News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1922-07-19

all ABOUT now ne came tnere TO tn
teas, and sent her flowers and candy
and was getting divorce himself, an,
what he said on the sofa that day, an,
how Mother answered. AS / said,
told him everything, only was care
full not to call Mr.. Harlow a prospec
tive sutton, Of course. remembered
too well what Aunt Hattie had said
Father didn't say anything when
got through. He just got up and lef
the room, and pretty quick saw hin
crossing the lawn to the observatory
I guess there aren't any prosperity,
suitors here. l mean, l guess Father
isn't a prospective suitor-anyhow
not yet. (Of course, it's the man thai
| has to be suitor.) He doesn't 60 any
where, only over to the college anG
out to the observatory. I've watched
so to see. / wanted specially to know
for of course If he was being pro.
spective sutton to any one she'd be
my new mother, maybe. And I'm 60
ing to be awfully particular about any
new mother coming into the house.
A whole lot more, even, depends on
mothers than on fathers, you know /;
and If you're going to have one all
ready-made thrust upon you, you are
sort of anxious to know what kind
she is. Some way, I don't think I'd
like a new mother even as well as I'd
like new father; and 1 don't believe
I'd like him very WELL
Of course, there are quite a lot of
ladies here that Father could have.
There are several pretty teachers in
the schools, and some nice unmarried
ladies in the church. And there's
Miss Parmelia Snow. She's Professor
Shows sister. She wears glasses and
is terribly learned. Maybe he would
like her. But, Mercy! l shouldn't.
Then there's Miss Grace Ann San
born. She's fat, and awfully jolly.
She comes here a lot lately to see
Aunt Jane. / don't know why. They
don't belong to the same church, or
anything But she runs over" as
she calls it, almost every afternoon
Just a little before dinner-I mean
supper
Mrs. Darling used to come then, too,
when l first came; but she comes
over evenings now more. Maybe it's
because she doesn't like Miss Grace
Ann. l don't think she does like her,
for every time she saw her, she'd say:
"Oh, you? So you're here!" and
pretty quick she'd get up and 60 And
now she comes evenings. She's fix
ing over her house, and she runs and
asks Aunt James advice about every
little thing. She asks Fathers, too,
every chance she gets, when she sees
him in the hall or on the front steps.
heard her tell Aunt Jane she consid-
cred Professor Anderson a man OF
most excellent taste and judgment
l suppose Mrs. Darling could be my
new mother. She's widow. Her hus-
band died last year. She is very well
off now that her husband is dead, l.
heard Aunt Jane say one day. She
meant well off in money-quite lot
of it, you know. l thought she meant
well off because he was dead and she
didn't have to live with him any
more, and l said so to Aunt Jane
(He was cross man, and very stern,
as everybody knew But, dear SUI
mel Aunt Jane was awfully shocked,
md said certainly not; that she
meant Mr.. Darling had left his wife a
great deal of money.
Then she talked very stern and sol
mn to me- and said that | must not
hink just because my poor dear ia
hers married life had ended in such
| wretched tragedy that every other
lome had such a skeleton in the
Oset.
mn then. / knew, of course, what
he meant I'm no child. She meant
fother. She meant that Mother, my
ear blessed mother, was the skeleton
1 their closet. And of course / wasn't
Ding to stand there and hear that,
nd not say word.
But / didn't say just a word. l
aid a good many words. l won't try
, put them all down here: but l told
er quietly, In firm voice, and with
D temper (showing), that l guessed
ather was just as much of a skele-
m In Mothers closet as she was in
Is; and that If she could see how
erfectly happy my mother was now
led understand a little of what my
Ither's skeleton had done TO her all
lose years she'd had to live with it.
L said lot more, but before I'd got
ilf finished with what / wanted to
", l got to crying, so l just had to
in out of the room.
That night l heard Aunt Jane tell !
rs Darling that the worst feature
the whole deplorable situation was
e effect on the childs mind, and the
retched conception it gave her of the ;
credness Of the marriage tie, or
netting like that. And Mrs. Darling
yhed, and said, oh, and ah. and the 9
y of 1t.
/ don't like Mrs. Darling. a
OF course as / said before. Mrs. C