Dresden enterprise and Sharon tribune. (Dresden, Tenn.) 1907-1997, 1916-09-01
The BARRIER
BY JANE OSBORN.


just because everyone in town had
known them since they were babies
that not even the most conventional
or the most prudish really took excep-
ton to their housekeeping arrange
mentS.
Martha Brooks was old Mrs. Bar
rows niece and Tom Barrow was Mr..
Barrow's nephew and, both having
been left orphans in their childhood,
they had been brought up with all the
intimacy of brother and sister. Both
had become fixtures in the old Barrow
homestead. BY the will left by Mrs. Bar
row the house was left as joint prop
erty so long as both resided there. In
case of the failure of either to live
there, the property was to pass to the
other. Neither was SO we'll off as to
be able lightly to rehounce the part
ownership of this shelter, so neither
had taken the step.
1t was nearly year after the death
of Mrs. Barrow had left them the sole
tenants of the house, save for an old
family servant, that Tom first dis
cussed the subject with Martha.
IF we both hadn't acquired such q
strong reputation for humdrum pro-
priety and conventionality," he said,
Il think someone might take excep-
ton to the arrangement"
Martha raised her graceful eyebrows
over pair of fine, dark eyes, and
looked at Tom with an air of mild
surprise. "How perfectly ridiculous
AS If woman Of tnirty-two and a
man of thirty-f1ve who have known
each other since babyhood and have
been brought up in the same house
for twenty years couldn't live together
without setting peoples tongues wag-
ging. And every one knows that
don't really care twopence for you"
"That is very kind, l am sure"
Tom re-established the paper in front
of his place and went on reading.
"But you are right. No one can help
see that we are not of the mold of
which affinities are made"
Tom went off to his business and
Molly went directly to her own room,
the only room in the entire house, in
fact, which she ever frequented more
than was necessary. The old draw
ing-room, with it's clumsy mahogany
furniture and red plush hangings, was
a nightmare to her. The library, with
it's shelves of ANTICIPATED law books
that had belonged to Uncle Tom, ap-
pealed no more to her.
Martha donned her hat and cloak
and telling the old servant she would
not be home for dinner, started out.
She walked down the main street of
the town, then through field and
then down a country lane, through an
orchard and finally to little woody
retreat in the middle of which was a
sunny clearing and { tiny house that
might almost have been mistaken for
q child's playhouse. In fact, it was
two-room cottage-the secret retreat
of Martha.
Once inside this house, Martha's en-
tire manner changed. Downing q
bright colOred smock IN place of her
coat and hat, she began to set the
small place to rights. She built a cozy
open fire and arranged the late
chrysanthemums she had gathered
from the old-fashioned garden at home.
Here Martha spent most of her days.
At two o'clock she thought first of
luncheon and, although she was to be
alone, she opened gate-leg table be-
fore the open fire, spread a lunchcloth
over it and arranged her tempting
luncheon Of toasted bread and cheese,
hot chocolate and late autumn fruit.
Then it was that she heard Toms
knock at the door, for Tom it proved
to be-Tom who had gone out for a
country tramp and had stopped on the
pretext Of getting drink of water.
Il think felt that there was some
thing suspicious about this cottage"
he told her after Martha's hurried, half
apologize, confused explanations. 1--WE
passed this dovecOt several times and
somehow 1t fitted so thoroughly into
my own ideas of happiness and COM
fort that l decided I'd become ac-
quainted with the owner. Then today
could no longer wait to know, and
I trumped up that excuse about want
ing a drink of water"
Meantime Martha had opened the
little gate-legged table to accommodate
two and was spreading an extra place
for her unlimited guest.
"You see," Tom went on. "Tve
taken q sort of dislike to that house
Of ours with its heavy vines and it's
hideous red plush hangings. so
rented a wing of an old farmhouse
up the road and, manlike and fool
that / was, l thought I'd fix it up
satisfactory as a sort of bachelors
paradise, where l could spend my lei
sure time reading and smoking, alone
or with my friends. If I'd only known
you didn't care for the old things
might have"
might have what Martha came to
the rescue.
might have suggested doing the old
house over and making a real home.