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thubsday may 8th 1837 the acton free press paoe 3ummmm4m quir 3ffnr p0b ftljort fitfnrg joan takes hand by alice dyar russell ooan harbin drew lontf jyreath ol wonder and delight heaven ly 5ho murmured slic felt nj though she had coma homo at last she stood on uho odgo of the reservoir at the madden ranch water was pour ing in through uio weir clear and cold swallows darted and twittered over the shimmering surface the faint delicious fragrance of alfalfa caino from the emerald green holds on the other iildu of the cottonwooda lijoiul the burn ing plain on the dim horlzun were the dry bare hills james nowmm jhut off the irrigation jxunp and thu wat ccasfd to flow thats how it uorlti he laid and came to suuid boiloii her ills sunburn ed face had an anxious uncertain look he was so eager for jouu to like this desert country and tu afruld the uould not with uic utmost trepidation lie had invited her to tperul wcekond on the ranch wliero he was foreman for tiie summer all his longings ambition and plans lie was keeping severely under cover until lie sliould cc wfiut tlio city bred girl thought of this harsh lonely land would she perceive its licauty and promise or would she be repelled hcj would hot ask girl to slturo his chosen lot untess she were able to throw herself wholeheartedly into it not tills girll suppose it ail seems pretty crude to you he sold awkwardly nov at all joan responded quickly like il its very interesting she did not know liow prim her voice sounded ulll not gusli she was saying to herself hed think was putting it on james felt nhf lieort register point down she in just trying to bo polite he thought she does not really like it she could not really stand it to live here thin wall toai betuceti them is there anything else you would care to sec lie asked civilly ills unhappy blue eyes taking in her while bilk skirt that had smudge of oil from the pump and her whiut hoc that were beginning to show tiie dust lie did not liave look at her bright sweet iaca her shape ly waved head her shining dainty nails to bo aware of tliem tile image of mrs madden dragged at his recollection blueglnghamed weatherbeaten worn down with work if he asked joan to marry him that was wlmt slie would think jio would bring her to was an idiot to invite her here he thought wish this wo over joan glanced about little wildly thy jiad eaten the hearty ranch dinner fried chlcktn vegetables raisin pie at one oclock soon after her arrival james beaming prldcfully luul then led her out to view the turkey runs the jersey calws the alfalfa fields the olicda and the water sjitem ho woe to have an hour olf before turning to his trac tor what had gone wrong betucen tliem in tliat hour hud her city ignor ance onyndcd him she knew she uas stupid but she uould learn she loved it so sliic lo him so she wished uic hod not worn uliite shoes what are tlioae for she asked pointing ut row of small plain chocks screened hut curtalnle tluils wiiere the help live answer ed james ulortly second to hie lost is mine he anted to tell her thit they would not have to llvo in such placo that lie luul staked out homestead rights that they uouidbiiud that the could have porch vfeu garden but lib ups uould not move yokel hejthought furiuuuly to himself vokd tiiit is wliat am se here have to get buk to uork he aacland abrupll twentj nilnutu uere left to tlum but joan miiht not know it once out in the mn again in the fragrant open held per ha he could forget lite miser the eiut ude of the houie la juuly cool uijuhi you can sit and read or or crochet jlmnile never crochcuhl in life laughed joan didnt come up here to crochet didnt mr madden say suuieluinif about nelgljborhood meeting ut her home this afternoon to organlie for community uorl of same kind youd be bored to death cxchilmrd james savagely the uonui uround here hadnt mi idea in their hoadi cept boliu mid how to feed the thlck cnsl if mnj madden thinks ule can oruonlfce club thvi tfatfi thats all joan looktd at the joiing mini specu latively ikfore she had time to voice her thought tlmt for auui uomen club might be the one thing needed door slammed ut the hoiue thrlll voice fccreftclud jtmmlel jlmmii and dovm the duly road toward them lieu btiuvll barefooted tltture it uili acgle madden uged un llvrfli rithklt cl sharp slie hud ueli nil jin utld lnlenit on joun arrival und jain had kept her from togging tliem cilv hj un ugml apiwul to her nntlcr utry little flame shot down mi road tuu ili thm ielrait by sprltm at trj slip thi fccrrtnjled jlnlmle heiv coitus the famlli pettr mut tered janus fcupn mely annoyed no more pim for us he forgot he luul bocii on tiie point of wilding joan btkclc io tiie house and begun to think of all tiie tilings he wonted to say to her in private aggie arrived panting important jlnimle mom says to get the car outr right away and take lier over to uncle hills quick aunt pollys scolded her arm lomethlng awrul guess they just phoned for mom you got to hurry now rho finished warningly her oyes glistening in hoc darkly browned little face flickered over jouti but ule yuvo no sign that her whole being uoj de voured by worship of thlr lovely appari tion from un outride uorld hurry of course ill hurry was jainu tart retort you donl have to tell me joan wliatll you do lie usk ed in appeal before lie brolto away its un mile away and maybe cone the wholo afternoon don mind me ill bo all right go on do go on she urged aggie 11 liave to phone those women not to cornel they cant have meeting uitliout mrs madden ho called over liis shoulder us ho run toward the guragu you neednt do any tiling of the kind aggie joau