The Sagebrusher: A Story of the WestHough, Emerson
General
The Sagebrusher: A Story of the West
Hough, Emerson
Western stories
Mary Warren made no complaint. Her face, calm and gentle, carried
neither repining nor resignation, but a high and resolute courage. She
shrank far as she might, like a gentlewoman, from personal contact with
other human beings; the little droop beginning at the corners of her
mouth gave proof of her weariness, but there was a thoroughbred vigor,
a silken-strong fairness about her, which, with the self-respecting
erectness in her carriage, rather belied the common garb she wore. Her
frock was that of the sales-woman, her gloves were badly worn, her
boots began to show signs of breaking, her hat was of nondescript sort,
of small pretensions--yet Mary Warren's attitude, less of weariness
than of resistance, had something of the ivory-fine gentlewoman about
it, even here at the end of a rasping winter day.
Annie Squires was dressed with a trifle more of the pretension which
ten dollars a week allows. She carried a sort of rude and frank
vitality about her, a healthful color in her face, not wholly uncomely.
She was a trifle younger than Mary Warren--the latter might have been
perhaps five and twenty; perhaps a little older, perhaps not quite so
old--but none the less seemed if not the more strong, at least the more
self-confident of the two. A great-heart, Annie Squires; out of
nothing, bound for nowhere. Two great-hearts, indeed, these two tired
girls, going home.
"Well, the Dutch seems to be having their own troubles now," said Annie
after a time, when at length the two were able to find seats, a trifle
to themselves in a corner of the car. "Looks like they might learn how
the war thing goes the other way 'round. Gee! I wish't I was a man!
I'd show 'em peace!"
She went on, passing from one headline to the next of the evening paper
which they took daily turns in buying. Mary Warren began to grow more
grave of face as she heard the news from the lands where not long ago
had swung and raged in their red grapple the great armies of the world.
Then a sudden remorse came to Annie. She put out a hand to Mary
Warren's arm. "Don't mind, Sis," said she. "Plenty more besides your
brother is gone. Lookit here."
"He was all I had," said Mary simply, her lips trembling.
"Yes, I know. But what's up to-night, Mollie? You're still. Anything
gone wrong at the store?" She was looking at her room-mate keenly.
This was their regular time for mutual review and for the restoring
gossip of the day.
"Well, you see, Annie, they told me that times were hard now after the
war, and more girls ready to work." Mary Warren only answered after a
long time. A passenger, sitting near, was just rising to leave the car.
Annie also said nothing for a time. "It looks bad, Mollie," said she,
sagely.
Mary Warren made no answer beyond nodding bravely, high-headed. Ten
dollars a week may be an enormous sum, even when countries but now have
been juggling billions carelessly.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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