Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1916-07-12
One of Lies Equations
(By Stella G. Shelters in July
Mothers Magazine.)

wearing apparel that had always been
laid out for him before, he went into
the front room. His foot caught in
something and reaching to see what 1t
was, he held up to the light, the pink
dimity, wrinkled and crushed. He
looked at it long time. He was filled
with pity not unmiXed with blame.
Finally he folded the goods and laid
it on the bed, smoothing it out care
fully. Then he went out to the back
porch. leila sat on the top step, her
elbows on her knees, her face in her
hands. She glanced up with hope
less, despairing look that cut Jud like
a knife.
He sat down beside her. Gently,
very gently, he put his arm around
her and drew her head to his shoulder.
Her body remained perfectly tense
and corresponding.
Poor little girl" he said softly,
''poor little girl" She wrenched her
self free from him, springing to her
feet.
81 can't stand it. Oh, can't stand
it." she cried and rushed subbing and
moaning into the house. After a long
time, Jud called the children and with
unskillful hands, prepared them for
bed.
Honey, we'll paper all the rooms
and get that folding bed and the cup
board you liked" he lied to console
her another time.
n W
thing but her own misery. She rarely
made a comment She never laughed.
Jud urged her to go visiting, to the
store, to church.
"I've asked Mandy Pierce to stay
with us this summer" he told her one
night, Lion says she's fine hand to
work, and they don't want her much
longer"
She stared, with unseeing, moody
eyes into the future, future of hard
work and babies-always baby, one
being pushed aside to make room for
the next; a future Of sacrifices and
unfulfilled longings.
One morning she surprised Jud by
asking him to care for the children
awhile, adding:
81 want to take this pattern over to
Varnum's." 1t was the pattern Mrs.
FIesher had sent her for the pink
dimity. with instructions to pass it
on to Angie Varnum, who had polka
dot lawn to make.
Sure" Jud agreed, 'stay as long
all right"
Mrs. Varnum and her granddaugh-
ter lived a quarter Of mile down the
road. leila went around the path to
the kitchen door. Angie was baking
pies. Her grandmother had kettle
of coap on the fire. Zella went out
to Mrs. Varnum, and for time the
conversation was of soap-making and
hen-setting. Suddenly the older wo-
man asked:
Reckon you heard bout Sam
!, Wolfe being gone"
. mo, never"
"WelI, he's done gone. No one
knows where. Lucindys carryin' on
, like she's crazy, lows she'll kill her
self. l reckon it's remorse that's hurt
in Lucindy."
A6l1d 1OOhSQ up 0uA PAAoO'
eyes, remorse," Mrs. Varnum re-
peated, ST amt denyin' that Lucindy's
; a good manager an sh's such good
housekeeper, too, that Sam an the
: children never have a minutes peace.
I bet her young ones never scraped a
; cake bowl and baked leetle pie. She
! looks on her children as nuisances-
always talkin' bout the mud they car
ry in an the washin' they make. She
: amt never forgive Sam cause O. them.
When I was young we didn't expect
nothin' but to raise a family when we
, married.
The old eyes gazed over Zella's
: head, reminiscently, into youth that
was long, long past.
eff a woman had no children, every
; one pitied her. think yet the saddest
! thing that can happen to woman,
no odds where she lives, is never to
be a mother. 1 had eight an I've
: lived to be thankful fer it. Sometimes
they come faster than we're ready fer
'em. Most every woman has got to
thrash it out fer herself. Seems like
we can't appreciate the children till
they're grown. I used to envy Doshy
Bates when I'd see her an Lum drivin'
! by in their new top buggy every Sun
day; but, laws, had no call to. Her
boy-she never had but the one child
T died when he was twenty.
i
After little while she went on /;
''This talk bout not bein' able to do
much fer several children sounds fool
ish to me. We can love 'em an teach
'em to be honest an unselfsh an use
full. We can make 'em happy-don't
take much to please a child. No, in
deed, it's t'other way round. No one
can do Justice to one or two children.
they'll Spite 'em every time