Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-05-09
The Daily Nouelette
By Jessie Douglas

CllE was huddled little heap in the
~ dim corner She had cried until she
could cry no more. and even her face
seemed to smart from those scalding,
soaring tears.
Soon She would have to get up and
meet the world again, and she sobbcd
n" she thought of it. Life lay ahead
OF Alice Trowbridgc like a long pas.
sage with neither window nor light to
make it bcarablc
''h" went over to the window seat
ard saw that the day was dying. a
faint yclIowinS mist hung over the
roofs of the great city and riffs Of
amethyst clouds were darkenng to
purple.
As sh" knelt there she could see quite
plainly Just how it had begun.
The little weather. beaten farmhouse
with the twinkling pancs OF glass had
seemed To her II haven of rest. She had
cr"pt up those clean narrow stairs the
first night - the west chamber and had
slept in th" old walnut bed. the sleep
OF the exhausted. city -wrackrd worker.
Could She ever forget the first morn
ing when she had eaten her breakfast
in the low ceiled yellow kitchen from
the oilcloth covered table, frosn berrics
and cream and crisp. crumblng corn
bread with country butter?
Sh" and Aunt Martha '--as she had
come t. call hrr--hnd fallen deep into
talk; had found themselves kindred
souls. had laughed at the antics Of the
littnn al bnI hny a..
week was out. great batch of yellow
cookies together.
''iou'd make some man n right nice
little wife, Aunt Martha had said ad-
miringly.
Alice had shaken her head gayly
and cried: My independence for me
Why. there's nothing like it 4 cozy
little fiat and enough friends and books
and pictures and flowers, what more
could one want
Aunt Martha had only looked at her
sagcly.
ITS all right now. but wait till you
get into your thirties and your for
ties :"
Thirtcs, Alice had turned her head
away quickly - hide the flush that
burned her cheeks. She had reached
thoS" ugly thirti"s now, and although
She was Quit" willing to stay where
she wiIS. she didn't want to go any far
thcr: Forty! Ugh!
They had both started as some one
trampcd across the kitchen floor and
Alice had turned to see young man
drop n knapsack on the hearth and take
Aunt Martha into his arms.
Been trampins down through the
Berkshircs, he had explained. 'and If
you can take in a tramp for few
days"
Take in tramp? Suddenly the
house was full of laughter and sunshine
ANA III" smell Of delicious things. Nor
man Taylor came and went. smoking q
crooked old pipe, teasing them both in
d!Hrim!nately. and praising Aunt
Martha'S cooking.
Never ate anything like your blue.
berry pancakes in my life" he would
Good girl"
Alc" would laugh and flush when
she had made the cake.
In the evenings he would shoe Aunt
Martha out of tn" kitchen and making
a great show of tying an apron around
hi" waist he and Alice would wash
dishes. How long it took, He would
wave knife he was polishing in the
,''SHt VI blSuhi'll anu hllCt, WITCH
ing it fcarfully would burst into de-
lighted laughter.
Could she ever forget that last walk
they had taken? With basket of
apple> over his arm they had gone
shutting through the riffs of bronze
leaves to old Miss Winthrop's. She
had tried to answer his gay sallies with
her laughter, but her heart had been too
heavy; on Monday he was going away
Finally he had stopped short on tho
road and said, what's the mattcr?"
She had meant to say. "Oh. moth.
, iIlg' but she heard her own voice say
ing You re going away"
Dismay caught her and her heart
seemed to stop beating at that fatal
admission.
MY own little girl!' was all he
said.
They walked on through a golden
haxe--7could she ever forget it?-the
meadows seemed 10 be quiyering with
light under the sinking golden bslI ~
Nuu. The windows Of Miea WlntS ~ 4