OUR WASH-LADIES
179
That's w'at yer to be thinkin' habout, says I. 'E's talkin' o' goin' West onto a farm, but w'at c'n a man wi' honly one good laig do wi' the farmin'? says I. 'Ef yuh marry trouble it'll be on yer own 'ead, an' ye can't lay no blame onto me. I've warned ye, now, I says."
Once more I felt the yawning gulf of our different points of view stretch its dark length before us. My shallow optimism could not bridge that abyss. Of course, "the livin'" was the matter of supreme importance. To it, both love and patriotism must bow. I was silent before the flash in Mrs. Edwards' keen eye, as I ever am silenced and heart-smitten by the iron-heeled problems which confront and shape the lives of those who serve.
