Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-01-25
HEY WERE FIRST MONTHS UNITED AGAINST

THEY
they could hear tho trucks numbering
along behind them and making heavy
going of it Dick looked ahead anx-
| iously for the road TO their house. He
| was relieved to see when he reached
| 1t that IL hadn't washed out as badly
as some of the others. His car took
| 1t easily, and in its stride and behind
| them the trucks were still moving.
But the real trouble was coming
Heaven only knew what the road up
| to the house itself would be like!
They came 20 il at last. They
could see the old, rambling white
house. 1t looked cheerful, even in the
rain. In week or so II would be
lovely. The apple trees would be IN
| blossom. Even now there was a mass
of forsythia, cleaning yellow in the
rain. And the woods beyond the
orchard were full of violets, Dick
| knew. Lord. how often he'd come up
here in the Spring! But IL was no
time for incoming and being senti-
| mental. He shifted down and rushed
the road. 1t climbed sharply up the
hill to the house, but his car took It
well, kicking out the gravel, though,
| as II went.
At the top he sprang out and held
out the keys to Anne.
BETTER get in out of the rain he
said. I'll come in as soon as I can
and start a fire. Hope there's some
dry stun in the wood box"
Then he turned back to the trucks
They'd stopped on the lower road
and he went down the hill. Both
drivers were out, inspecting the
gravel driveway to the house. They
didn't like its looks, and Dick didn't
blame them. Still, there was stone
below the gravel II ought to hold
+ The first truck made the hill. II
died near the top and had to be held
by rocks behind the rear wheels
while 1t got going again. but did
finally get up. The second one
though. got into trouble. It's driver
just for a second swerved In that
instant a rear wheel went down. And
that, on such day. was that,
Five men had come with the trucks
Dick got into some old clothes and
went down to help them. Neighbors
came, hearing the din. A tractor
turned up presently. splitting and
coughing, shooting blue flame from
its exhaust in the gathering dusk
Boards and sacks were brought.
Tractor and truck together worked
TO get out OF the hole, and every ef-
fort seemed just to deepen the hole
ana let more water in.
A T last they did what really they
had known all the time they
would in the end have to do In the
driving rain, in the teeth of the gale,
they began to carry that trucks load
up the hill to the house And, Of
course, that was the truck the piano
was In and most of the big uphol-
stored pieces of furniture-all the
heaviest and most awkward things.
And still, as he worked with the
men. taking whatever came to his
hand and joining the steady process
sion up the dripping road, Dick found
himself laughing most Of the time.
They all laughed-neighbors movers,
every one. The storm couldn't beat
them. There was something vastly
comforting about that to Dick
something healing to his spirit.
Nothing, it seemed to him, could have
carried him farther from New York
and the life Of the last year or two
the parties: the silly. alcoholic quar-
rels and maudlin reconciliations: the
close, cramped, stufry smallness of II
all
He didn't 60 into the house at all for
quite long time; one man had stayed
there, TO get stuff in, so that the others,
wet and muddy, shouldn't make too
much of a mess. And so he had just
carried a load up to the door, and
turned around, after dropping it, to
get another. And then. on one trip
he found himself, TO his surprise, alone
He shouldered box Of books and went
on up, and when he dropped it he heard
Anne's voice.
Come on in and get some coffee"
she said. IT'S hot, anyway
"Oh, I guess I'll keep at 1t till we get
through" he said.
Don't be silly, Dick. They've all
come in"
So-he went into the kitchen where
he found all the rest, steaming from the
heat OF the fire, and just beginning to
recover from the tongue-tied embarrass-
ment that the sight of Anne, in an
| apron, pouring coffee and passing sand
witches around, had caused in them. She
looked quite wonderful, really; the con-
| trast served her well, Of course. and
| her bobbed hair was fluffy from the
dampness-she'd had permanent wave
| just a few days beforehand she was
flushed from the fire. And she was,
she always had been, an awfully pretty
girl. even though Dick hadn't, of late,
| thought much about that.
they finished their coffee, to go back to
work.
Can they get that truck out to-
night?"> Anne asked, finally. as Dick,
| the last to go, was following the others.
Gosh don't know" he said. I'D
| hate to bet any money on II. The
tractor sticks every time it tries to pull
the truck and has to dig itself out.
They may get out backward when all
| the loads out. But I don't KNOW
at just needed something like this
said Anne, with concentrated bitterness.
"Well-it's not my fault! / didn't
make II rain this way! We'd have been
all right in dry weather"
! She didn't pay any attention to that
but began gathering up the dishes,
viciously. She'd made the fire in the
kitchen range herself. and now she
| rolled up her sleeves with the obvious
! intention of washing dishes. But Dick
didn't notice, He had things to do out
side, still.