Produced by Iona Vaughan, Al Haines, Alex White & the online Distributed Proofreaders Canada team at http://www.pgdpcanada.net [Illustration: The Markis and the Major. (_See page 15._) ] THE OPEN WINDOW TALES OF THE MONTHS TOLD BY BARBARA AUTHOR OF “THE GARDEN OF A COMMUTER’S WIFE,” “PEOPLE OF THE WHIRLPOOL,” ETC., ETC. NEW YORK G R O S S E T & D U N L A P PUBLISHERS COPYRIGHT, 1908, BY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY. * * * * * Set up and electrotyped. Published June, 1908. Reprinted July, August, November, 1908; February, 1910. Norwood Press J. S. Cushing Co.—Berwick & Smith Co. Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. THIS BOOK IS INSCRIBED TO REV. ALLEN E. BEEMAN IN RETURN FOR A THOUGHT CONTENTS I. THE MARKIS AND THE MAJOR _January_ II. THE STALLED TRAIN _February_ III. THE VANDOO _March_ IV. THE IMMIGRANTS _April_ V. TREE OF LIFE _May_ VI. WIND IN THE GRASS _June_ VII. THE SIMPLE LIFE _July_ VIII. THE ADOPTION OF ALBERT AND VICTORIA _August_ IX. GROUNDSEL-TREE _September_ X. THE OPEN WINDOW _October_ XI. THE RAT-CATCHER _November_ XII. TRANSITION _December_ I THE MARKIS AND THE MAJOR TOLD BY BARBARA, THE COMMUTER’S WIFE =JANUARY=—THE HARD MOON When Christmas has passed it is useless to make believe that it is not winter, even if the snow has merely come in little flurries quickly disappearing in the leaves that now lie suppliant with brown palms curved upward.