Clearwater Republican., 1921-05-20

|
| When supper was finished Allan
went 10 the stables to give final atten-
ton to the horses-a duty that had
always fallen TO Jim-and Harris, af-
ter few minutes quiet rest in his
chair. began to remove his boots.
| "The cows are not MIXED, john"
said his wife. She tried to speak in a
matter-offact way, but the tremor in
her voice betrayed the import Of the
simple statement.
| Harris paused with boot half un-
laced. While his recollection of Beu-
lahs defiance was clear enough, 1t
had not occurred to him that the girl
actually would stand by her guns. He
| had told her that she would milk the
| cows tonight as usual and he had as
snmed, as matter of course, that she
| would do so. He was not accustomed
to being disobeyed.
where's Beulah?' he demanded.
II guess she's in her ROOM"
Harris laced up his boot. Then he
started upstairs
Don't be too hard on her, john"
urged his wife, with little catch In
her voice.
II won't be too hard on anybody"
| he replied curtly. tits strange thing
| you wouldn't see that she did as she
was told. i suppose have to plug
away in the field until dark and then
come in and do another half-day's
work because my women folk are too
lazy or stubborn to do 1t themselves"
II this Outburst was intended to
crush Mary Harris 1t had a very diff
ferent effect. She seemed to straighten
up under the attack; the color came
back to her cheeks, and her eyes were
bright and defiant.
John Harris" she said. "You know
better than to say that your women
folk are either lazy or stubborn, but
there's point where imposition. even
the imposition of husband, has to
stop, and you've reached that point.
You didn't have to stay In the field
until dark. There's another day COM
ing and the plowing'll keep. 1t isn't
iike the harvest 1t was just your own
cOntrariness that kept you there. You
fred the best man you ever had today,
in a fit of temper, and now you're try
ing to take 1t out on u.s."
Harris looked at her for a moment
then, without speaking he continued
up the stairs. He felt that he was
being very unfairly used, but he had
no intention of shrinking from his
duty as husband and father, even If
its discharge should bring pain to all
of them.
He found Beulah In her room, os-
tensibly reading.
"Why are the cows not milked2" he
demanded
~ thought l made 1t clear to you at
noon that they wouldn't be MIXED by
me-" she answered, land there didn't
| seem to be anybody else hankering for
the job"
"Beulah," he said, trying to speak
calmly, don't you think this nonsense
has gone far enoughf"
"Too far" she agreed. "But you
started it-let's see you stop It."
"Beulah," he said, with rising anger,
II won't allow you to talk to me like
that. Remember I'm your father, and
you've right to do as you're told.
Haven't given you everything-given
you home, and all that, and are you
goin' to defy me In my own house?"
II don't want to defy YOU" she an
swered, "but II you're going to let
your temper run away with you, you
can put on the brakes yourself. And
as for all you've done for me--maybe
I'm ungrateful, but 1t doesn't look half
so big from my side Of the fence"
| We'll. what more do you want?" he
| demanded.
For one thing, wouldn't mind hav-
ing father"
"What do you mean7 Amt l your
father3"
no father here, You're just the boss
the foreman on the farm. You board
with mother and me. We see you at
meal-times. We wouldn't see you then
IL you didn't have to make use of us
in that way. If you have a spare hour
you go to town, You're always so busy,
busy, with your little things, that you
have no time for big things. I'd like to
see you think about living instead of
/ WoIhluS. Ahu we Tt HOl
really living, you know--we're just ex-
listing. Don't you see what l mean
We're living all in the flesh, like an
animal. When, you feed the horses and
put them under shelter you can't do
anything more for them. But when
you feed and shelter your daughter
you have only half provided for her,
and it's the other half. the starving
half. that refuses to starve any
longer"
I'm not kickin' on religion, IL that's
what you mean. Beulah," he said,
You get goin' to church as often as
you like, and"
"Oh. it's not religion she protest
ed. AT least. It's not just going to
church. and things like that, although
| guess il is more real religion, II
we Just understood. What are we
here for, anyway? What's the an
swer:"
"Well, I'm here just now to tell you