Kabanata Kabanata 25 · A month later Jennie was able to announce that Lester intended to

marry her. His visits had of course paved the way for this, and it

seemed natural enough. Only Gerhardt seemed a little doubtful. He did

not know just how this might be. Perhaps it was all right. Lester

seemed a fine enough man in all conscience, and really, after Brander,

why not? If a United States Senator could fall in love with Jennie,

why not a business man? There was just one thing--the child. "Has

she told him about Vesta?" he asked his wife.

"No," said Mrs. Gerhardt, "not yet."

"Not yet, not yet. Always something underhanded. Do you think he

wants her if he knows? That's what comes of such conduct in the first

place. Now she has to slip around like a thief. The child cannot even

have an honest name."

Gerhardt went back to his newspaper reading and brooding. His life

seemed a complete failure to him and he was only waiting to get well

enough to hunt up another job as watchman. He wanted to get out of

this mess of deception and dishonesty.

A week or two later Jennie confided to her mother that Lester had

written her to join him in Chicago. He was not feeling well, and could

not come to Cleveland. The two women explained to Gerhardt that Jennie

was going away to be married to Mr. Kane. Gerhardt flared up at this,

and his suspicions were again aroused. But he could do nothing but

grumble over the situation; it would lead to no good end, of that he

was sure.

When the day came for Jennie's departure she had to go without

saying farewell to her father. He was out looking for work until late

in the afternoon, and before he had returned she had been obliged to

leave for the station. "I will write a note to him when I get there,"

she said. She kissed her baby over and over. "Lester will take a

better house for us soon," she went on hopefully. "He wants us to

move." The night train bore her to Chicago; the old life had ended and

the new one had begun.

The curious fact should be recorded here that, although Lester's

generosity had relieved the stress upon the family finances, the

children and Gerhardt were actually none the wiser. It was easy for

Mrs. Gerhardt to deceive her husband as to the purchase of necessities

and she had not as yet indulged in any of the fancies which an

enlarged purse permitted. Fear deterred her. But, after Jennie had

been in Chicago for a few days, she wrote to her mother saying that

Lester wanted them to take a new home. This letter was shown to

Gerhardt, who had been merely biding her return to make a scene. He

frowned, but somehow it seemed an evidence of regularity. If he had

not married her why should he want to help them? Perhaps Jennie was

well married after all. Perhaps she really had been lifted to a high

station in life, and was now able to help the family. Gerhardt almost

concluded to forgive her everything once and for all.

The end of it was that a new house was decided upon, and Jennie

returned to Cleveland to help her mother move. Together they searched

the streets for a nice, quiet neighborhood, and finally found one. A

house of nine rooms, with a yard, which rented for thirty dollars, was

secured and suitably furnished. There were comfortable fittings for

the dining-room and sitting-room, a handsome parlor set and bedroom

sets complete for each room. The kitchen was supplied with every

convenience, and there was even a bath-room, a luxury the Gerhardts

had never enjoyed before. Altogether the house was attractive, though

plain, and Jennie was happy to know that her family could be

comfortable in it.

When the time came for the actual moving Mrs. Gerhardt was fairly

beside herself with joy, for was not this the realization of her

dreams? All through the long years of her life she had been waiting,

and now it had come. A new house, new furniture, plenty of

room--things finer than she had ever even imagined--think of

it! Her eyes shone as she looked at the new beds and tables and

bureaus and whatnots. "Dear, dear, isn't this nice!" she exclaimed.

"Isn't it beautiful!" Jennie smiled and tried to pretend satisfaction

without emotion, but there were tears in her eyes. She was so glad for

her mother's sake. She could have kissed Lester's feet for his

goodness to her family.

The day the furniture was moved in Mrs. Gerhardt, Martha, and

Veronica were on hand to clean and arrange things. At the sight of the

large rooms and pretty yard, bare enough in winter, but giving promise

of a delightful greenness in spring, and the array of new furniture

standing about in excelsior, the whole family fell into a fever of

delight. Such beauty, such spaciousness! George rubbed his feet over

the new carpets and Bass examined the quality of the furniture

critically. "Swell," was his comment. Mrs. Gerhardt roved to and fro

like a person in a dream. She could not believe that these bright

bedrooms, this beautiful parlor, this handsome dining-room were

actually hers.

Gerhardt came last of all. Although he tried hard not to show it,

he, too, could scarcely refrain from enthusiastic comment. The sight

of an opal-globed chandelier over the dining-room table was the

finishing touch.

"Gas, yet!" he said.

He looked grimly around, under his shaggy eyebrows, at the new

carpets under his feet, the long oak extension table covered with a

white cloth and set with new dishes, at the pictures on the walls, the

bright, clean kitchen. He shook his head. "By chops, it's fine!" he

said. "It's very nice. Yes, it's very nice. We want to be careful now

not to break anything. It's so easy to scratch things up, and then

it's all over." Yes, even Gerhardt was satisfied.