golly declared her lingers retting lightly on the smojl girls shoul der want to got acqualntod with your neighbors lets entertain them you and together shall wo and give cm refreshments every thing inquired aggio eagerly refreslunenu and everything re plied joan with tlw best of cheer start ing for the house she fell confident and lighthearted now that james with his anxious face was not with her that seemed uwful to bo glad to be rid of james but she would show lilm oh she would allow him slio would tako mrs madden place she would be en tertaining sympathetic liolpful she uould tell about her own club work help organize conduct herself with such poke versatility efficiency as never had been seen jomed should nee wlmt she could do that she belonged here she had not been able to say right out jlmmle id love to live on desert ranch ulth you im uwltu and boxed and unhappy in tho city long for real things to do in tills way however she could say it all he would tee her at lier ease successful happy admired dont go so fast gapped aggie cant keep up with you theres fruit salad in the cooler and tho makings for lemonade mrs mad den told joan as she darted about col lecting roll of soft linen bottlo of olive oil package of baking soda and other article that might prove useful in assuaging the pain of burn ciioco late cookies in that jar the ladles al ways say they like my chocolate cookies if they usk for the recipe just put them off now cant ull ou how kind take tills of you miss harbin you eeo it wa my idea that wo ladles might meet regular and do come tiling to improve our minds llko reading tho poets and wellknown authors or else plan nice wholesome entertainments for our younff folloi something like that la needed bad out here where itc all hard work and towns wenty miles auoy got the most influential to promise to come there may be ton or eleven miss harbin ranchers ulvei and uomen whore iwmc jteadlng alone it wasnt easy to got them to take an afternoon on with alfalfa right in the middle of cutting and extra men to cook for and all if nothing had come of it today dont know uhen could have got them to came ugaln outside jumci honked his horn oh must go must ro dlstructedlj if polly reitinu easy 11 be back to ret cupper and see about scot1 6ckak dook by rjscott civil waji bfuam aju two cd ourite popbj3cfy of major mcleamvi file phmc bktrftje of fhe war bullrum wf4 fouhto 14 farm au hk tlouei otfkc appomarlo 4mrnl lek ctopreilo osmium hravlts ufttt yrajti ao viamx wjowm tatbmacrtou of itiua xirazs vritinr mcuonir uttbyctlqil uelavvaiw ol au1 raxtly mtmohau aucrtl waitk iomt tut wouk li tow rmwpltri ud tu4 fmr comhf mokatc wert flowtp tm bttmwtc in aucka tliemilk aggie mind ou be good girl koa dont vou uorry about thing soothed joan bundling her olf so pre occupied tlmt uie did not liavu single uotxl or glance for junius he drove away with mrs madden feeling tllat the very heavens were unkind almost immediately tho company be gan to arrive in twotf and threes or si ng ly cars of various makes and vintage it seemed to joan that the ten or eleven promised by mrs madden had multiplied to four times tliat number but it may liave been merely tho effect of the large number of children accom panying their mothers and tiie incessant waves of speech tlmt beat upon her ears steady humming filled tiie house these mlddloagod sunburned hard working women from tlieh lonely ranches were seizing avjdly upon the chance to talk joan liod never heard anything like it having failed to impress upon the gathering any semblance of formal order she sat back little dazed feel ing young inexperienced and helpless she nad answered every conceivable question cui to mrs moddens sisters ac cident and her own fortunate presence but inquisitive glances ctill picked her joan knew tlmt they were studying in their minds what might be the status of her relationship with james nnd its out come she longed to mako frientli even with tlmt alarming stalwart whltehalrcd matriarch mary bart with the air of authority and tho volco tlmt boomed wlio apparently wanted to boss the en tire community tho tired looking dark little woman with the heavy baby and tlio fouryearold twins ho sucked their thumbs in spite of nil she could do she needed counsellor oho felt sure tho weatherbeaten widow with tho seamed face gnarled hands and hollow dark eyes of what spiritual lonejuiess did her seeking gako tell mrs ijesseson the pretty ignorant wife of norwegian immaculate jet so frail how joan ached to inform her tlmt iicr child needed spinach and orange juice again and again she tried to raise her voice and bring them to tho purpose of tho afternoon again and again uic uas overwhelmed by tho tides of talk she fell silent at lost listening closely she heard liow mrs olson mado sour bread and did not scrub her kitchen floor how mrs catlln sold eggs at tho store and one uas found missing out of every box how jolinny iionsdales girl was going ulld how the neverses quar relled how old man tttsmpjam wasted his money and abused his uife and how tony qulntana uas probably bootleff oer joins hopes and plans nil crashed there uould be no fine purpose accom plkhcd no organization started full of promise for the future no demonstration of executive ability nothing to show james these women did not uant club did not uant to read the poets or improve their mind wliat they wanted viu to goujp about their nuuhborsl the voung girl sprang up und beckon ed aggie sitting wideeyed and open mouthed in corner to follow her into the kitchen they would serve refrcsh menui thai might cut short this awful afternoon the dainty food tho cooling drink seemed but to give new impetus