was almost
sigh Miss Markham began to sing.
"Oh, the time is long, mavourneen.
Till / come again, oh, mavourneen!
There! 1 told you it was man
causing all thisl'' 1t must have been
the Japanese tray that Freda told, for
she held it at arms length as she
spoke. but let it drop by her side as
Miss Markham'S rather good con-
tr9ltO aCfn3IlU TnOaEPd the lines:
"Oh, my love for you, mavourneen,
Is bitter pain, oh, maVourneen!
Then came a silence which threw
Freda into a frenzy of uncomfortable
curiosity. 1t was the first time Miss
Markham had sung since she came
home. She had worked determinedly
as if TO have no time to think of her.
self. She had written a whole volume
of children'S stories and had four or
phans come from a founding asylum
and spend a whole week at the bunga-
low, but with all of her energy there
were times when memory refused to
be driven out. by activities, and at
those times the blue devils came.
Freda's fondness for her mistress,
her penchant for manipulation and
her romantic nature combined to help
her evolve a scheme which she deter
mined to carry out that very evening
She felt justified in using strategy if
it led to her mistress's happiness. She
walked rather noisily through the din
ing room. She paused at the door of
the living room, which was lighted
only by the blaze from the fireplace.
Miss Markham, if I'm too bother
some, just say so; but this drizzly No
vember day has kept me all shut in
till I've got to thinking again about
something 1 thought I'd forgot"
why, Freda, is it anything I can
help you to settle?'' Miss Markham's
tone was sympathetic and encourag-
ing. ~ .7or~ ,t45n g la
"Oh. knew yod'd be. ready to help;
you're always. doing things for every
body but YOURSELF .s,..--.s
well, thatis the right way. Freda.
L m less important than great many
people, The short silence which fol-
lowed this remark was bluntly brok-
en- by Freda.
What 1 wanted to talk to you
about" she said, was man I
couldn't seem to forget"
What! You, too, Freda?" ex-
claimed Miss Markham, quite uncon-
scious of all that her words implied.
''Yes'm; you see, it was this way:
He was gardener and I was cook for
the same family. He got talking
about vegetables and flowers, and
then we kept finding new things to
talk about. Sometimes 1 had feel
ing L couldn't get on without him, but
I'd say: 'Pshaw, I'm no clingin' vine
for this gardener to train; besides,
who knows how mary other vines are
clingin around him?" For he was a
good-lookin Irishman and a whole
year younger than me. He'd melt his
blue eyes and tell me he'd never liked
any other girl as he did me, but when
1 wasn't a bit sure about my feelings
for him how could 1 be sure about his
for me?" Freda gazed straight into
the fire as she concluded part one of
her plan, and Miss Markham was
leaning out from the big chair looking
hard at her.
How strange Freda, that you
should have told me all this tonight"
Then, catching herself Miss Markham
added, that is, I mean 1t is strange
you never mentioned it before
still looking at the fire, ST used to
think 1 did right. but sometimes now
I wonder if 1 did,
What did you do, Freda?"
st just came away without saying
goodbye or letting him know where
I'd gone. 1 felt mighty smart about
it till I got good and lonesome, and
sometimes thought he might be lone
some, too. More than once I've
thought"-and here Freda introduced
a heavy sigh-''that having my own
way is not so good for me as learning
of a husband and babies would have
been"
Miss Markham laid a sympathetic
hand on Freda's shoulder. The other
hand carried her handkerchief to her
eyes.
But I'm foolish to be thinking
about this now" Freda added, as her
last thrust, for he married young
girl after a while. Excuse me for
bothering you, but it just shows how a
woman will fool along about making
up her mind till a man forgets all
about her"
Having finished her story, Freda re-
marked that she had forgotten to lock
the kitchen and hurried out, but she
did not go too far to hear every sound
from the living room Miss Markham