Evening star., 1928-02-06


sparseIy inhabited farming dis
trlct OF the State that had not
i vet felt the tanning influence OF
the great cement roads Ut was
Just wild No highways intersected 1t.
Just dirt roads, tree Cloaked, and the
tinduating sweep Of vide fields The
house was An old farmSttad, set Dack
from the subgrade among cluster oi
oaks. Behind it was a hill. ending In
thick woods that formed the edge of
a swamp The swamp lay on both SldfS
Of the Subgrade for about mile ara
then rose up again in high wall oi ior-
est that ran on as far aS the eye couio
see. It. was a desolatc location, hut
good place to work the motor TRUCKS.
for there we're two sand pits around the
southern face of the hill-and the farm
itself stood on high ground A dirt road
cut across the subgrade. running through
another patch Of swamp, 10 railway
station and the town OF FOXVflie-lo
miles away.
The farmyard was already din OF
djscordant activity: and 1t seemed 10
Jenny that her father with a strange
genius. had brought With him all the
atmosphere that had made ner lie so
,Inbearable at Corys Wharf. A local
gang already was knocking some tables
together under the trees. People were
shouting and arguing, and Hickey Cain,
chewing the butt of cigar. sat on the
ton OF a keg--bossing the job. He nod
dcd as they passed.
She was ANXIOUS TO see the house that
she was destined to live in for the next
four or five months, so she left Cnaun-
cv at the door to look over things. II
was spacious old farmhouse; heavy
, furniture. with oval framed photographs
and black horsehair sofas. It vas eVl-
dent that the woman Of the house
dreaded this sudden intrusion. for the
bare rooms Had the feel OF having sud-
denly had things taken out OF them.
| All the tables were cleared. Chairs say
stiffly against the walls. She found the
| woman herself tying up some bundles
| in the kitchen. The woman. leatnery-
necked and old. eyed her resentfully.
"You the one that's lookin' after
| these men?'
Jenny nodded
"That man your father-that big
man?"
Jenny said that he was.
'He is, hey?" exploded the woman
Well, lest let me tell you something
YOU tell him he ought to knew better'n
| to go spittin' tobacco juice all over
other peoples clean foors."
I'll tell him." said Jenny. She could
| understand the feelings OF any decent
housewife who had her father as a
| tenant. She was sorry for any woman
who had ever known Hickey Cain
Sorry for herself. Where is my room?
| she asked.
The woman gave Jerk of her head
1T amt much" she said. but its tidy
| She implied by her manner that Il
would not be 50 now. She led Jenny
| to a second floor back room. looking out
over a shed into the nanure-reddened
muddy farmyard Jenny saw chickens
pecking aimIesSly among the dirt. a
pump, q pig pen. an old tottering silO
and an enormous red barn. Behind
that was the sharp rise Of the hill and
| the woods.
"Well?" said the woman
Jenny looked at the bed.
That's spring bed" said the vom-
an "Brand-new last year"
Jenny nodded To the woman and sank
down on 1t gratefully. She wanted 10
be alone. TO lie there and think.
That scene on the road was almost
driving her mad She had never felt
so Inundated in her life. And IL did
not help matters much TO know that II
| was every bit her own fault. She had
asked for It. Playing the fool with
Torsten Aberg like that. She must have
been crazy Why she had thought she
could get away with such nonsense she
couldn't imagine. But at the tine IL
had all seemed very natural. A part o:
| that insane trip She had been going
| along with the idea that she could dc
as she pleased. flirt. lead him or-eveu
| imagine herself to be falling in love
with that romantic looking Torsten
Aberg She could play at such things
like q game-and then stop, She had
imagined that she could do as she
pleased-as In q dream--then wake up
after the trip was over to find that
nothing had happened.
Idiot
She despised herself for being made
70 appear SO ridiculous before Torsten
Aberg And she hated him for witness
ing 1t. She hated him. Il would be
agony 10 have to talk with him after
this. And she would have 10. OF course.
There was no way she could gec out Of
it--not IN such small place as this.
Well she would have 10 81. there, and
just stare him out
She sat up now and stared at herself
in the glass, Her brown eyes looked
bruised and wild. Whether IL Was be-
cause OF the mood she was In. the fact
that she could not look exactly swee.
and Observation-Disclosures 1t was. she
looked hard, Hard as nails! She would