Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1918-05-17

off three branches of precious peach
blossoms and carried them up the slope.
She stuck them upright in the lumpy
soil over Jase's head and stood there
a long while with tear streaked face,
staring down at the grave and at the
nodding pink blossoms.
Billy Louise rode singing down the
rocky trail through the deep, narrow
gorge to where the hawthorn and choke
cherries hid the opening to the cove.
From there to the pink drift of peach
bloom against the dull brown of the
bluff Blue galloped angri1y, leaving
deep, black prints in the soft green of
the meadow. So they came headlOng
upon Marthy, just as she was knocking
the yellow clay of the grave from her
| irrigating shovel against the pole fence
of her pigpeu.
"Why, Marthyw Once before in her
life Billy Louise had seen Marthy's chin
quivering like that and big, slow tears
sliding down the network of lines on
Marthy's leathery cheeks. With
painful slump her spirits went heavy
with her sympathy. "Marthyv'
She knew without word of expla-
nation just what had happened. From
Marthy's bent shoulders she knew and
from her tear stained face and from
the yellow soil clinging still to the
shovel in her hand. The wide eyes of
Billy Louise sent seeking glances up
the slope where the soil was yellow;
} went to the long, raw ridge under the
wall, with the peach blossoms standing
pitifully awry upon the western end.
Her eyes filled with tears. "Oh, Mar
thyl When was it?"
'In the night, some time, / guess -
Marthy's voice had a harsh huskiness
HE was-gone-when woke up. Well
: he's better off than I be. / dunno
what woulda become of him if I'd went
, first" There, at last, was a note OF
tenderness, stif1ed though it was and
: feeting. "Git down, Billy Louise, and
!, come in. / been kinda lookin' for yut
! to come ever sence the weather opened
! up. How's your maw?"
= what are you going to do now, Mar
, thy?" Billy Louise was perfectly capa
; BILE of opening a conversational dool
even when it had been closed decisively
in her face "You can't get on here
2 alone, you know. Did you send for that
nephew? If you haven't you must hire
, somebody till"
"He's comm. That letter you sem
o over last month was from him. dunno
: when he'll git here; he's liable to come
o most any time. I amt going to hire
q nobody. Charlie Fox, his name is.
1 hope he turns out good worker. I've
never had chance to git ahead any
e but if Charlie IL jest take holt I'll meb
/ by git some comfort outa life yit''
e HE ought to, I'm sure And ever.
a one thinks you've done awfully well
Marthy. What can I do now? Wasl
the dishes and straighten things up,
d guess"
S "You needn't do nothin' you amt
Il mind to do, Billy Louise. 1 don't wan
d you to think you got to slop arount
It washin' my dirty dishes. I'm goin' OF
It down into the medder and work on
= ditch I'm putin in. You jest do wha
r. you've a mind to- She picked up tn
IT shovel and went off down the jungl
d path, herself the ugliest object in tn
d cove, where she had created so muc
1t beauty.
d Billy Louise sat down on the roc
where Marthy had rested after diggin
e the grave and with her chin in her tw
is cupped palms, stared out across th
,e river at the heaped bluffs and down q
II the pink and white patch of fruit tree