A Daughter of the Land
Page 102The writing would have been a discredit to a ten-year-old
schoolboy. Nancy Ellen threw the letter back on the floor; with a
stiffly extended finger, she poked it into the position in which
she thought she had found it, and slowly stepped back.
"Great God!" she said amazedly. "What does the man mean? Where
does that dainty and wonderful little mother come in? She must be
a regular parasite, to take such ease and comfort for herself out
of him, and not see that he had time and chance to do better than
THAT for himself. Kate will never endure it, never in the world!
And by the luck of the very Devil, there comes that school-proof
thing in the same mail, from that abominable George Holt, and Kate
reads it FIRST. It's too bad! I can't believe it! What did his
Suddenly Nancy Ellen began to cry bitterly; between sobs she could
hear Kate as she walked from closet and bureau to her trunk which
she was packing. The lid slammed heavily and a few minutes later
Kate entered the room dressed for the street.
"Why are you weeping?" she asked casually.
Her eyes were flaming, her cheeks scarlet, and her lips twitching.
Nancy Ellen sat up and looked at her. She pointed to the letter:
"I read that," she said.
"Well, what do I care?" said Kate. "If he has no more respect for
me than to write me such an insult as that, why should I have the
respect for him to protect him in it? Publish it in the paper if
"Kate, what are you going to do?" demanded Nancy Ellen.
"Three things," said Kate, slowly putting on her long silk gloves.
"First, I'm going to telegraph John Jardine that I never shall see
him again, if I can possibly avoid it. Second, I'm going to send
a drayman to get my trunk and take it to Walden. Third, I'm going
to start out and walk miles, I don't know or care where; but in
the end, I'm going to Walden to clean the schoolhouse and get
ready for my winter term of school."
"Oh, Kate, you are such a fine teacher! Teach him! Don't be so
hurried! Take more time to think. You will break his heart,"
pleaded Nancy Ellen.
"P-a-s-h, a-u-g-h, h-a-r-t, d-o-u-t, d-e-r-e," she slowly spelled
out the letters. "What about my heart and my pride? Think I can
respect that, or ask my children to respect it? But thank you and
Robert, and come after me as often as you can, as a mercy to me.
If John persists in coming, to try to buy me, as he thinks he can
buy anything he wants, you needn't let him come to Walden; for
probably I won't be there until I have to, and I won't see him, or
his mother, so he needn't try to bring her in. Say good-bye to
Robert for me."