The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-05-20
Euening Story
Spring Blossoms
BY I. WRIGHT.

Mary Webb had looked thru the
Sunday supplements carefully. As she
stared out of the window toward the
sunny south orchard where the spring
blossoms were already beginning to
show pink and white she shuddered.
always the sane" she whispered
to herself. Every spring the bios
SONS. every autumn the haystacks-
Ughi"
She saw Avery Wilson in his or
chard on the next place. He had the
horse hitched up to a spraying ma
chine and was whistling as he made
his way around the trees in need OF
the solution in the machine. he
looked toward the Webb place and
Mary drew back from the window.
1t was Wednesday, anyhow, she re-
Elected, and she would see him soon
enough. Every Wednesday evening,
right after supper, he called on her.
He always arrived somewhere between
$40 and Z, and Mary again shuddered
as she thought of the early hour.
In the Sunday supplements she had
been reading it spoke of the young
men calling at 9 or $3.50. And for
dances-those started, in the fashion
able set. at 10 or after. Mary's lips
curved up in a smile as she thought
of Avery's face should she suggest
starting out to a dance at 10 o'clock.
The whistle of the weStbound train
aroused her and she put the bread in
the oven. Her mind was on the train
as she closed the oven door The east
bound for the city would come thru in
forty minutes. The eastboundi The
city! Her cousin Sadi lived in the city
and was always coaxing her to come
up for visit. Well, why not?
Mary Webb stopped a little and re-
garded her shiny black hair in the
crinkly little mirror above the kitchen
sink. 1t was lying sleek and wavy
with not a hair out of place She
could slip into her blue tricotine ana
make the train in time. How sur
prised Sadi would be! Sadi had writ
ten that she always had callers on
~ different ones came.
In the part of the country where
Mary Webb lived that would be
considered not quite nice-to have
several young men callers Each
girl had one caller and went every
where with him until it came time
for them to marry. Mary Webb
hurried to her room and donned the
blue frock. She took her hat from
the bag and bent before the glass
to adjust it.
The thought ran across her mind
| that maybe she'd never come back
/, again to this house, to this ROOM to
this glass. Perhaps she would never
again see Avery Wilson or hear him
whistle. A pang of desolation crossed
her heart as the last thought came
to her. Somehow things would not
be the same If she didn't hear Avery
whiStling. But her mouth again curl
ed upward at the corners. There
| would be some one in the city who
would whistle
She ran to the poultry house where
her mother was feeding the baby
chicks with the skinned milk and
| told her about the trip.
I'll most likely be back in a few
days, but Sadi has been wanting me
! to come, you know"
But why select today, and hurry
ing off like this exclaimed her be-
| wiIdered mother.
But Mary Webb, with a gay nod
was gone, snatching her smart little
black fur from the hall rack as she
ran. She watched the familiar towns
as the train rushed thru on its two
| hour trip to town. All along the way
stretched orchards.
Orchards with their seemingly
never-ending blossoms. Pink bios
SONS and white blossoms! White
blossoms and pink onesi The train
| rushed on shrieking its whistle at
each mile crossing; each mile brought
more orchards and more spring bios
SONS. The trees were growing
seemed neither SO pink or so white.
The train ground over a switching
track and factory doomed into view
Now they were on the outskirts of
the city ana tan smokeStackS sent out
their black ribbons of soft coal smoke.
Every few blocks city garden with
und ersized vegetables or drab-colored
flowers would loom up. Long rows
of tenement buildings with very dirty
windows seemed to be speeding by the
train. Mary Webb sighed.
She suddenly heard a whistle. Not
the whistle of a man but that of a
factory. It was quitting time for
! lunch. Men with tin buckets of din
ner streamed out of the factory. Some
came in groups of two and three; some
were alone. The only common resem-
blance seemed to be their utter
fatigue. And it was only noon. There
was a half day yet to work.
The nicture of ANerX Wilson