The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1922-11-18
CHAPTER III

CHAPTER III
Professor Kelton announced that he
had not finished his errands in town,
and begged to be excused from the
drive which Mrs. Owen had planned.
Very well, Andrew. Wen go out
and see how the wheat looks"
Mrs. Owen explained as the trim
sorrels stepped off smartly toward the
north that they were Estabrook stock
and that she had raised them herselft
on her Kentucky farm, which she de-
clared Sylvia must visit some day. It
was very pleasant to be driving in
this way under a high blue sky. be-
side a woman whose ways and inter
ests were SO unusual The spirited
team held Mrs. Owens attention. but
she never allowed the conversation to
flag. Sylvia's knowledge of horses
was the slightest. and in reading OF
horse races she had not imagined that
there could be such a thrill in speed
ing along a stretch of good road be-
hind a pair of registered roadsters.
the flower Of the Estabrook stock,
driven by so intrepid and skillful
whip as Mrs. Sally Owen.
Il guess that mile would worry the
boys some" " observed Mrs. Owen with
satisfaction as she brought the team
to a walk.
This was wholly cryptic to Sylvia.
but she was glad that Mrs. Owen was
not disappointed
Where do you go TO school. Syl-
via?" she asked.
L don't 90 to school,-not to a real
schOol.-but grandfather teaches me;
he has always taught me-"
And you are now about-hoW old2'.
Sixteen in October. I've been talk.
ing to grandfather about going to col
lege."
Il guess I'm too old to be one of
these new women we're hearing so
much about. belong to a generation
of women who know how to sew rag
carpets and make quilts and stir soft
soap in an iron kettle and darn socks:
and ! can still cure ham better Than
any Chicago factory does it," she
added. raking a fly from the back of
the of" sOrrel with a neat turn of
the whip. And I reckon 1 make EN-
Jay full price for my corn. Well.
well; so you're headed for college"
Il hope So" said Sylvia
Marian was at Miss Warnings
school last winter and 1 couldn't see
what she was interested in much but
chasing to matinees. Are you crazy
about theaters2
Why. I've never been to one" Syl-
via confessed.
You're just as well off. Actors
amt what they used to be. When
you saw Edwin Booth in Hamlet or
Jefferson in Rip you saw acting. 1
haven't been in any theater since (
saw jefferson in the Rivals the last
time he came round I'd rather see
a good circus any time than one of
these singing pieces. Sassaflas tea
and a circus every spring; I always
take both"
I'm for all this new science. you
understand that" Mrs Gwen contin-
ued. "A good deal of it does seem
to me mighty funny, but when they
tell me to boil drinking water to kill
the bugs in it. and show me pictures
of the bugs they take with the micro
scope. I don't snort just because my
grandfather didn't know about those
things and lived to be So and then
died from being kicked by a colt.
&c into the kitchen and I say to Eliza,
Bile the water, Liza; bile it twice
That's the kind Of a new woman 1
am. But let's see; we were speaking
Of Marian"
II liked her very much; she's very
nice and ever so interesting" said
Sylvia.
BLESS you, she's nice enough and
pretty enough; but about this college
business. I always say that If 1t amt
in colt the trainer can't put 1t there.
My niece-that's Mrs. Basset, Marian's
mOther-wants Marian to be an in
tellectual woman-the kind that reads
papers on the poets before literary
clubs. Mrs. Basset runs a woman's
club in FraservilIe and she's one Of
the lights in the Federation. They
got me up to F'raserville to speak to
their club a few years ago. It's one
of these solemn clubs women have;
awful literary and never get nearer
home than Doctor Johnson, who was
nothing but fat loafer anyhow. l
told 'em they'd better let me off:
but they would have it and so I went
up and talked on ensilage. 1t was
fall and 1 thought ensilage was sea
sOnable and they ought to know
about it if they didn't. And they
didn't. all right"
Sylvia had no idea what ensilage
was, but she knew it must be some
thing amusing or Mrs. Owen would
not have laughed so heartily.
1T was a good joke, wasn't it
talking to a literary club about silos
I told 'em I'd come back and read my
little piece on Winter Feeding but
they haven't called me yet"
Professor Kelton had just reached
the house. and he seemed so hot and
tired Svlvia vas struck with