News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1922-12-27

where Cousin Grace was. SO we wei
left alone again, after a minute.
1t was most dark on the piazza, b,
| l could see Fathers face In the liglX
from the window; and 1t iooked-wel
! ia never seen it look like that before
1t was as If something tnat had bee
| on it for years had dropped off an
left II clear where before ii had bee
blurred and indistinct. No, thaX
. doesn't exactly describe 1t either.
can't describe it. But I'll go on an,
say what he said.
After Mrs Small had gone into n
house, and he saw that she was sin
ting down with Cousin Grace in thu
library, he turned to me and said:
"And so you came as Mary?"
l said yes, did.
"Well, II got ready for Marie.'
But then l didn't quite understand
not even when I looked at him an.
saw the old understanding twinkle in
his eyes.
you mean-you thought | was COM
ing as Marie, of course" l said them
Eyes" he nodded.
"But | came as Mary"
81 see now that you did Well Mary.
you've told me your story, so l sup
pose l may as well tell you mine-now.
You see, / not only got ready i'd
Marie, but 1 had planned to keep M
Marie, and not let her be Mary-atI
ALL"
And then he told me- He told me
how he'd never forgotten that day in
the parlor when cried and he saw
then how hard it was for me to live
here, with him so absorbed in his
work and Aunt Jane so stern in her
black dress. And he said put it very
wildly when I talked about being
Marie in Boston, and Mary here, and
he saw Just how it was. And so he
thought and thought about it all win
ter and wondered what he could do.
And after time it came to him-he'd
let me be Marie here that is, he'd try
to make It so I could be Marie And
he was just wondering how he was
going to get Aunt Jane to help him
when she was sent for and asked ~
go to- an old friend who was sick.
And he told her to go, by all means to
go. Then he got Cousin Grace to come
here. He said he knew Cousin Grace,
and he was sure she would know how
to help him to let me stay Marie. So
he talked it over with her-hOw they
would let me laugh, and sing and play
the piano all l wanted to, and wear
the clothes I brought with me, and
was in Boston.
"And to think after all my prepara-.
ton for Marie, you should be Mary
already, when you came" he finished.
Father had covered his eyes with
his hand, as If thinking and thinking,
pose it did seem queer to him, that
ne should be trying to make me Marie,~
md all the while Mother was trying =
% make me Mary. And it seemed so to
me- as l began to think it over
"And so your mother-did that"
Father muttered; and there was the
queer little catch in his breath again.
He didn't say any more, not single
word. And after a minute he got up
ind went into the house. But he
lidn't go into the library where Mrs.
small and Cousin Grace were talking.
lie went straight upstairs to his own
Dom and shut the door. l heard it.
md he was still there when 1 went
p to bed afterward.
How do you suppose Mothers going
o feel when l tell her that after all
er pains Father didn't like it at all.
lie wanted me to be Marie. It's
hame, after all the pains she tookAA
,ut 1 won't write it to her, anyway.
faybe I won't have to tell her, unless
he asks me.
But l know 1t. And. pray, what am
to do? OF course, can act like
larie here all right, If that is what
Olks want. But l can't wear Marie,
or | haven't single Marie thing here.
'heyre all Mary. That's all brought.
Oh, dear SUI me! Why couldn't
'ather and Mother have been just the
live-happy-ever-after kind, or
lse found out before they married
nat they were unlikes?