River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1920-01-15

how it must be beaten down; yes,
and he asks my mother to do that lit
tie thing to please him! What for?
Why does he want me beaten by my
mother? Because I'm trying to pro-
tect her name! He's got my mothers
name banded up and down the streets
of this town till can't step in those
streets without wondering what every
soul l meet is thinking Of me and of
my family, and now he wants you to
marry him so that every gossip in
town will say There! What did l tell
you? I guess that proves it's true 7
You can't get away from it; that's ex-
actly what they'd say, and this man
pretends he cares for you, and yet
asks you to marry him and give them
the right to say ii. He says he and
you don't care what they say, but l
know better! He may not care-prOb.
ably he's that kind-but you do. There
never was an ANDERSON yet that would
let the Anderson name go trailing In
the dust like that! It's the proudest
name in this town, and it's going to
stay the proudest; and tell you that's
the deepest thing in my nature-not
that I'd expect Eugene Morgan to un-
derstand-the very deepest thing in my
nature is to protect that name and to
fight for it to the last breath when
danger threatens 1t as 1t does now
through my motherw He turned from
her striding up and down and tossing
his arms about in tumult OF gesture.
81 can't believe it Of you that you'd
think of such sacrilege! That's
what it would be-sacrilege! When he
talks about your unselfishness toward
me he's right-you have been unselfish
and you have been a perfect mother.
But what about him? Is it unselfish
Of him to want you to throw away
your good name just to please him?
that's all he asks of you-and to quit
| icing my mother! Do you think I can
believe you really care for him? /
don't! You are my mother and you're
| an Amberson-and believe you're too
proud! You're too proud to care for
man who could write such letter
as that" He stopped, faced her. and
spoke with more self-control: "Wen,
what are you going to do about It,
| mother?"
George was right about his mothers
| being proud. And even when she
| laughed with negro gardener, or even
those few times in her life when peo-
| pie saw her weep, Isabel had proud
look-something that was independent
and graceful and strong. But she id
not have it now: She leaned against
the wall, beside his dressing table, ard
seemed beset with humility and with
weakness. Her head dropped.
"What answer are you going %
make to such letterw George de-
handed, like judge on the bench.
T--I don't quite know, DEAR" sic
murmured.
"You don't?" he cried. "You-"
swat" she begged him. 'Tm So
confused"
II want to know what you're going
to write him. Do you think if yen
did what he wants you to I could
bear to stay another day in this town,
mOtherj Do you think I could ever
bear even to see you again IL YOU
married him? I'd want to, but you
surely know I just-couldn't"
She made futile gesture, and
seemed to breathe with difficulty. 81
Il wasn't-quite sure" she faltered,
"about-about it's being wise for US
to be married-even before knowing
how you feel about it. wasn't even
sure 1t was quite fair TOTO Eugene.
I have-I seem to have that family
trouble-like fathers-that I spoke
to you about once" She managed
deprecatory little dry laugh. "Not
that 1t amounts to much, but I wasn't
at all sure that it would be fair to
him. Marrying doesn't mean so much,
after all-not at my age. It's enough
to know that-that people think of
yOu-and to see them. I thought we
were all-oh, pretty happy the way
thugs were, and don't think it would
mean giving up great deal for him
or me, either, IL we just went on as
we have been. II see him almost
every day, and"
"Mother!" Georges voice was loud
and stern. 'Do you think you could
go one seeing him after thisr'
She had been talking helplessly
enough before; her tone was little
more broken now. "Not-not even
see him?"
"How could you" George cried.
mother, it seems to me that if he
ever set foot in this house again
oh! / can't speak of it, Could yot
see him, knowing what talk it makes
every time he turns into this street.
3nd knowing what that means to me
oh, / don't understand ell this1
don'ti If you told me, a year ago
that such things were going to hap
pen, I'd have thought you were in
sane-and now I believe ami"
Then, after a preliminary gesture of