Cedar Woman (8 page)

The
f
a
r
m
house sat
high
a
t
op a
hill
over
l
ooking
RT
32 on
t
h
e
nor
t
h s
i
de
o
f
t
h
e
p
ro
p
ert
y
,
a
nd
be
y
o
n
d
,
Se
r
p
e
n
t
M
o
u
n
d
,
t
h
e
H
op
e
well
I
ndi
a
n eart
h
w
o
r
k
s.
The
p
ro
p
erty
contain
e
d
a
d
eep,
p
r
oli
f
ic
s
p
r
i
n
g
,
a
nd
w
a
s

b
or
d
er
e
d on t
h
e
s
o
uth by a
r
a
m
b
ling
c
reek
n
a
m
ed Wolf
R
u
n.

Jos
e
ph
l
o
v
e
d
his
far
m
,
whi
c
h
he
had
p
u
r
c
has
e
d
in
19
2
9
,
but
t
h
e sa
m
e
condition,
whi
c
h
k
e
pt
him out
of
the
Great
W
a
r,
now
necessitated h
i
r
in
g
a s
tron
g
in
d
i
v
id
u
al
t
o
m
end f
e
nc
e
s, ass
i
st
i
n
t
h
e da
i
ry a
n
d gen
e
rally
help
r
u
n
t
h
e
f
a
r
m
.
Jose
p
h
s
u
f
f
e
r
ed
f
r
om
chr
o
nic
t
e
m
p
eratu
r
e and ex
e
r
ti
o
n-
i
n
duc
e
d
a
st
h
m
a,
w
o
rs
e
n
ed with
adv
a
nci
n
g
a
g
e
.

Peter
answ
e
r
e
d
the
a
d
immediate
l
y,
a
n
d
to
h
is
sur
p
rise,
q
u
ic
k
ly receiv
e
d
a
notice
of hiring
w
i
th
a
che
c
k
to
c
ov
e
r
the gas
it
would
t
a
ke
to dr
i
v
e
f
r
om
South
D
ak
o
ta
to
Sou
t
he
r
n
O
h
i
o
.
A
n
enc
l
o
s
ed
n
o
te
stated,

“
W
e
loo
k f
o
r
wa
r
d
t
o
m
eeti
n
g
y
o
u
an
d
you
r w
i
f
e
.”

His
wife
.
Pe
te
r
sat
at
h
i
s
m
o
t
h
er
’
s
k
it
ch
e
n
t
ab
l
e,
a
n
d
l
o
ok
ed
at
t
h
e no
t
e.
He
had
not
co
ns
i
d
e
red
m
arr
i
age
at
t
h
i
s
po
i
n
t
,
but
i
t
m
ade
sense. He
w
ou
l
d ne
e
d so
m
eone to help
o
u
t, to c
o
o
k
, clean, wa
s
h a
n
d
m
end his clo
t
hes.
B
es
i
des,
t
h
i
s
f
a
r
m
er
th
o
ug
h
t
he
was
m
arr
i
ed.
M
a
y
b
e
he assu
m
ed that
he was h
i
ring a couple, and Peter’s w
i
fe was supposed to
h
elp
Mrs. Cou
n
try
m
a
n
.
W
h
at if
h
e s
ho
wed up
m
i
nus
a
he
l
p
m
a
t
e and
was fired
o
n
the
sp
ot!
I d
o
n
’
t know
an
y
o
n
e!
He t
h
ou
gh
t to
h
i
m
s
elf fra
n
tically. Peter
d
ated,
of course I
d
o
,
h
e
ch
u
ff
e
d
to
h
im
self,
but
t
h
er
e
was
n
o
o
n
e t
h
at
h
e
k
n
ew w
h
o wo
u
l
d f
u
lfill t
h
is ur
g
e
n
t
n
e
e
d
.

“
In
a
⁵
!” he
called.
“
M
oth
e
r,”
I
ne
e
d
a
w
i
fe!
If
I
s
h
o
w
up
w
ithout
a wife, I
l
o
se
t
h
e
jo
b
,
e
nni
t
⁶
!”

Reva
Two
Str
i
kes
Catcher,
s
o
na
m
ed
because
she
h
a
d
surviv
e
d
two

li
gh
t
n
ing
strikes,
s
n
atc
h
ed
t
h
e
letter
from
h
er
s
o
n’s a
g
itated
h
a
n
d
. Nodding
s
o
le
m
n
ly,
she
agreed
t
h
at
a
wife was, wit
h
o
u
t
q
u
estion, necess
a
ry.