The Augusta herald. (Augusta, Ga.) 1914-current, May 17, 1914, Home Edition, Page TWO, Image 26

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TWO “The Story of Waitstill Baxter” copyHffht. ibis, by MATE DOUGLAS WIGGIN Kate Douglas Wltfgin ' Author of “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm" PROLOGUE. Strength and interest of quiei Uvea in the New England oj three-quarters of a century age provide the framework of "Thi Story of Waitatill Baxter.” Thai is the skeleton. The flesh anu blood of human beings, living and loving and moving in a warla of their own that is a minialuri picture of the greater world out side, are also there. The story is a cross section of life as seen and described by a woman who has been well called ‘ America's greatest living woman novelist. ” Amtd the hills of New England are many nun and women likt Waits! :t <,nd Patience Baxter and their father, Ivory Boynton and his afflicted mother and funny Cep as Cole, who woo* hopefully, but with small chance of success. They find their way into books but seldom, for it takes a master hand to deacribi faithfully the doings of real people. And that is the reason why "The S 7 >ry of Waitstill Baxter won highest praise from cri tho know a good book r. rl •: see one. (Continued from Yesterday.) "I'H say ;:i »lby now, Ivory, hut I'l •cc you hi tin- im-etlug house,” hli> mild un she neiired the store. “I'll g< lu here aml brush the (due needles oft wiish m\ bauds Mini rest n little lie fore relieiirs'il. That's n puzzling hii them we have for tomorrow.” “I have uiy horse here. Let me drive you up to the church." ”1 can’t. Ivory; thunk you. Father's orders are against my driving out with any one. you know.” "Very well. The road I* free, at nnv rate I'll hitch my horse down here h the woods somewhere, and when yoi •tart to walk I shnll follow and catch up with you. There's luckily only om way to reach the rhurrh from here and your futlier can't blame ua If vvi both take it.' 1 And ao It fell out (lint Ivory nn> Waltstlll walked together in the co of the ufternoou to the meeting hotis. on Tory hilt Waltstlll kept the beat en path on one side and Ivory that un the other, so that the width of tin country road, deep lu iluat, was be tween them, yet their nearness seemed »<> tangible a thing Hint each euuld fee the heart l>enllng In the other's side. Their talk was only (hat of tried friends, n talk Interrupted hv Ion." beautiful alienees -alienees that conn only to a man and wumuu whose un dentandlng of eueh other is beyond question and answer. Not a sound broke the at illness, yet the very sir. Ii seemed to them, was shedding mean Inga, the flowers were exhaling a lev secret with their fragrances, the birds were singing It boldly from the tree tops, yet no word passed the mau's Him or the girl's. Patty would have bung out all sorts of signals and lures to draw the truth from Ivory and break through the walla of Ida sell control, hut Waltstlll, never, and Ivory Boynton was made of stuff so strong that he would not speak a syllable of love to a woman unless be could say •11. lie was only live and twenty, but he had been tvured tu a rigorous school and bad learned tu Its poverty, louelt ness anil anxiety lessons of self do Dial and self control that hors dully fruit now tie knew that Deacon ltax ter would never allow any engagement to exist tietween Waltstlll aud him •elf He also knew that Waltstlll would never defy her fa ther if It meant leaving her younger etaler to fight alone a dreary battle for which she was not fitted. If there was little hope on her aide there seemed even leas on hia. His mother’s mental illness made her peculiarly dependent upon him and at the same time held him in aueb strict bondage that It was almost Impossible for him to get on In the world or even to give her the comforts ah# needed In villa gos like Kiverboro In those early days there was uo putting away eveu of men or # omen so demented aa to be something of a menaoe to the peace of the household. Hut Isita Hoynton was So gentle, ao fragile, ao exquisite a spirit, that she seemed in her sad aloof •eaa simply a thing to tie sheltered aud •bielded somehow In her difficult life (Mmol. ivory often thought how sorely sbe needed a daughter In her affliction. If tlie Imby sinter had only lived the home might have been differ ent; but, alna, there was only a aon a eon who tried to be tender and aympa thetle, but after all wan nothing but a big, elunitty, uncomprehending man erenture, who ought to be felling treea. plowing, Rowing, reaping or at least