Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1921-08-17
WANTED-A MOTHER
g 1874. By Mcclure Newspaper syndicats.j
BY EDITH N. COUCH.

"Wanted-A Mother. Young. wound
ed soldier lonely. would Ike TO be
adopted by mOtherly lady. All replies
confidential"
Harriet Ogers let the Evening Ca
Zette fall To the floor unheeded. while
she gezed out through the open win
dow, lost in memories which this
strange advertisement had brought 10
mind.
None Of the neighbOrs In the small
country town would have suspected
such an appeal could stir the lonely
heart of one who was 20 them just a
"cut and dried old maid" And yet.
who Of you who have known the JOY
and blessing of motherhood, can rea-
lie that the longing for the touch OF
baby fingers and the sound of baby
prattle. which. though never known,
still is felt perhaps by these same
"cut and dried Old maids" one OF
these was Harriet Ogers.
Away back In the past, buried so
deeply in her heart that none knew or
even suspected, Harriet still carried
the memory of her one romance. rO-
nance as sweet and as beautiful as
the wisteria whose fragrance floated
through the open window 10 her, but
ending in a petty quarrel and the de
parture Of her John To the city. 4 few
rumors had drifted back TO the home
town Of his success in the business
world and then OF a brilliant marriage.
and after that-silence.
The world forgot but TO Harriet
there was and always would be but
the one IN her heart.
"Wanted-A mother"
or course. IL was ridiculous, and
how the neighborS would talk. and
yet, why not? Here she was with a
comfortable income, a home, good
health; but an everincreasing lOneli-
ness which caused her at times TO
shrink from the years TO come. She
pictured herself with a stalwart,
manly arm TO lean on, and jumping up
she FASTENED TO pen her answer before
she should change her mind.
In the interval between the day
Harriet had made her mOmentOus de-
cision and the arrival OF the letter,
stating the day and train her boy
would arrive on, HARRIET lived in IA
state of nervous excitement. But, at
last, the great day came. That morn
ing she felt perhaps her first real bit
OF regret as she stood before the mir
ror and marked with pitiless scrutiny
each line and each gray hair, and she
wondered II, after all, she would or
could look the part of q loving moth
er 10 the lonely boy, even though her
heart craved the part.
Harriet was at the station several
minutes before the train drew into the
little station and allowed the handful
of passengers 10 alight. There WINS
Brown, the grocer. and Emma Bee
mans little nephew, who had come TO
spend the summer, and two dapper
young statesmen from the neighbOring
city and a distinguished looking gen.
tleman whom she did not know, but no
one who answered the description OF
a 'young. wounded soldier"
The thought of such a calamity had
never entered her trusting heart, and
as she came 10 realize that she may,
after all, have been made the butt OF
someone's joke the tears Of mOrtifica-
ton filled her eyes, and she made her
cropping way 10 the buggy, failing TO
notice that the stranger was making
directly toward her.
A courteous voice asking "Are you
Miss Harriet Ogers?' recalled her TO
earth, and she turned to find hand
extended toward her and a pair of
twinkling eyes gazing into her aston
ished ones.
Something dearly familiar caused
Harrlett's heart almost 10 stop beat
ing as she gave a trembling hand to
her own John.
Later when things had resumed
somewhat their natural course. John
explained that his only boy. firing OF
the reign Of a tyrannical hOusekeeper,
had inserted the advertisement for a
mother. His own mother he had lost
when he was too young 20 remember,
but perhaps back In his memory lin
gered an emptiness that only a mother
could an. When a reply came signed
Harriet Ogers John could hardly be-
lieve his eyes, and had made "A bargain
with his son 20 answer In his place.
'And. Harriet" said John. draw
ing his chair closer in the gathering
twilight Of the veranda that evening,
"don't you think you could be a moth
er 10 two boys, instead of one? / viii
see Parson Somers in the morning. and
then we win wire the boy 20 come and
meet his new mother"
10 IS well that none OF the inquisi-
tive neighbors was looking as the "cut
and dried old maid" buried her flushed
face on Johns shoulder.
His Gain.