The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1918-11-01
He Dali Y
SHORT STORY
T6e Patriofism of Susan.

The Patriotism of Susan.
j BY JANE OSBORN.
ccpaxfght, 1918, by the Mcclure
NeWspaDer. Syndicate)
NJ EHER since fifteen years before
81 NJ N6en Y4ger8 had the quaint old
D13eh porch Of their house on
Hlgh street IN T1ton, turned into =
41lt4edEed ont piazza, Horace
gioeum had entertained passion for
$Hsan-hopeless, but none the less alb
1Otbtn For Horace was at that time
elmpty carpenter by the day for the
k1tder who built that piazza, and
though he had no mean idea of his
ON calling and had no very definite
notion OF the social superiority of the
YeyeEs over the Slocums, stu It was
obyiou6ty impossible. Nothing could
come Ct i s0td Man Yaxer'' had made
NhAk Tor that town was a fortune In
ne leading dry goods store. and SUE
- WaS his only. heir. Moreover. she
pessee9ed radiant red hair, defiant
9ibstflted nose, fair. Gcse7colored
1ikn only the more dazzling for the
East OF . few freckles-and thus en-
BODIED Horace S1ocum,s ideal Of all
that was feminfnely lovely.
During those days that he sawed and
xeiledS the boards of the yager piazza
The fwAnty-two-year-old Susan had
F6n heliotrope gineham dress as
she puftered ABOUT the garden. and as
Slecum caught -EItmpses OF her
4hrough tbs windows: and since then
there had been an association thrill
about that particular hue that had re.
mtined stiu vibrant showing that the
tdrt9Se1ght=year old boss carpenter
was as bewitched by Susan as ever.
Bat &c was more hopeless. She was
regarded as one OF the best fxed'
entnsters in town. She belonged to
re Country vlub and had a center
aisle pew IN the church attended only
by the old .aristocracy Of Tilton.
History, moved slowly in Tilton dur
Ing most sof those fifteen years, and
little cause for Jealousy. for there
rea.iy swere no eligible bachelors in
M1ton nor any reason why they
Gould come-that IS. until Tflron
syo.Sa one day and found itself war
Industries center. Then for the first
tins since there had been winter
Barracks IN old Tilton in the days OF
fae Revolution the male population
3Escutnumbered that Of the women.
Gnly the males In this case were work
non. mechanics, forenen. directors
6ll promoters OF a half dozen war
daye.ored industries.
Che morning In the first weeks OF
Ii new regime Horace was feeling
cularly down OF heart The house
g s;c.a he had boarded gloomily for
dsteen years had been bought up.
ID pHce as an extension to one OF
: .i-p eass. and he faced the PROPOSE
z X: o. 0esag homeless within week
.ss the morning he was putting
rcScn on widow Smiths house
ITO S1san's0for by this time front
IS had gone out and side porches
IN demand In Tilton.
h.d about Miss Susan" the
remarked. She had brought her
s;scl:tnS to the SIDE window, for
ga Mas nothing loath to converse
- ( saving as Il suddenly paralyzed
1..;h the comely carpenter, who stop
szas sazed back b1ankly at the widow.
-iWhatss wrong" he managed to ask
sOh. she would manage ker own al
5a:rs-4id her banking all in an out-ot-
3own bank, wouldn't have a lawyer,
and now the widow Smith here
spoke with slow emphasis as she fold
"a her Tat hands over the dish OF peas
and looked hard at Horace. Nov
shes keeping boarders.'
excepting boarders." Horace gasped-
yes, and you can believe me that
when any one as proud as Susan va
ger would keep boarders. she's pretty
vel reduced. But she would have
her own way and now-now she's
Teaplng the results.
The fact really was that susan had
= household Of boarders; and as every
one Said-and all the netghbors were
scss1pGng about i-she couldn't nave
shecomo reduced at q better time, for
Z there were hundreds Of cut-oGtown
NSr workers only too eager to snap at
= chance to become part Of any house
hold.
Horace had so long been accustomed
toa mood OF calm despair that the pal
pitatiom he experienced on actually
seeking admission for himself IN Su-
sans boarding house was immensely
dfsturbing- Perhaps he would not have
been 30 reckless, but now for the hrst
fiine che element OF Jealousy entered.
There we're some fifty or sixty appars
entIy elefble bachelors In THton, and
81 these Susan had undertaken to &c
S0mnodAte under her spacious TOOL
SiS Horace was the seventh.
AppareutIy Susan was crest man
assr30r soon the excellence OF the
f6rS u her board became proverpta
ftroaiEh T1Iton. She retained her Old
sSpt6eTn cook. zot couple Of young
- wash dishes and wait on table
Ia nfIIf managed to make go OF it.
q annarontly she did, for people soon
SHierved that . coat OF paint was be.
II SupIiod and other signs OF z 9uH
Z SS9sgSFrSos 1870 IN evidence. Thon she drew