The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1917-11-10
IF HANNAH KNEW

JoS1 - ASi slolI, udAAoWAJ ""ooAAS
Miss Finn to see how the news would
affect her
oh, by the way she said, Miss
Boardman is sick She's really Ill,
judge, for she has been in bed for
several days, and you know she would
never have given up if she had |
strength enough to drag herself /
about
fOh, is she ill?'3 Miss Finn said,l in L
a colorless voice. Her indifference i
was so marked as to seem unnatural.
Mrs. Rutherford was so disappointed
that she said no more-disappointed,
but not discouraged. Ever since the
quarrel, two years before, she had.l
longed to know the secret OF the troui
BILE; nor had she .hesitated to use
every means in her power that prom
ised to solve the problem. SO, per-
ceiving that Miss Finn did not intend |
to say more, she went on, in a quiet, |
innocent way.
Miss Boardman must be very lone
ly when she is sick. There's no one
to care for her except Hannah, the
crossest, LATEST old servant ever
woman had!''
Miss Finn was thinking this, but
for answer she only shrugged her
shoulders.
There isn't another woman in town
who would put up with Hannah for
one hourW Mrs. Rutherford contln-
ued. Miss Boardman is too tender
hearted. She knows that. Hannah
could not get another place, SO she
bears with her year after year. 1t was
through Hannah that | heard OF Miss
Boardman's illness. Hannah evident
ly feels greatly aggrieved. It's much
more trouble to carry meals upstairs
than to put them on the dining table,
she says; and she complains that MISS
Boardman means a good deal Who is
her doctor?"
q don't know Miss Finn answered
shortly.
Il thought you might have noticed
who is going there, living just across
the street as you do. She used to have
Dr. Means, didn't she?'
Yes; you know we Catholics all
had him..
| "The other doctors must have gone
| hungry in his day! Perhaps she sends
| for DR.. Kelly. He got great many
of the old mans patients.
| Not word from Miss Finn. She
was praying under her breath that
Mrs. Rutherford would remember a
pressing engagement and have to
i hurry away.
| IF Miss Boardman becomes very i'll
wonder what she will do. Old Han
nah couldn't take care OF her
| wouldn't if she could; and we haven't
| had good nurse in Sommerville since
Miss Holmes went to New York
Still Miss Finn said nothing.
What do you think she will do, if
she grows worse and worse, and be-
comes desperately ill?" Mrs. Ruther.
ford insisted.
Il suppose she'I die. People usual
ly do who are desperately ill., Miss
Finn replied, in a matter-of-fact way
which Mrs. Rutherford found so dis
concerning that she abruptly changed
the subject, and few minutes later,
even more abruptly, she took her
leave, it having occurred to her that
she might learn something by going
to Miss Boardman's door and inquir-
ing for her. Possibly she would be
taken upstairs.
For half an hour after Mrs. Ruther-
ford left, Miss Finn sat with her ordi-
narily restless hands clasped idly In
her lap and her eyes closed Once
or twice a tear forced itself from I'M
der her lids and trickled down over
her cheeks; but she made no effort to
brush them away. At length she rose
and, going to a window, pushed aside
the curtain. For a long, long time she
gazed sadly at the big, old-fashioned,
silent house across the street. The
trees about it, beautiful in summer
seemed sad and lonely stripped OF
their leaves and buffeted by the sharp
January wind. The lazy old negro
| coachman in Judge Boardman's day
who drew wages for what was little
better than lifelong rest, was listless
ly. sweeping the walks and leaving in
his wake almost as much dirt as he
found. Many of the, window shades
were drawn down, and three or four
days accumulation of newspapers lit
tered the veranda. No one went in;
, no one came out The. place looked
. neglected, and lonely, lonely. Hot
tears filled Miss Firms eyes as she
looked at it. s'And Henrietta does
i hate to be alone!' she murmured.
Il She looked at the windows OF what
had been Miss Boardn- ans own room
! wondering if it were 50 still and one
, window was raised few inches. Miss
Finn knew the room well, though she
found it hard to imagine it other than
flooded with sunshine and filed by a
sweet, sunny, childlike presence.
il The minutes passed and still she
| stood watching the old, familiar house;
! but little by little her mood changed
!. Her face hardened; she frowned
/ rather disdainfully; and at length
/ forcing herself. to hum popular air
! she went to the telephone and called
Miss Teasdale, who was famed not
81 only as an interchangeable talker, but fol
II her cheerfulness. No one could be
/ blue within sound of her voice. Mrs