The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1919-03-20

lA ~ ~
Fortunate
"Jack's especially wild just now be-
cause-you won't tell sould will you,
Mrs. Hod?"
Certainly not, dear" She strok-
ed the black hair just beginning to
f1eck with gray. Haven't l and Mr..
Hold proved that we're your friends?''
swell then, Jacks especially wild
just now because he thinks he's dis
covered something on the Osgood
farm that may prove valuable a
sort of ore, . and he can buy the
land for thousand dollars. Only he
HASN'T got the thousand dollars and
even if he had it, he lacks the money
to develop it.
"What kind of ore, dear?"
"Some kind of yellow dirt that's in
great demand just now for paint.
Ochre-isn't that it? Yes! There's
Q huge bed of it on the Osgood place
along the South Fork of Shepphard's
brook. Jack had it sent away and
analysed and then got figure on the
Osgood place because the Osgoods
want to sell and move to Montpelier.
But it's all money-money-m money
again. And, well, there's our money,
Mrs. Hold, out there in the moon
light kicking their heels. on the corn
crib. Hear them?''
eyes," said Mrs. Hold, "Sam and 1
have got quite bit OF change tied
up in the same way. know how
you feel, Mary. I've been there!"
1t was true that Jack Purse at last
had tumbled onto something of busl-
ness value. A huge ochre bed by
some freak of nature had been de-
posted along the south fork of Shep-
phard's brook where it flowed across
The Osgood place. Old man Osgood
cared nothing about ochre and had
no money to develop it or a small am
bltion to place value on what his farm
contained. He wanted to sell and
move down to Montpelier with his
eldest son and go into the harness
business. If Jack meant business, he
could have six-month option on the
property for hundred dollars be-
cause old man Osgood had as soon
stay on his farm for that last summer
as anywhere.
Jack had a hundred dollars. He
bought that option. He disclosed to
Sam Hold what he had done. We
think he had an idea for a time that
Sam Hold might go on his note and
help him raise the money and so in
deed Sam might have done had not
Jim Thorne started a rival newspaper
in Paris that year and given US a
lot of trouble across the street. 1t
took every cent we could buy, beg,
borrow or steal, to keep the Tele-
graph above water that summer and
fall, and the chill days of autumn
came with Jack as handicapped and
discouraged as ever.
One night in early November he
came home through the first fall of
snow with a grim white look on his
face. Mary stood by the stove frying
potatoes for the evening meal. She
looked up with faithful smile on her
plain features as he entered, but he
hardly noticed her. He went to the
sink and washed and stood for an I'M
usual time drying his hands on the
roller towel.
The smile died from Mary kface as
Jack ignored her. There was a sud-
den pain in her heart. She had not
minded -much-when he had left off
meeting her after the days work with
a caress. But to be ignored after
lonely day with the thoughtless
youngsters it brought the fear of
her mothers words into her soul and
her mothers prophecy. She burned
her hand on the hot griddle but she
did not cry out. She put the singing
patch of flesh to her lips for a mo-
ment and then showed the griddle to
the rear of the stove. The last baby
Dexter Harrington Purse, cried sud-
denly from the inner room, wall of
anguish that sent the mother flying
to his side. In a moment she was
back. But Jack had been watching
her as he dried his hands at the towel
and he suddenly came over.
MARY" he said thickly, you
have it pretty hard, don't you? First
one thing and then another, al
day long, it wasn't a life like this
we were thinking of living together
at thirty-five, was it, Mary?"
He made her relinquish the griddle
and the dish into which the contents
were being emptied. He turned hel
about and took her in his arms.
MARY" he said, lifting her face w
toward his, YOU never say any
thing; you never complain; day aftel
day you stay out here in the countr!
quiet and keep plugging away
the wife of a poor printer who cam
seem to get ahead. Oh Mary girl
i :. | love you'll"