to their tongues joan sent aggie out reluctant ly to gather eggs to lier horror they now turned their attention to absent mrs madden her mayonnaise was criticized the chocolate cookies it was decided had been skimped on butter and needed mite more baking just what happened to her at this point joan never could quite decide suddenly liowcver she found herself on her feet in tlio centre of tlio room pour ing out flood of eloquence in tlio lie nee that fell appallingly as clap of thunder in the mldrt of that circle of ilushed faces and startled eyet joan told those women what she thought of them her cheeks were lvot her eves were dark and angry her clear young voice rang out scornfully she minced no words she derided petty gossip and spiteful tongue sne told thein how strange but how beautiful their country looked to her vhat wonderful opportunity they had to be like pioneers again in growing community she described mrs maddens longing efforts and how uie had baked those cookies at five oclock in the morning seeing then that mrs bessosoi uas crying joan broke down too she stretched out her arms to them nnd cried woefullj uant to like you so did uant ikc vou mrs bartli was on her feet first al though the others uere not far behind driven by conflicting feelings admira tion and an immense enjoyment shone on her strong lined face my dear girl she exclaimed my dear girl it uas late in the afternoon before james uas released from the pressure of tasks to be done for aunt polly and uas able to start home mrs madden re mained behind her own household must do the best they could without her would miss harbin she tunidly sug gested uho had been so obliging mind putting on cold sifpner for uic men james gave her no encouragement to suppose tlmt miss harbin would do any thing of the kind she may want me to start right down to the city with her he started gloomily probly shog fed up ulth the desert in that flat country one can see long strctclus of the road at dlstanro ontario cooker pineapples potatoes 33c carrots runclils for ijc oranges 35c fint quality nice sie navel sweet medium lirje dne ikaf lettuce lsc grapefruit jl finest quality ff cl medium lnr iijc ju lettuce nice sie firm lends ioc golden ripe nictf size doen ananas uc doen jjk hkkss tomalfoes kpuciaiv sale carrolts limited james beheld line of cars moving in cloud of dust from the madden ranch he groaned in deep dismay at the thought that he could not escape meet ing everyone at least he could drtre at top speed and indicate by an attitude of intense mental absorption that he was in no mood for light converse ills ta did not succeed mary berths huge lumbering car drew up beside tiie road ul lie upproaclied lier resonant horn sounded commanding ly her imperious head looked out of uie window and jutnes liod to stop the woman viae chuckling oo heartily tliat tier whole body shook she wink ed ut him and nodded vou picked winner jimmlet she shouted smart est girl ever sawl cant bring lier up lier for keeps too quick for md iolly hurt bad7 maine going to stay well well shell look afler her goodby jlmmle huy tiierus something youre going to hear about before long sige plains womens community lletlcrniciit club kc sounding name rli made me pniuli lit me jimmle so long jumci drove on few rods thought fully mrs beison came next for her la stopped promptly she wuvid and mlled oh jlmmle want to tell jnu vollvc yot the iutettt girl and jlmmle were going to have clubl they made me secntarj me jimmle julius stopped before the uldow did she uore new alertness her face was uitatlitd in smiles und her speech was voluble oh jlmmle weve hud uie nicest ufternoonl that miss harbin jou brought up has the grandest ideas jim mle uere going to liave club they made me chairman of tlio program com mittee me jimmle junu halted by every car lieord every voice one called joan spitfire but laughed as she said it they teemed to have joke they would not sliare but oil were pleased kindled taken out of their ordinary selves and tliey were all enormously friendly what on earths imppcntd some thing fumi seems in uie uindr she nmde lilt thats vire but iiowv ilie men were coming in from uie fields and there was ii stir of acuvity around uie hams but uie peaca and quiet light of later afternoon lay upon tiie house aggie met hln at the porch door the glow of ncv life seemed to have had its effect upon even prickly agrle she gave him mysterious look shes peeling potatoes for supper she announced with mingling of aue and pleasure james leaped the steps and tore into the house his heart thumping as uioucrh it usuld burst yes in gmgliam apron at mrs maddens alnic joan was peeling potatoes the table was set she looked tranquil and ut home james covered the distance to uic sink in one bound ind remember onlij qualili faint ran protect your home it pays to use quality paint and quality is gutranietj in writing when you buy marti nscnour 100 pure paint no useless adulterants arc used in the prepara tion of this sterling product the pure white lead and line oxide base gives you protection that lusts cover age that saves you money beauty that doe not fade multiuse enamel smooth flowing quick drying high glos enamel good for inside and outside 26 glorious colors iut the revolutionary crystal clear finish it pays to use martin5en0ur 1007 pure paint varnishes enamhs talbot acton stores can fulfill your needs give them first chance long live the king juice no sw tin figs lb 9c quick qjli oats 21c kit oicu r4ojwfcih sardines ti 13c klov1 hjll salts 35c sho polish ti 12c soap 4c 5o dji wumng oxydol sic giv toll1 soap ci 5c aylotcf sweet white 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