The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1918-02-01
CHAPTER ~.

Duries hsr Dead and 0rssts
Her Nephew.
IASD did not move or give his Gus
tomary, Querulous grunt when Mar
thy nudsed him at daylight, one
In mid April. Marthy gave an
other poke with her elbow and lay still,
numbed by Z sudden dread She moved
cautiously out ok the bed and half
across the cramped room before abe
turned her bead toward him. Then she
stood stu and looked and looked, her
hard face growing each moment more
pinchsd and stony and gray.
Jase had died while the coyotes were
yappfng their dawn song up on the rim
OF the cove. He lay rigid under the
coarse, gray blanket, the nesh Of his
face drawn close to the bones, his
skinny, gray beard Tilted upward.
MaYthy's NV set into a harnhes out
line than ever. She dressed with slow,
heavy movements and went out and fed
milking and turned out the cows into
the pasture. She gathered an apron
full Of chips and started a IRE, just ~
she had done every morning for twenty
nine years, and she put the cofreepot
on the greasy stove and boiled the brew
Of yesterday, which WAS also her habit
She sat for some time with her head
unseeingly out upon a peach tree tn
full bloom and at a pair Of busy robins
who had chosen 4 convenient crotch for
their nest. Finally she rose stinly, a.
II abe had grown older within the hast
hour, and went outside to the place
where she had bean mending the irri-
eating ditch the day before. She knock
ed the wet sand Oh the shovel shs had
left sticking in the soft bank and went
cut Of the yard and up the slope toward
tbs rock wan.
On tiny, lsvel place above the main
ditch and just under the wan karthy
began to dig, setting her broad, nat foot
uncompromisngly upon the shoulder of
the shovel and sending 1t deep into the
yellow soil. Ehs worked slowly and
methodically and steadily, Just Al she
did everything else. When she had dug
down ~ deep A. abe could and stil
N image to climb out and had the hole
wide enough and long enough. she got
awkwardly to the grassy surface and
sat for a long while upon a rock, star
ing dumbly at the gaunt, brown bills
across the river.
She returned to the cabin at last, and,
with the manner of one who breads DO
ing what must be done, Rhe went In
where Jase hay stin and cold under the
blankets.
Early that afternoon Narthy went
staggering up the slope, wheeling Jase's
body before her on the creaky, home
made wheelbarrow. In the same harsh,
primitive manner In which they both
bad lived Marthy buried her dead. And
though in life she had given him few
words save In command or upbraiding,
with never "A hint of love to sweeten the
days for either, yet she went whimper-
ing away from that grave. She broke
Oh 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
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 angrily, leaving
deep, black prints In the soft green OF
the meadow. SO they came headlona
upon Marthy, Just as she was knocking
the yellow clay OF the grave from her
irrigating shovel against the pole fence
of her pigpen.
why, Marthyr Once before In her
quivering like that and big, slow tears
sliding down the network Of lines or
Marthy's leathery cheeks With 9
painful slump her spirits went heavy
with her sympathy. "Marthyi'
She knew without a word of expIa
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 glsnces uT
the slope where the soil was yellow;
went to the long, ! wv ridge under the
wall, with the peach blossoms standing
pitlfully awry upon the western end
Her eyes filed with tears. "Oh, Mar.
thyi When was it?"
In the night, some time. / guess.