The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1919-09-18

aunt ISL Sutg
Eyes; she lives with us. That's our
house just beyond grandfather's," He
waved a sealskin gauntlet to indicate
the house Major Anderson had built
for Isabel as a wedding gift. He
frowned as they passed a closed car
riage and pair. The body of this com
Portable vehicle sagged slightly t one
side; the paint was old and scanned
with hundreds of minute cracks like
little rivers on a black map; the
coachman, a fat and elderly darby,
seemed to browse upon the box: but
the open window afforded the occu.
pants Of the cutter a glimpse Of q
tired, fine old face, a silk hat, a pearl
tie and an astrachan collar, evidently
out to take the air.
There's your grandfather now"
said Lucy. isn't It'll"
Georges frown was not relaxed
Eyes, IT is; and he ought TO give that
rat trap away and sell those old
horses. They're a disgrace, all shaggy
not even clipped. l suppose he
doesn't notice it-people get awful
funny when they get old; they seem
to lose their self-respect, sort Of"
"He seemed a real Brummell to re-"
she said.
"0h, he keeps up about what he
wears, well enough, but Another
thing I don't think he ought to allow {:
q good many people bought big lots
and they built houses on 'em then
the price Of the land kept getting
higher, and they'd sell part Of their
yards and let the people that bought
it build on it to live in, till they
haven't hardly any Of 'em got big, open
yards any more, and It's getting all
built up. The way 1t used to be It was
q g~entleman's country estate, and
that's the way my grandfather ought
to keep 1t. He lets these people take
too many liberties: they do anything
they want to-"
But how could he stop them?'
Lucy asked, surely with reason. IF
he sold them the land It's theirs, isn't
IT."
George remained serene In the face
Of this apparently difficult question.
"He ought to have all the tradespeople
boycott the families that sell part of
their yards that way. All he'd have to
do would be to tell the tradespeople
they wouldn't get any more orders
from the family II they didn't do It."
"From the familyT What familyf'
"Our family" said George. upper
turbed. '"The Ambersons."
II seel |" she murmured, and evident.
ly she did see something that he did
not. for, as she lifted her nun to her
face he asked:
"What are you laughing at nowf"
"Why"
"You always seem to have some
little secret Of your WI to get happy
over!"
"'Alwaysl' 7" she exclaimed. "What
a big word, when we only met last
night"
That's another case Of It," he said,
with obvious sincerity. "One Of the
reasons l don't like you-much lis
you've got that way Of seeming qui-
city superior to everybody else"
"I!" she cried. II have7"
"Oh, you think you keep 1t sort Of
confidential to yourself, but It's plain
enough! I don't believe In that kind
Of thing. / think the worlds like this
there's a few people that their birth
and position, and so on, puts them at
the top. and they ought to treat each
other entirely as equals" His voice
betrayed a little emotion as he added,
81 wouldn't speak like this to every
body"
"You mean you're con1ding your
deepest creed-or code, what ever 1t
is-to me-"
"Go on; make fun Of 1t, then y
George said bitterly. "You do think
you're terribly cleverl 1t makes me
tired"
swell, as you don't like my seeming
quietly SUPERIOR after this I'll be nois-
ify SUPERIOR" she returned ch~eerfully.
We S:.. - rHSosS
II had a notion before I came for
you today that we were going to quar-.
rel" he said.
"No, we won't; II takes twol" She
laughed and waved her muff toward a
new house. not quite completed, stand
ing in a field upon their right. They
had passed beyond Anderson addition
and were leaving the northern fringes
of the town for the open country.
isn't that a beautiful house !" she ex-
claimed. "Papa and l call it our Beau
tiful House."
George was not pleased. docs 1t
belong to your"
"Of course not! Papa brought me
out here the other day, driving In his
machine, and we both loved it. It's so
spacious and digniied and plain"
eyes, It's plain enough" George
grunted.
"Yet It's lovely; the g%ray-green roof
and shutters give just enough color.
with tie trees, for the long white
walls. II seems to be the finest house
I've seer in this part Of the country"
George was outraged by an enthu-
siasn SO ignorant-not ten minutes
ago they had passed the ANDERSON
mansion. "Is that a sample Of your