The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1921-10-24

buck saws were cherry.rcd. the
blades biued steel, and tho fresh cut
iron wood. birch--wcre marked with
engraved rings Of growth. The boys
wore shoe packs. blue flannel shirts
With enormous pearl buttons. and
mAckinaws Of crimson. lemon yellow.
and foxy brown.
Carol cried "Fine dAyr 70 tho
boys: she came In = glow 70 How.
land 4 Gould's grocery. her collar
white with frost from her breath:
she bought . can OF tomatoes az
tho Il were Orient fruit; and re-
turned home planning TO surprise
Kennicott with an omelet for dinner.
So brilliant was the snow glare
that whom she entered the house she
saw the door knobs. the Newspaper
on tho table. every white surface ~
dazzling nnuve, and her head was
dizzy in the pyrosechn,c dimness.
whcn her eyes had recovered she
felt expanded. drunk with health.
mistress Of life. The world was so
luminous that she rat down az her
rickety little desk in the living room
10 make poem. OBhe rot no far
ther than THE sky II bright. the
sun Il warm. there ns'cr win be
another Storm
In the mid.afternoon Of this Ame
day Kennicost was called into the
country. II was Bea's. evening out
her evening for the Lutheran dance.
Carol WINS alone from three I'm mia
night she wearsrd Of reading pure
love stories In the magazines and
ns BY . radiator. beginning to
brood.
Thus she CHANGED 10 discover that
she had nothing to 40.
On
She had. she meditafod. passed
thru the novelty OF seeing the town
and meeting people. OF skating and
sliding and hunting. Bea was com.
petent; there was no household labor
except sewing and darning and eos
sipy assistance to Bea In bed max.
ing. She couldn't satisfy her In
Ecnuity In planning meals. At Dahl
4 oIeson's meat market you didn't
give orders. You wofully inquired
whether there was anything today
besides steak and pork and ham.
Tho cuts OF beef were not cuts. They
were hacks Lamb chops were a.
exotic NJ sharks fins. The meat
dealers shipped their best - the
city. with its higher prices.
In all the shops there was the
same lack Of choice. she could not
find a glass hended picture nail In
town: she did not hunt for the sort
OF Yelling she wnnted-she took
what she could get. and only AZ
Rowland 4 Couid's was there such
. luxury ns canned asparagus. Rou.
tine care was all she could devote TO
the house. Only by such fussing
a. the Widow Bognrt's could she
make II fiii her time.
She could not have outside I'm
pToymsnt. To the village doctors
wife II was taboo.
She was a woman with q working
brain and no work.
There was only three things which
HHr cVtt8 w. ftAfr tHiaftHs
start her career Of reforming; or be-
come no definitely part Of the town
that she would be fulfilled by the
activities Of church and study club
and bridge parties.
Children, yes she wnnfed them.
but She was not quite ready. She
had been embarrassed by Kenni.
colts frankncss. but she agreed with
him that m the insane condition Of
civilization which made the rearing
Of children more costly and perIlous
than any other crime. Il was In.
advisable to have children till he
had made more money. She was
SORRY Perhaps he had made all
the mystery Of love mechanical
cautiousncss but She fled from the
thought with dubious. "Sonc day"
Her reforms" her impulses to-
ward beauty IN raw Main Street.
they had become indisfinct. But she
would set them going now. She
would, She swore II with soft fist
beating the edres Of the rndiator.
And NJ the end Of al her vows she
had no notion as 70 when and where
the crusade was 70 begin.
Become an authentic part Of the
town? She began to think with I'M
pleasant iucidity. She reflected that
she did not know whether the people
liked her. She had gone to the wom-
en- at afternoon coffecs, to the mers
chants in their stores, with 80 many
outpouring comments and WITNESSES
that she hadn't given them chance
TO bctray their opinions OF her. The
men smiIed--but did they like her?
She was lively among the women
but was she one OF them? She could
not recall many times when she had
been admitted 10 the whispering Of
scandal which IL the secret chamber
of Gopher Prairie conversation.
She was poisoned with doubt, as
che dropped up to bed
Next day. thru her shopping. her
mind sat back and observed. Dave
Dyer and Sam Clark were az cordial
az she had been fancying; but wasn't
there an impcrsonal abruptness In
the III are yuh?" Of Chct Dash