atudying law, making Ills own fortune and that of some future wife. Old Mrs. Mason, a garrulous, good hearted grsndame, was their only near neigh bor, and her visits always left his mother worse ruther than better. How such a girl as Waitstill would pour comfort and beauty and Joy into a lone ly house like his If only he were weak Z. "Tall ma mora,” aha aald. enough to call upon her strength aud put It to no cruel a teat! God help him! He would never do that, eNpe dally ns he could not earn enough to keep a large family, bound down as In wan by Inexorable responsibilities WaltHtill thus far In life had suffered many sorrows and enjoyed few pleas urea Marriage ought to bring hei freedom and plenty, not parking curt aud poverty. He stole long looks at the girl nenast the separating apace that was ao helpless to separate, feed lug hla starved heart upon her woman ly graces. Her quick, springing step was In harmony with the fire and courage of her mien. There was a llm or two lu her face—small wonder. Hut an "unconquerable soul” shone In her eyes, shone, too. In no nil certs In way. hut brightly and steadily, expressing an unshaken joy in living. Valiant, aplendhl. Indomitable Wnltstill! He could never tell her, ulns! But how he gloried lu her! It la needless to say that no woman could tvs the possessor of such a love aa Ivory Boyntons and not know of Its existence. Wnltstill never beard a breath of It from Ivory's llpa; even hi* eyes were under control Htid confessed nothing, nor did bis hand ever clasp hers to show by a telltale touch the truth he dared not utter: nevertheless she felt that she was beloved. She hid the know ledge deep in her heart aud covered It softly from every eye hut her own, taking It out In the safe darkness sometimes to wonder over and adore lu secret. lMd her love for Ivory rest partly on a sense of voca tion—a profound. Inarticulate divining of his vast need of her? He was so strong, yet eo weak because of the yoke he bore, so bitterly alone in his desperate struggle with life, that her heart melted like wax w henever she thought of him. When she contem pUt<>d the hidden mutiny lu her own heart she was awestruck sometimes ni the almost divine patience of Ivory’s conduct aa a son. "Host la your mother this summer. Ivory?" she asked as they aat down on the meeting bouee stepe waiting for Jed Morrill to open the door. •There is little change lu her from year to year, Walt*till—by the way. why don’t we get out of this afternoon aun and alt In the old graveyard under the trees’ We are early and the choir won't get hero for half an hour. Ur Perry aaya that be does not underataml mother's esse in the least and that tu one but some great Boston phyalclat could give a proper opinion on It: of course that la Impossible at present" They sat down on the grass under neoth oua qf the elms, and Wallattil took off her hat and leaned back against the tree trunk. “Tell me more.” she said: “It Is so long since we talked together quietly, and we have never really spoken of your mother.” "Of course.” Ivory continued, “the people of the village all think and speak of mother’s illness as religious Insanity, hut to me It seems nothing of the sort. 1 was only a child when fa ther first fell In with Jacob Cochrane, but I was twelve when father went away from home on his ‘mission.’ and If there was any one suffering from delusions in our family It was he, not mother. She had altogether given up going to the Cochrane meetings, and I well remember the scene when my fa ther told her of the revelation he had received about going through the state and Into New Hampshire In order to convert others and extend the move ment. She bad no sympathy with his •elf Imposed mission, you may he sure, though now she goes hack In her mem ory to tbo earlier days of her married life, when she tried hard, poor soul, to treud the same puth that father was treading, so as to be by his side at every turn of the road. “I am sure’* (here Ivory’s tone was somewhat dry and satirical) "that fa tber’s road bad many turns, Waitstill! lie was a schoolmaster in Saco, ypu know, when I was born, but he soon turned from teacblug to preaching, and here my mother followed with entire ■ympathy, for she was Intensely, de voutly religious. I said there was lit tle change In her, but there Is one new symptom. She bus ceased to refer to her conversion to Cochranlsm as a blessed experience. Her memory of those first days seems to have faded. As to her sister’s death and all the cir cumstances of her bringing Hodman home, her mind Is a blank. Her ex