St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1916-03-15
A FAMILY FEUD /
by LOUISE OLIVER.

Watterson and Tom had been taught
to dislike the Brown girl. Things
had been much worse since the incl
dent Of the egg. 1t really was an ac-
cident, for Polly never meant to hit
Tom in the back with it. She knew 1t
was passe the minute she discovered
the hidden nest in the chicken coop,
and, picking II up gingerly between
her thumb and foretinger. she had
aimed over the fence INTO the back
lot. But the egg slipped, and just
then Tom Strengthened up from his
wedding. Polly closed her eyes for
an instant as she heard it hit. Then
she lifted her chin two inches and
walked majestically into the kitchen.
After that Tom called her that lit
tie Brown cat" and deliberately let
the grass go three weeks without cut
ting so the dandelions would seed
again and blow over.
Polly had a voice, and it was the
summit of her ambition to go away to
study.
There is no one in Stolway to teach
me-" she complained. eff / only had
training 1 could open a studio of my
own and give vocal lessons here.
Can't I go, father?"
."Well-you can write to Aunt Peg,
and If she can come and keep house
for me for a year you can go to New
York. 1 guess 1 have enough saved
for that. The only thing hate about
the whole business is that your Aunt
Peg is such a blamed bad cook! Any
way, you'd better ask her to come"
Aunt Peg came and Polly went, with
enough money to keep her ten years
in Stolway, but by compression and
stinting it might stretch for six
months in New York.
Tom had been studying law-odd
hours out of the store and at nights
for a period of three years. About
the time Polly went away, he passed
his examinations at the bar.
Three months after Aunt Peggy had
been cooking bad meals for Mr..
Brown, a third third cousin of the
Wattersons in New York told Tom
that he had a splendid opening for
him there. So Tom babe his mother
good-by and went to the city of sky
scrapers
One night Polly, feeling particularly
blue and lonely in her ugly little
room, desired to take a walk down
Broadway, contrary to the good adj
vice of her one or two friends in
town. But the windows fascinated
her and made her forget that she was
poor and lonely.
Tom, rather new to town, decided
the same evening to walk up Broad
way.
They met at Herald square, looked
fairly into each others faces and then
quickly away. In all the immense
desert of New York they avoided this
little oasis of friendship. But Tom re-
membered the egg and the cat and the
roof, and Polly the seeds and the dog
and the chickens. He wandered up
to Forty-second street, she down to
Twenty-third.
Polly turned. So did Tom. Polly
stopped to look into window.
Someone said, Hello, grille, nice
night" in a strange masculine voice
and linked his arm Familiarity
through hers.
Polly shrank back frightened. Then
she suddenly saw Tom rushing at
her tormentor like a thunderbolt and
swing his right fist under the mans
neither jaw.
Come with me, Polly!" cried he as
the man staggered back. "I1l take
you home if you don't hate me too
everlastingly much to let me walk
beside you
"Oh, Tom! never meant to do it.
It slipped, truly. The egg, mean"
you proud little thing! And you
let me think you meant it! Then I'm
sorry about everything I've ever done.
I've been a nasty brute and am heart.
lily ashamed of myself. But / hope
one look at things differently, doesn't
it? We all need to get out and be
shaken up a little"
Indeed, yes!" agreed Polly, and,
later, when they had reached her
steps and Tom leaving, she asked:
Won't you come to see me, Tom?
I'm afraid we can't talk over the good
old times at home, but we can babble
at least about future prospects. We
have that in common, although mine
are not as rosy as had expected
Tom promised eagerly. Polly
Browns the prettiest girl I've seen in
New York." was his comment to him
self going home. Il shall certainly
try to make up for lost time while
she is here. What a fool I've been
all these years." Then whimsically,
81 wonder what mother would say?"
But he need not have worried, for
Polly got this letter the next morn
ing from her father:
Dear Daughter: Aunt Peg got sick
and went home last week. Widow
Watterson took pity on a lonely old
man and sent in the finest things to
eat you ever tasted. OF course had
to take the dishes back, and fixed
broken water pipe for her. She's a
fine woman, Polly. It's terrible how
I've misiudged her all this time Hone