Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1920-01-09

q. an obtuse angle, AMI the removal Of
the pillars made the boulevard seem q
cross street OF no empowering In
misunderstanding 1t nd not seem to
be q boulevard!
George walked by the Mansion hur-
riedly, and came home TO his mothers
house for the last time.
Emptiness was there too, ard TIA.
closing of the door resounded through
bare rooms; for downstairs there was
no furniture in the house except
kitchen table In the dining room, which
Fanny had kept "for dinner" she said,
though as she was to cook and serve
that meal herself George had HE
doubts about her name for ii. Upstairs
she had retained her own furniture,
and George had been living In his
mothers room, having sent everything
from his own to the auction. Isabels
room was still as 1t had been. but the
furniture would be moved with
Fanny's to new quarters In the morn.
nephew as well as herself; she had
found "three-room kitchenette apart
ment" in an apartment house where
several old friends of hers had estab-
ltshed themselves-elderly widows of
citizens once prominent" and other
retired gentry. People used their own
"kitchenettes" for breakfast and lunch,
but there was a table-d'hote arrange
ment for dinner on the ground floor;
and after dinner bridge was played
all evening, IAN attraction powerful
with Fanny. She had made all the
arrangements" she reported, and ner-
vously appealed for approval, asking II
she hadn't shown herself pretty prac-
teal" In such matters. George acqui-
esced absent-mindedly, not thinking Of
what she said and not realizing to
what it committed him.
He began to realize 1t now, rs he
wandered about the dismantled tousc (;
hp was far from sure that he WAS
willing to live In "three-room apart-
ment" with Fanny and eat breakfast
and lunch with her (prepared BIZ her
self In the "kitchenette') and dinDer
mt the table d'hote N "such pretty
Colonial dining room" ESQ Fanny de-
scribed it) at little round table they
would have all to themselves In the
midst of dozen little round tables
which other relics of disrupted fam
lilies would have all to themselves. For
the first time, now that the change
was imminent, George began to devcl-
Up before his minds eye pictures vf
bat he was in for; and they appalled,
Him. He decided that such life
vcrged upon the sheerly unbeaAble,
and that after all there we're some
things left that he just couldn't stand.
So he made up his mind to speak to
his aunt about 1t at dinner" and tell
her that he preferred to ask Bronson
TO let him put a sofa-bed, trunk and
folding rubber bathtub behind u
screen In the dark rear room of tsa Of
| Zee.
But at dinner" Fanny was Derv-
Gus, and so distressed about the fall
ure of her, efforts with sweetbreads
md macaroni; and she was so eager
in her talk of how comfortable they
would be ''by this time tomorrow
night
After dinner" he went upstairs,
moving his hand slowly along the
smooth walnut railing of the balus.
trade. Half way 70 the landing lie
stopped. turned, and stood looking
down at the heavy doors masking the
black emptiness that had been the
library. Here he had stood on what
he now knew was the worst day of his
life; here he had stood when his moth.
err passed through that doorway, hand.
INLAND with her brother, to learn what
Der son had done.
He went on more heavily, more slow
ly; and, more heavily and slowly sti.l,
entered Isabel's room and shut the
door. He did not come forth again,
and babe. Fanny goodnight through
the closed door when she stopped out
side it later.
"Ive put all the lights out, George"
she said. "Everything's all right"
"very WE'LL" he called. "Good night
Aunt Fanny"
His voice had strangled sound In
spite of him; but she seemed not to
notice it, and he heard her go TO her
own room and lock herself in with
bolt and key against burglars. She
had said the one thing she should moi
have said just then: "Pm sure your
mothers watching over you, George
She had meant to be kind, but 1t de
stroyed his last chance for sleep that
night. He would have slept little II
she had not said it. but since she had
said it he did not sleep at all. For he
knew that it was true-if 1t could be
true-that his mother, If she still lived
In spirit, would be weeping on the
other side of the wall of silence, weep
ing and seeking for some gate to lei
her through so that she could cOus
1 1,