Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 248, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 November 1917 — A Needless Deception [ARTICLE]

A Needless Deception

By LILLIAN HALL CROWLEY

(Copyright, 1917, McClure Newspa* •‘Now, mother dear,” said Jane, “we simply* must fix up the horrid house some way. I can’t have Ted’s mother see such a place.” “Why make pretense, daughter? This is the way we have lived for the last four years.” <— ■ '•Yes, I know,” answered Jane, “but It isn’t really our way of living. We are only waiting until father’s peach crop is a success. But to an outsider —this place looks as if It belonged to a Hill Billy. It would class us with them forever." “Doesn’t she like you for yourself, Jane?” asked her mother anxiously. “Yes, of course, she has been a perfect dear ever since Ted and I became engaged. She made my ’last week In college the brightest of all for me.” “Well, dear, what could we do to this room?” “We’ll do a lot of things to it In the first place, I asked Ted to bring his mother and sister the day father is in town -to be gone all day. I know he wouldn’t have any sympathy with the way I feel about this and it will all be over by the time he gets back.” Mrs. Wilson and her daughter were sitting early one summer morning in the only downstairs room in their house. They had come from Pennsylvania four years before when Nathaniel Wilson had Invested all he had in a peach orchard In the Ozarks, where one crop with favorable weather conditions would bring him a fortune. He had worked hard to bring his orchard to a state of perfection, but always some unfavorable occurrence hindered the long-looked-for bumper crop. - When his wife had protested against their going to the farm, because Jane’s education might be hindered, he had assured her that there was a good university in the town a few miles away and that Jane should have every advantage. He had been able to keep his word and Jane, who- had just finished high school in Pennsylvania, entered the college. She was now graduated and again home for the "Summer. She had always been a great help to her mother when she was home. She Tnwde the clothes for the family, put up fruit, cooked, and even helped her father out of doors. She had learned many things in college, about milk and butter, trees and shrubs, all of which practical knowledge was useful on the place. During her last year of college life love had come knocking at the door of her heart in the person of Ted Somerville. He belonged to one of the wealthy families of the town apd his mother was a social leader. They had been very happy in their love, and their joy was complete when Ted’s mother showed instant fondness for the young girt her son had chosen. Everything had gone along smoothly until now, when Jane realized what an impression her miserable little home might make on Mrs. Somerville. The one large room was kitchen, dining room and living room, while upstairs were two J»edrooms. The house, with a few pieces of furniture, had been on the farm when Mr. Wilson had bought it. The family had brought no furniture with them except a few old heirlooms. They meant to use the house only until such time as they had money from the big peach crop. Everything hinged on that Mrs. W’ilson, never very strong, had lost interest in keeping up her house or her own appearance, and her husband was too busy to notice. Now here was her daughter stirring her out of her usual calm lethargy, Jane hauled out a carpet that had been packed around one of the .precious pieces of old mahogany and had since reposed, folded, on the floor of the closet under the staircase. “Come,” said Jane peremptorily, “let’s put down this carpet” “But —Jane, I never tacked down a carpet before!” , “No, but you have seen them after they were put down. Come, mother dear. Let’s hurry.” After the carpet had been put down Jane looked around with satisfaction until her gaze took in the windows. “No curtains! Mother, haven’t you any?” ■' , - . “I’ve never had the heart to make curtains for a room like this,” replied Mrs. Wilson forlornly. Jane ran to an old chest of drawers, relic of better days, and took out a bolt of white material belonging to her wedding outfit. “Now we’ll have curtains for all these windows. The view over the mountain will be lovely and we’ll have lots of flowers.” Jane had called in a couple of the men working in the orchard to carry the kitchen stove out to the back of the house. “You see,” she instructed, “when I go In and out for the tea things it will lools as though we had a kitchen out there, besides keeping this room perJfectly cool.” “Yes, I see.” “Now, mother, you run up stairs and I’ll finish. When you get far enough along I’ll do your hair, and, for goodness sake, put on a corset! Get out the one you bought a thousand years ago in Philadelphia. Let out the strings, bttt get into it somehow.” “I haven’t had one on for over two years.” “You eimply have to get into one now and you must pull It tight enough tb gßt Into that white muslin dress I