pectation of futher’s return, on the other hand, Is much more intense than ever.” "She must have loved your father dearly, Ivory, and to lose him In this terrible wuy Is much worse than death. Uncle Hart says be bud a great gift of language!” "Yes, and It was that, in my mind, that led him astray. I fear that the spirit of God was never so strong in father ns thfc desire to Influence peo. pie by his oratory. That was what drew him to preaching In the first place, and when he found In Jacob Cochrane a man who could move an audience to frenzy, lift them out of the body and do with their aplrits as he willed he acknowledged him as master. Whether his gospel was a pure and undofiled religion I doubt, hut he certainly was a mnster of mes merle control. My mother was be guiled, entranced, even bewitched at first, I doubt not, for she translated all that Cochrane said Into her own tpeech and regarded him os the proph et of n new era. But Cochrane's last ‘revelations’ differed from the first and were of the earth, earthly. My moth er'a pure soul must have revolted, hut •he was not strong enough to drag fa ther from his allegiance. Mother was et better family than father, "but they were both well educated and hud the best schooling to be bad In their day. So far as I can Judge, mother always had more ‘balance’ than father and much better Judgment—yet look at her now!” 'Then you think It was your father’s disappearance that really caused her mind to waver?" asked Waltstlll. "I do, indeed. I don't know what happened between them In the way of religions differences nor how much un happiness those may have caused. I remember she hail an illness when we first came here to live and I was a little chap of three or feur, but that was caused by the loss of a child, a girl. who lived only u few weeks. She recovered perfectly, and her head was as clear as mine for a year or two after father went away. Aa his letters grew less frequent as news of bint gradually reused to come, she became more aud more silent and retired more completely Into herself. She never went anywhere nor entertained visl tore because she did uot wish to hear the gossip and speculation that were going on In the village. Some of It was very bard for n wife to bear, and she resented It Indignantly, .vet never received n wont from father with which to refute It. At this time, as nearly as I can Judge, she was a recluse and subject to periods of pro found melancholy, but nothing worse. Then she took that winter journey to her sister's deathbed, brought home the boy, aud, hasteued by exposure and chill and grief, 1 suppose, her mind gave way that’s all." And Ivory sighed drearily as he stretched him aelf on the greeuswtird and looked off toward the suowclad New Hampshire hills. "I’ve meant to write the story of the ‘Cochrane erase’ some time or such iiart of It as has to do with my family history, aud you shnll read it If you like." "1 should like very much to read your account. Aunt Abby’s version, for In stance. Is so different from Uncle Bart's that one can scarcely find the truth between the two. and father's hears no relation to that of any -of the others." "Some of us see facta and others sec visions,” replied Ivory, "aud these dlf feretires of oplulou crop up In the vil lage every day when anything note worthy Is discussed. 1 came upon n quotation In my reading last evening that described It. 'One said It thunder ed; another that ci "ugel spake.' " "IVi you feel a> it your father ws» dead. lfory?" (To Be Continued Tomorrow.) inE AUGUSTA HERALD, AUGUSTA, GA. The question is, How, if ever, are you to get away? You don’t see or feel these balls and these chains fastened to you. But the man who looks at you SEES THEM. (SEE EDITORIAL.) Here Is Your “Independent Business Man” \ 9 The Artist Who Makes the Picture on This Page Sees Him As He is—What Can Help Him? • (Copyright, 1914, by tho Star Company.) We all live on a very fine planet, a world really worth study and admi ration. And most of ue are fastened to lit tle corners, running from the flat to the office, from the office to the flat, in street cars or elevated railroad trains, or, in some of the cities, un derground. We rush to the office, we rush home, we rush to bed, we get up. And we think that we are FREE MEN ENJOYING THE BLESSINGS OF CIVILIZATION. Ninety-nine in one hundred are like this man In the picture. They are fastened with chains of steel and held down by balls of iron that they do not see or feel. Expenses for food and rent. We worry about the bills of today. We worry about the poverty