The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1918-07-25
The Intentions
Of Olga
Copyright, 1918. by the Mcclure Newspa
per Syndicate.)
BY INES MCDONALD


ment, all Russian. When she was six
| years old her American mother had
brought her back to Indiana, never
again to return to the old, tumbledown
estate of her Russian father. AT the
time she had no understanding of the
reason for this, and though she never
missed to any extent her gruff, rough
bearded father, she did dream of the
old half-ruined castle in which she was
born. and the sturdy, kindly peasants
who were so like children all grown
up.
By the time she was sixteen, the
fine thread of her dreams had woven
itself into the fabric of desire-the de-
sire to be an artist, and her American
mother, being an intelligent as we'll as
practical person, saw to 1t that Olga
should get the best art training OBJ
tainable In the locality in which they
lived. But when she was twenty Olga
had outgrown the possibilities of that
locality, and with n little sigh her
mother sent her to New York.
Her mother was much surprised
Olga wrote that she was working In
commercial studio at thirty.five dollars
week, for she herself had been teach
ing school for fifteen years and had
only reached twelve hundred year.
However, two years later Mrs. Miv-
chlakoff married again-an old sweet
heart of her youth, and Olga breathed
wi ~
In spite of the fact that In Monon,
Indiana, Olga would have been looked
upon as terrible young person. she
was demure, conventional, little
thing deep down inside. Her mother
was UNNECESSARILY Mortified on her last
visit to Olga In New York to find that
young woman with fluffy shorn hair
after the style of New York's bohe-
mia.
But the conventional Olga went
blithely on her unconventional way.
She was making sixty dollars a week
now, and she and Clara Sommers, the
newspaper woman with whom she
lived, put their savings together and
found, to their joy, that they had
enough for a modest little home In the
country. So the summer Olga was
twenty-seven they chose pretty little
place within committing distance of
New York. That same summer Olga's
salary was raised to seventy-flve dol
lars a week, and she decided to get
small car. The car necessitated gar
age, and the garage needed a builder,
so the village carpenter was called
into consultation and given the Job.
At two o'clock the following Satur-
day afternoon, Olga arrived from the
city hot and eager for the cool bath
that awaited her. She slipped into
fresh clothes and pulled a bright-col-
ored smock over her pretty bobbed
head, then skipped out into the garden
to watch the progress Of the garage
building which was half completed.
Stephen Niles, the village carpenter,
saw her coming. He was mailing the
sheetlng on the roof, and he stared in
surprise as she scrambled up the lad
der and slid along the slanting roof
toward him.
you're getting along beautifully,
aren't your" she smiled.
ooh, fair" conceded Stephen Niles.
He had given women but little
thought until he saw Olga Mivchlakoff,
but he thought her the strangest crea.
ture Of them all, and at the same time
the most wonderful,
When they descended from the roof
that afternoon she sat on sawhorse
in the shade and nonchalantly watched
him measuring and saving some
boards
"You don't quite approve of me. do
you, Stephen"
He laid down his saw deliberately.
"Most people don't approve of what
they don't understand" he said, look
ing at her thoughtfully.
"You blessed mani" she laughed.
did you know that you were a phi
losopher?"
81 know this much" he said slowly.
81 can't do any work when you are
around. haven't done a dollars worth
since you came this afternoon"
"Oh," she threw up her hands in
mock despair, hes temperamental,
too"
And 1t all happened just as he feared
1t would. The next afternoon he came
over just to look over the work-he
never worked on Sunday at his trade,
but the girls were working.
They pressed him to stay to supper,
and reluctantly he stayed. And after
wards Olga sat with him in the shad-
ows and chartered on and on.
Nov that you approve Of me more"
she said, you can see how easy am
to understand, can't you, Steve?"
II don't suppose" he said, slowly,
you'd hurt anyone on purpose" his
strong hands gripped tight her arms
and he looked down into her upturned
face trying to read her heart through
the darkness. 81 don't suppose you
would, but after you'd made me love
you what did you figure to do about
itf"
"Oh, carpenter man." murmured o.
ga, leaning toward him eagerly. after
I'd made you love me. l figured on
marrying you. Steve"
OF course her friends said she was a
fool-her talent and culture wasted
that they could never have anything
In common, but the other night saw
them at a restaurant and certain
question keeps recurring to me, what
Is this wonderful thing that has hap
pened to Olga MivchlakoffT