made for you last summer and which you never worn.” “Very well.” Mrs. Wilson smiled at her daughter’s enthusiasm and tried to catch the same spirit. Jane had arranged the flowers to her own satisfaction when her mother came downstairs. “I am sure I can never fasten this dress; I’m all out of breath now.” “Never mind, 1 you won’t need any breath. I am going to do everything. There you are. Now sit down while I fasten these earrings. There —you look just like a has-been-lady.” “I feel as if I were going to be presented at court” “You are!” said Jane. “Now, mother, you must keep that chair because it is the most comfortable one. I have placed the best one here for Ted’s mother, so that her bhck wltl be to the back door. Then this chair for Bessie —Bessie is so young and happy, she won’t know she isn’t comfortable. She mustn’t see behind the door, either. I’ll fetch the kitchen chairs I painted yesterday. They ought to be dry now.” “This is such a lot of trouble, Jane.” “Yes, but once in a life time. Now, if you should want something, Til get it, because if you get out of your chair you’ll forget which one you sat in, and if you get into one of the others —all will be lost!” The stage was all set for the play, when Ted, with his mother and sister, drove up to the door. The room had gone through a transformation. The carpet and dainty white curtains, the freshly-painted chairs, the tables arranged with books and flowers, a calm and happy mother and, best of all, a radiant Jane, presented a beautiful picture to even the most critical eye.

Jane noticed a puzzled look on the face of Mrs. Somerville when she looked at her mother. As she was warmly greeting'Te<j,’a sister Bessie at the time, Mrs, Wilson was oblivious to this. For a moment Jane was dismayed. “I wonder if it is the earrings?” she asked herself, but she did not have time to worry about it, as she had to go out and make the tea. Everything was going on splendidly, and she was elated with her success. “Just the thing to do,” thought she. When Jane came in for the last time she heard Mrs. Somerville ask her mother, “From what part of Pennsylvania did you come from, Mrs. Wilson?” ~ “From Elllcuttown,” Mrs. Wilson smiled reminiscently. —“Eliicuttown?” gasped Mrs. Somerville. “What was your name before you were married?” “Grace Tompkins,” answered Mrs. Wilson with a surprised look. “Grace Tompkins, I was sure I had seen you before. I am Theo Alexander.” “Theo!” exclaimed the astonished Mrs. Wilson. “Is it possible? I had lost track of you entirely. Why. we haven’t seen each other since the high school graduation.” “Yes, we all went to Europe after that. Father died there and we just stayed on until I met Dick Somerville in Paris. He was there for a year’s study. Then we were married anl came to live in Saylorville, and have been here ever since. You are the first person from home I have inet since we came.” “I am so glad to see you, Theo. Isn’t it wonderful that our children met each other?” “I didn't know any Wilsons in Ellicuttown,” said Mrs. Somerville, “so the name did not impress me.” “My husband’s people moved there several years after you left, Theo. Nathaniel found work in the bank too confining and we came here four years ago to make our fortune.” Jane stood, with teapot in hand, in bewildered surprise.

“Then I need not have tried to deceive you; you’d have loved mother anyway!” Ted sprang to her side and put a .protecting arm around her. “What is it, dear?” he tenderly inquired. “I know you’ll all despise me. I made mother pretend we had more rooms —and the stove is out of doors —and we would be taken for Hill Billys—and—I did it all I” Ted took the teapot from the excited and weeping girl and seated her in a chair. Turning to Mrs. Wilson, he asked: “What is Jane talking about?” Mrs. Wilson, between smiles and tears, told of Jane’s struggles of the morning and of her fears lest, being found in the old shack with scant furniture, her parents would be looked down upon by the great Mrs. Somerville. At this everybody laughed and Ted loudest of all. “Why, that’s plucky, Jane. By George, but you’re plucky. Let’s have a look at the kitchen that isn’t a kitchen.” By this time Jane was laughing with the rest. “As if,” said Mrs. Somerville, with a warm smile, looking at Mrs. Wilson, “anything could make Grace Tompkins better than just Grace Tompkins.” Then putting her arms around Jane and pressing a kiss on the girl’s tearstained cheek, she said: “You ought to have seen the ugly house we lived id our first year. lam proud of you for Ted’s sake; 4 He will have a helpmeet in one who will not be balked by obstacles. Come, do give me some more tea!”