of old age just ahead. We worry about the fate of the children when we are gone. And so we rush to the office, and back to'the flat, and b&ck to the of fice. And finally, in a very neat, black, undertaker s automobile, with imita tion curtains carved out of wood, with a good reliable gas engine in front of it, and nice folding glass doors in the back of It, we rush to the cemetery—and get a leisurely look at the inside of the earth WITHOUT EVER HAVING HAD A CHANCE TO 1 jOOK AT THE OUTSIDE OF IT. That tg about what life amounts to for the moat of the people on this earth after they have passed their early boyish or girlish days of play ing, thinking and dreaming. What is to be done about it* Nothing much. We siand what we HA VII to stand, w ait for the better day which is com ing to the human race, find consola tion in the infinitely worse days of those that lived on our earth. Let us suppose that this man at the desk is of French descent. If so, bis great grandfather of the seventeenth century perhaps sat up all night beating the nobleman's pond with a stick to keep the frogs from disturbing the nobleman's sleep, or he was a miserable farmer, working half of hl« year In the nobleman's field, forbidden to destroy the noble mans deer, pigeons and rabblta that ruined his rwiu, and compelled by I "le droit du seigneur" to send his daughter ur to the nobleman's castle on her marriage night Things are bettor for the man whose ancestors were Frenchmen - thanks to the fighting that the French men did In the Revolution of the eighteenth century Shipposc that this man Is of Irish blood—another Celt, not so dlfter-nt HERE YOU ARE, DEAR FRIEND from the French. He is perhaps descended from a man who saw his children killed by English soldiers, who went through starvation, who obeyed the laws that forbade him to own a horse worth more than five pounds and compelled him to sell any horse he had a; that price to an Englishman. The Irish man today carries his heavy load, but at least he sees the better time here in this country than his great-great grandfather had in Ireland. And he sees also in Ireland, which interests him, the birth of a better time. So it is with every nationality and with every kind of man. We carry heavy balls and chains, but we have dropped heavier ones. We are not to be "envied, rushing, from feverish, half-educated youth Into baJd middle age and into a pre mature grave. But, as Individuals and as a race, we must find consolation in the fact that we get about what we deserve. And, tied down as we are, we must hope and work for the day when men will free each other, make slaves only of the iron machines that have no feeling, have a chance to enjoy this earth, the sunshine, the flowers, the stars at night, and, above all, FREEDOM FROM THAT FEAR OF A FUTURE THAT LIES LIKE A LUMP OF LEAD ON EVERY HEART. As you pity this man, remember that one thing may make those iron balls as light as feathers, and those chains like threads of silk. If he is working for others, if that face on his desk means more to him than personal happiness or comfort. If he knows that the weight he car ries today means a lighter weight for those who have a right to depend upon him—YOU NEED NOT PITY HIM. Speedy Success. “My daughter has recently secured a position as stenograiher in a large office." "Is she a success?" "Seems to be. She has already re ceived three offers of marlrage." In a Double Sense. "We want your little girl to take part In a patriotic spectacle. The children will dress in red, white and blue, and form a human United States flag." "Oafi my child take a leading part?” “Sure; she can be one of the stars." Change of Diet Captain Jinks of the horse marines, Tired of feeding hla horse on beans. Gave him a little change, you know, I lot t Rpmles in Mexico. “Dumping” of American Autos on English Market Still a “Bogey” to English Politicians London.