Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-01-04
WITH THE SPRING
Chapter LX1l.

Looking back over her NE, NUN ue
cided that its crisis WAS reached that
winter Never before had she been SO
miserable. never had she been so much
alone. During the previous year she
had been through winter OF DOUBT,
and a summer Of sad conviction--over
tho loss of Tins love. But with his mar
riarc 10 Myra, something snapped IN
her she could not tell what. Later she
knew IT, was the nervous tension she was
under, and. that from the moment he
was finally married, finally and absolute
~ separated from her, she began to feel
better.
This next winter she worked, harder
han ever before, harder even than wheh
she tried to run a large roomng mousse
without any help. Her young face grew
more serious and more mature, sne WAS
lttlc taller and little simmer, her chm
ihat had somehow been gently indefinite,
seemed 10 form determined little point
.ha, made her face even more attractive
" shaped.
Ruth was developing into a beautl-
ful woman-but it was not so much the
beauty of face and skin and figure, as
the beauty of fine intelligence.
And with the Spring, the reward OF
all her work and her loneliness began
10 materialzc. Looking back, she traced
II 10 the letter Langley sent in answer to
her idea-the Big Idea, as she sometimes
called 1t. :,
"lour plan seems excellent to me,
he wrote "Of course Id ike TO come
back and go over that ground again
You'll need a lot of capital behind you,
II will take millions to finance such an
idea And to be frank, there are hun
tlIeds of small towns in the country where
vo,u idea would apply as we'll. It's all a
matter Of getting your money Tor 1t III
Marketown
few weeks later she had another
lettcr in which he said he was coming
back 10 Marketown on his way through
IL New York. and would see her then.
so II happened that one Spring al
ternoon Ruth took Langley out over
the flat fields beyond the rlver-unpro-
ductivc land that yielded nothing but
weeds and rocks and mosqul toes.
You see. she began, I'D like TO
get our City Committee TO buy up some
81 this land. or get grant of IT from the
town which would have to buy If from
the two men who now own II. It could be
bought very cheap Just now.
Then ! want the Committee, or the
town. 10 offer it free as factory sites That
will bring us factories, perhaps not large
ones. hut even few small ones would help.
If We wanted to develop any one industry
here we could offer special Inducements
IN the way Of water and power and such
things.
"'fhc factories once here. the labort
ers must follow In that way we build
up our town, of course. The merchants
viii back us since more people means more
trade
"Of coursei suppose you've been
x IL. I ~
mes OF other cities. In New England, Tor
Instance
They talked il over for an hour. Then
Ruth went on with the rest of her idea.
Meantime, we must build homes
or the workers And that's the thing
I'm interested in ! don't want rows
II brick or wood houses, as we have
N our present factory district. | want
% take square OF ground, and build
a solid block OF houses all around It,
carving the style 50 each will be pretty,
md all Of them 60 well together-yet 50
there will be variety OF design. II show
YOU pictures of some OF the model cottages
have in mind in an architectural magazine
a, home The houses will face the four
>,rccts OF the square, and in the hol-
low &c tire of h block, I'll make park
sic Vi OF a lot 0l b}ckyards.
II 5 be en- done, but an > one
.4l, al better" Ian / approved
The cirl aughed Her eye Were allght
with q thusi sm, her pale cheeks had
flu i ed Il 81 was feeling hap Y.
I'm or Z yer thu, lIea. 81 aid.
You know, 60 this whole factory
~ planne olt already. I've come out
ere and marked with stones p laces where
wanted streets-and by he way, l
cont va s1eets that TN straight.
want larg streets. sometimes curving.
q all laid out so a % give a beautiful
effect.
Now do you see the four white stones
she pointed 10 four places IN the field be-
fore them. There, for instance, Is a block
marked of. The houses are buut around
It lns'de-come along and Il show you,
she began walking until thev were IN the
centre O er imaginary block. Inside
ere Is the great common backyard OF
al ese families The children can play
nee, safe from the treets. III have swings
q thl gs for them, and where this
sprIng and little swamp ls, III have 8
INV pond dug for th hildren, and around
II benches where the people can sit IN
the evening if they want, and I'll plant
trees 20 keep II shady and cool in summer.
She walked on, talking and planning
as she went. The man followed behind
her. sometimes approving. sometimes
amused, sometimes showing her where her
enthusiasm was carrying her past the line
Of practical sense.
And this is only Part Of II, she said
as they started home towards tie town
I'm tell you more tomorrow.
you are a wonder, Ruth, the man
said, in frank admiration Of her.
Tomorrow-Letters