said.
Alden talked on, regaling her with stories of the wild characters he’d lived with in Jamestown and other mining camps.
“Colombia!” he shouted after a couple of shots of whiskey. “That’s the next frontier.”
“You mean South America?”
“I do indeed. That’s where a man goes these days if he’s in my line of work.”
“Have you mentioned that to Mattie?”
“Not yet.” He laughed. “She has other things on her mind.”
Mamah could tell he was serious, and it dawned on her that their married life was more difficult than it appeared on the surface.
“ALDEN’S VOICE CARRIES when he drinks,” Mattie said the next day. “Don’t worry. He won’t run off to Colombia. He couldn’t bear to be away from us that long.”
She looked enormous that morning, her belly swollen into a great mound. “I can’t even see my feet anymore,” she moaned.
“I can see them. They look pregnant.”
“They get that way every time I carry a child.” Mattie sighed. “Do you remember those Port Huron days? We swore we’d be old-maid teachers before we became housewives.”
“We almost managed it. I believe you held out longer than I.”
“Not on purpose. When Alden showed some interest, I nearly conked him on the head and hauled him off like a cavewoman.”
Mamah laughed. “I think Alden did all right for himself.” She thought of her own wedding. “It’s sad my mother never lived to see me get myself down the aisle—it was what she wanted most in the world. At the end, she rued the day she sent Lizzie and Jessie and me off to college, because none of us was married when she began failing.”
“She probably wanted things settled,” Mattie said. “She wanted to know you were all safe. I knew your mother. She was proud of you.”
“Oh, at first I think she was proud. She wanted us to have the chances she never had. But to tell you the truth? I think at the back of her mind, she believed that having cultivated daughters would mean better marriages for all of us. Instead, off we went to work. She was disappointed at the end, no question about it.” Mamah nodded thoughtfully. “She came to think that education had made us unsuited for marriage. And sometimes I think she was right.”
“You’ve grown a bit dark on the subject.”
“Well, in those days I thought the world was on the brink of change. But look at us. It’s 1909. I couldn’t have imagined back then that we wouldn’t have suffrage by now.”
“These things take time.”
“I’m weary of it,” Mamah said. “All the talk revolves around getting the vote. That should go without saying. There’s so much more personal freedom to gain beyond that. Yet women are part of the problem. We plan dinner parties and make flowers out of crepe paper. Too many of us make small lives for ourselves.”
“Does my life look like that to you?”
Mamah was taken aback by the question. “No, Mattie. You do important work in this town. You know what I mean.”
MAMAH DROVE MATTIE down the hill that afternoon to a fruit stand she liked.
“So, how were the hordes at the library today?” Mattie asked.
“Lively.”
“Clara Savory is divine, isn’t she?”
“She has been, until I let it slip that I have a master’s degree. She cooled a bit after that.”
“Is she intimidated by you?”
“She hasn’t any formal training, you know. I’ve never mentioned that I ran the library in Port Huron, and naturally, I defer to her. But sometimes I’m able to answer questions she can’t, and that makes her uncomfortable. Before I left today, out of the blue, she said to me, ‘I work from eight in the morning until ten at night. And for that I get eight dollars a month. Along with living quarters, which is a room in a boardinghouse.’”
“Hmm.”
“I haven’t spoken a word about my situation. Is it obvious that I’m at loose ends?”
“It doesn’t matter what Clara Savory thinks. It’s what you’re thinking
Alden talked on, regaling her with stories of the wild characters he’d lived with in Jamestown and other mining camps.
“Colombia!” he shouted after a couple of shots of whiskey. “That’s the next frontier.”
“You mean South America?”
“I do indeed. That’s where a man goes these days if he’s in my line of work.”
“Have you mentioned that to Mattie?”
“Not yet.” He laughed. “She has other things on her mind.”
Mamah could tell he was serious, and it dawned on her that their married life was more difficult than it appeared on the surface.
“ALDEN’S VOICE CARRIES when he drinks,” Mattie said the next day. “Don’t worry. He won’t run off to Colombia. He couldn’t bear to be away from us that long.”
She looked enormous that morning, her belly swollen into a great mound. “I can’t even see my feet anymore,” she moaned.
“I can see them. They look pregnant.”
“They get that way every time I carry a child.” Mattie sighed. “Do you remember those Port Huron days? We swore we’d be old-maid teachers before we became housewives.”
“We almost managed it. I believe you held out longer than I.”
“Not on purpose. When Alden showed some interest, I nearly conked him on the head and hauled him off like a cavewoman.”
Mamah laughed. “I think Alden did all right for himself.” She thought of her own wedding. “It’s sad my mother never lived to see me get myself down the aisle—it was what she wanted most in the world. At the end, she rued the day she sent Lizzie and Jessie and me off to college, because none of us was married when she began failing.”
“She probably wanted things settled,” Mattie said. “She wanted to know you were all safe. I knew your mother. She was proud of you.”
“Oh, at first I think she was proud. She wanted us to have the chances she never had. But to tell you the truth? I think at the back of her mind, she believed that having cultivated daughters would mean better marriages for all of us. Instead, off we went to work. She was disappointed at the end, no question about it.” Mamah nodded thoughtfully. “She came to think that education had made us unsuited for marriage. And sometimes I think she was right.”
“You’ve grown a bit dark on the subject.”
“Well, in those days I thought the world was on the brink of change. But look at us. It’s 1909. I couldn’t have imagined back then that we wouldn’t have suffrage by now.”
“These things take time.”
“I’m weary of it,” Mamah said. “All the talk revolves around getting the vote. That should go without saying. There’s so much more personal freedom to gain beyond that. Yet women are part of the problem. We plan dinner parties and make flowers out of crepe paper. Too many of us make small lives for ourselves.”
“Does my life look like that to you?”
Mamah was taken aback by the question. “No, Mattie. You do important work in this town. You know what I mean.”
MAMAH DROVE MATTIE down the hill that afternoon to a fruit stand she liked.
“So, how were the hordes at the library today?” Mattie asked.
“Lively.”
“Clara Savory is divine, isn’t she?”
“She has been, until I let it slip that I have a master’s degree. She cooled a bit after that.”
“Is she intimidated by you?”
“She hasn’t any formal training, you know. I’ve never mentioned that I ran the library in Port Huron, and naturally, I defer to her. But sometimes I’m able to answer questions she can’t, and that makes her uncomfortable. Before I left today, out of the blue, she said to me, ‘I work from eight in the morning until ten at night. And for that I get eight dollars a month. Along with living quarters, which is a room in a boardinghouse.’”
“Hmm.”
“I haven’t spoken a word about my situation. Is it obvious that I’m at loose ends?”
“It doesn’t matter what Clara Savory thinks. It’s what you’re thinking
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