Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1916-10-12
''Nothin' at all Dictate everything |

| nO-nOt just how"
ut was this way" he began. and
| both, as if uncOnsciously, sat down
again. You may not know it, but
| used to worry a good deal about the
/ youngest o my boys-the one that
used to come to see you sometimes,
! after Jim-that@is l mean Bibbs. He's
! the one l spoke Of as my partner; and
| the truth is that's what it's just about
| goin' to amount to, one O. these days
| if his health holds out Well, you re-
member, I expect, I had him on a
machine over at plant o. mine; and
I sometimes I'd kind O. sneak in there
| and see how he was gettin' along.
| Take q doctor with me sometimes, be-
cause Bibbs never was so robust, you
might say. Ole Doc Gurney-I guess
maybe you know him? Tall, thin man;
acts sleepy"
| yes"
''Wen, one day I an ole Doc Cur
ney, we were in there, and l under
! took to show Bibbs how to run his
machine. He told me to look out, but
! I wouldn't listen, and I didn't look
out-and that's how I got my hand
hurt, tryin' to show Bibbs to do some
| thing he knew how to do and I didn't
Made me so mad I just wouldn't even
admit to myself it was hurt-and so,
! by and by. ole Doc Quincy had to take
| kind o. radical measures with me. He's
a right good doctor, too. Don't you
think S0 Mise Vor+raoS 2
! Yes"
Eyes, he is sor' Sheridan now had
the air of rambling talker and gossip
with all day on his hands. Take him
on Bibbs' case. I was talkin' about
Bibbs' case with him this morning.
Well, you'd laugh to hear the way ole
Quincy talks about that! Course he
is just as much friend as he is doc
tOr-and he takes as much interest
in Bibbs as if he was in the family
He thinks Bibbs isn't anyways bad
off yet; and he thinks he could stand
the pace and get fat on it if-well, this
is what'd make you laugh if you'd been
there, Miss Vertrees-honesti it would"
He paused to chuckle, and stole a
glance at her. She was gazing straight
before her at the wall; her lips were
parted and-visibly-she was breath
ing heavily and quickly He feared
that she was growing furiously angry;
but he had led to what he wanted to
say, and he went on, determined now
to say it all. He leaned forward and
altered his voice to one of confiden,
tial friendliness, though in it he still
maintained tone which indicated that
ole Doc Gurney's opinion was only a
Joke he shared with her. Eyes, sir, you
certainly would "a laughed! Why, that
ole man thinks you got something to
do with 1t. You'll have to blame it on
him, young lady, if it makes you feel
like startin' out to whip somebody
He's actually got this theory: he says
Bibbs got to gettin' better while he
worked over there at the shop because
you kept him cheered up and feelin'
good. And he says if you could man
age to just stand him hangin' round
a little-maybe not much, but just
sometimes-again, he believed it'd do
Bibbs a mighty lot O. good. Course
that's only what the doctor said Me,
| don't know anything about that; but
can say this much-I never saw any
such q mental Improvement in any
body in my life as l have lately in
Bibbs. l expect you'd find him a
good deal more entertaining than what
| he used to be-and | know it's a kind
Of embarrassing thing to suggest after
the way he piled in over here that
day to ask you to stand up before the
preacher with him, but accordin' to
ole Doe Quincy, he's got you on his
brain so bad"
Mary jumped. "Mr Sheridanp she
exclaimed
He sighed profoundly There!
noticed you were gettin' mad. /
didn't"
mo no, nor she cried. But |
| don't Understandable l think you
don't. What is it you want me to do?'
He sighed again, but this time with
relief. well, welIr' he said. You're
| right. It'll be easier to talk plain. |
ought to known l could with you, all
the time. just hoped you'd let that
boy come and see you sometimes, once
more. Could you?"
| You don't understand" She clasped
her hands together in a sorrowfuI ges-
ture. Eyes, we must talk plain. Bibbs
| heard that I'd tried to make your
| oldest son care for me because l was
| poor, and so Bibbs came and asked
me to marry him-because he was
sorry for ne. And can't see him any
more" she cried in distress. 81 can'tw
Sheridan cleared his throat uncom-
fortably. "You mean because he
thought that about you?"
mo, no! What he thought was truer'
"Well-you mean he was so much
in-you mean he thought so much of
| you" The words were inconceivabIy
| awkward upon Sheridan's tongue; he
| seemed t2 DC iR doubt even about pro-
Innings Of coal-tar, asphalt, sulphurous
acid, oil of vitriol, and the other famil-
lar things the men liked to breathe and
| to have upon their skins and garments
and upon their wives and babies and
sWeethearts. The growth of the city
was visible in the smoke and the noise
and the rush. There was more smoke
than there had been this day of Febru-
airy a year earlier; there was more