—The "dumping” of Amer ican automobiles on the English mar ket is still a "bogey" to the English politician and the advocates of a re form in the tariff laws are becoming almost frenzied in their desire to place retaliatory tax upon the auto mobiles imported from the states. Mr. Fell, M. P., whose alarm at the Ameri can invasion has reached pitiable limitß, told me this week that “it is only a question of time —and opportu nity—when the Chancellor of the Ex chequer will take advantage of the temptation to place an import duty on special classes of manufactured goods. The anomaly of admitting motor cars, particularly American cars, on dumping terms is one that even Free Traders find it impossible to defend, while the United States are imposing an ad valorem duty of 40 per cent on English built ones.” “Startling” Figures. Mr. Fell brought this out a few weeks ago with "startling” figures, showing tdat practically only very wealthy Americans bought English cars, while a large proportion of the light cars used In Great Britain and Ireland came from America, and, be ing duty free, and sold at a lower price than the states, they pushed out the native manufacture. Of course, the seriousness of Amer. lean competition is generally admit ted. It is computed that half the au tomobiles on the English roads are American made. Time was when the American product was of such distinc tive design that It could be detected at a glance, but the new type of Euro pean ized American auto 1b the pre vailing fashion in the less expensive machine. The controller of one of the expert auto exchanges In lamdon told me this week that until recent years there was every difference between the average American and the aver age European machine and scarcely any between one American and an other. American Auto Advance. The great advantage of the Ameri can auto, of course, lies in its cheap ness and its proved reliability and du rability. The British hand made ma chine cannot be produced at a com petitive price and no matter if a tax of moderate percentage is placed upon the machine Imported from America, It Is not nil likely to put a check upon the invasion or the “dumping." In the British navy an Interesting experiment is being made by the Ad miralty. They are trjlng an entirely new routine, which really amount* to tru-tlwg the man and abolishing the system of naval police The medium of this experiment Is the cruiser Queen Mary and among the reforms under test are the following: In leave the principle of trusting the sailor is very fully applied. Men belonging to the watches on duty are allowed to go ashore and return as they pleaae during the hours leave is given. Each watch has what Is term ed a “leave board " Tbe boards for the watches at liberty are opened and every man who goes ashore puts a SUNDAY. MAY 17. peg into a hole bearing his number. When he returns to the ship he pulls the peg out again. Reduced to a Minimum. Sunday work has been reduced to a minimum. It is practically finished in the early morning. The men then have the remainder of tbe day to themselves. Even attendance at church is not compulsory. The Queen Mary also carries a kin ematograph. There are no naval police. Discipline is maintained by the crew themselves. Police duties are done by petty officers. For the sea men there is a chief petty officer, termed the master seaman, who has several petty officers under him. Sim ilarly, for the stokers, there is a mas ter stoker with his staff of petty of ficers. In each case these act as boatswain’s mates as well as carry out disciplinary duties. It merely means the placing of responsibility for their own behavior on the sailors them helves. There is every indication that the system is to be extended to all ships in the British navy. BPORTMAN’S TALE. A few Cleveland sportsmen of the honest-to-gosh kind that go right out into the woods in the winter time an 1 camp, were sitting around the fire (at the club) relating their experiences, when a perfect stranger butted In and began telling of some of his own hairbreadth escapes. This made tne sportsmen rretty sore. It always does make sportsmen sore to hear about other sportsmen, so finally, one ot them saw an opening and spoke as follows. “That reminds me of when I was hunting in the Rockies, a number of years ago. I was at ehe top of a lofty precipe, and wishing to get a bet ter view of the valley, 600 or 00 feet below, I laid down my gun and crawled out on a small rock overlook ing the chasm. There, strangely enough, I tell asleep. "Presently I was awakened by a noise on the bank, and opening my eyes 1 saw a big grizz'j) bear a few feet from me. I was powerless. I could not move without falling from the rock —my gun was on the other side of the bear. And while I was thinking, the benr came nearer and nearer until he finally stood directly over me.” After a short pause the butter-in asked, “What did you do?” "I lay still." "Yes, but what did the bear do?" "Ate’ me up, you Tool. What else wotidl he dof’—Cleveland Plain Dealer. Did a Little Hugging, "How's your arm?" inquired the manager of the pitcher who had Just reported. "Fine* "Did you give it gentle exercises through the winter?" “You bet. I kept steady company with a mighty nice girl.*