Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1927-09-09
POOR
CORNELIA
BRINK
CS BY D. J. walsh.)

n
opeped her eyes. Could it pos
" sibly be morning so soonf
Surely 1t was hardly daylight.
But when a hoarse, commanding voice
came up the stairway to the little back
bedroom Cornelia no longer had any
doubts.
"Cornelia Brink" shouted the voice,
with a note of suppressed rage in it,
"this is the second time I've had to
call you. Amt you got a mite OF
sense? Don't you know we've got a
hard days work ahead Of us7 Who
do you think you are, anyway, snor-
ing away at this time Of the morningf
You get yourself down here double
quick" and the voice trailed away
as the speaker went back to some In
terrupted task.
Cornella did not waste any time In
answering. She knew the only an
swer that would be acceptable to her
mother would be her instant appear
ance In the kitchen below. She
jumped out of bed hastily, put on her
coarse undergarments, drew on a pair
Of old shoes, twisted her hair In
tight little knob at the back of her
head, and lastly donned a much faded
and badly shrunken gingham dress.
Downstairs she flew without further
delay.
Cornelia was plump girl, thirty-slx
years old. She had nice eyes and II
she were not always tired with too
much work and dull from too little
sleep, she would have been rather at
tractive. She was lovable and 1t was
a wonder to the few people who knew
her really well how she could keep
sweet and wholesome under the con-
slant nagging of her mother, for Mrs.
Brink was the hardest kind Of per-
son to live with. Her god was work
and her medium to serve her deity
was by wringing every ounce OF
strength out of her one and only child.
1t was suspected by the neighbors that
Mrs. Brink had another motive and
that was to keep away all possible
suitors from Cornella. To hear Mrs
Brink talk one would conclude that
there was not a decent man in all
creation. II they were not actually
mean openly they were sly and under
handed and brutal In secret. Every
woman was a martyr. and she always
ended her dissertation on men by
holding up old Cyrus, her eighty-year-
old husband, as an example of de-
PRAYED manhood.
Now old Cyrus Brink was anything
but horrid II Is true he was an old
man, but Mrs. Brink herself was past
seventy, and Cyrus was possessed Of
more than ample means. he had an
even disposition and seldom turned
on his wife. This tolerance on his part
might have been due to the fact that
his poor old ears were so deaf they
failed to register all the sarcasm she
hurled at him. But once in a long
time Cyrus would turn on his wife and
in a few well-chosen words would tell
her exactly what he thought of her (;
but these outbursts on his part were
called forth only when he happened to
see that she was bearing unusually
| hBOh SOtuOlids WIN was lhO
apple of his eye, the one thing in all
the world he really loved. And Cor
nella loved her father but hardly
dared show it because any sign of
affection on the part of father and
daughter was sure to bring down such
an overwhelming shower of wrath
upon poor Cornelia's head that some
times II actually seemed to leave her
stunned for days.
The house the Drinks lived In was
old Cyrus one extravaganza. He had
loaned money to a promising young
business man and when the fellow
had failed the house and contents had
been turned over to old Cyrus to sat
isfy his claim. The house was too big
for anyone of ordinary means to sup
port and so the Caseys had moved
out and the Drinks moved In Now
the Drinks were supposed to be en-
joylng their fine house. Whenever
anyone called the house was Away.
found to be in perfect order, but 4
1t happened to be In winter they wer,
greeted by Mrs. Brink with remark!
something like this:
$50 glad to see you, my deal
friends" she would say cordially, he
;. black eyes swapping. But I'm afrait
shall have to take you right out int,
the dining room. was just noticing
minute ago that Cyrus had let tn,
fire get low, and so I'm afraid 1t woult
be too cold for you to try to sit in tn,
parlor. But am sure you won't mint
and maybe the fire will get started NJ
soon." But the fire never seemed I,
start up, and after short call II
which the room would get colder an,
colder the callers usually remembers,
some forgotten errand and hurrle,
away with teeth chatterlng. AS 70
Mrs. Brink and Cornelia, they Away
sat at the side Of the room neares
the kitchen door, which was left open
and some there were mean enougl
to say they didn't believe there was
mite Of fire in the house except In tn
kitchen, but this was sometimes dis
puted because one time when Ameli
Briggs was calling on CornelIa sh
had been so bold as to actually pu
her hand on the radiator and she sal
afterward that she could distinct
feel heat In the first five coils. In tn
summer no one ever got inside tn
house because when a caller rang IN
doorbell they were sure to be met b
either Cornella or Mrs. Brink. VIII
were just coming out to sit on tn
porch, and. of cou:Sp, their visitor IN
no choice hat to sit on the porch wit