II
THE RUMORS
When Mother Van Hove returned from the pasture, fifteen minutes later,her orders had all been carried out. Pier was in the pasture, the henswere shut up for the night, and the pig, which had been squealing withhunger, was row grunting with satisfaction over her evening meal; Fidelwas gnawing a bone, and Father Van Hove was already washing his handsat the pump, beside the kitchen door.
"You are all good children," said the mother as she set down herbrimming pail and took her turn at the wash-basin and the soap. "Janand Marie, have you washed your hands?"
"I have," called Marie from the kitchen, "and supper is ready and thetable set."
"I washed my hands in the canal this morning," pleaded Jan. "Won't thatdo?"
"You ate your lunch this noon, too," answered his mother promptly."Won't that do? Why do you need to eat again when you have alreadyeaten twice today?"
"Because I am hungry again," answered Jan.
"Well, you are also dirty again," said his mother, as she put the soapin his hands and wiped her own on the clean towel which Marie handedher from the door. She cleaned her wooden shoes on the bundle of strawwhich lay for the purpose beside the kitchen door; then she went insideand took her place opposite Father Van Hove at the little round oakentable by the window.
Marie was already in her chair, and in a moment Jan joined them with abeaming smile and a face which, though clean in the middle, showed agray border from ear to ear.
"If you don't believe I'm clean, look at the towel!" he said, holdingit up.
"Oh, my heart!" cried his mother, throwing up her hands. "I declarethere's but one creature in all God's world that cares nothing forcleanliness! Even a pig has some manners if given half a chance, butboys!" She seized the grimy towel and held it up despairingly forFather Van Hove to see. "He's just wet his face and wiped all the dirtoff on the towel. The Devil himself is not more afraid of holy waterthan Jan Van Hove is of water of any kind!" she cried.
"Go and wash yourself properly, Janke," said his father sternly, andJan disappeared through the kitchen door. Sounds of vigorous pumpingand splashing without were heard in the kitchen, and when Jan appearedonce more, he was allowed to take his place at the supper-table withthe family.
Father Van Hove bowed his head, and the Twins and their mother made thesign of the cross with him, as he began their grace before meat. "Inthe name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, Amen,"prayed Father Van Hove. "Hail, Mary, full of Grace." Then, as theprayer continued, the mother and children with folded hands and bowedheads joined in the petition: "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for ussinners now and in the hour of our death, Amen." A clatter of spoonsfollowed the grace, and Mother Van Hove's good buttermilk pap was notlong in disappearing down their four hungry throats.
The long day in the open air had made the children so sleepy they couldscarcely keep their eyes open through the meal. "Come, my children,"said their mother briskly, as she rose from the table, "pop into bed,both of you, as fast as you can go. You are already half asleep!Father, you help them with their buttons, and hear them say theirprayers, while I wash up these dishes and take care of the milk." Shetook a candle from the chimney-piece as she spoke, and started downcellar with the skimmer. When she came back into the kitchen once more,the children were safely tucked in bed, and her husband was seated bythe kitchen door with his chair tipped back against the wall, smokinghis evening pipe. Mother Van Hove cleared the table, washed the dishes,and brushed the crumbs from the tiled floor. Then she spread the whitesand once more under the table and in a wide border around the edge ofthe room, and hung the brush outside the kitchen door.
Father Van Hove smoked in silence as she moved about the room. At lasthe said to her, "Leonie, did you hear what our neighbor Maes saidto-night as we were talking in the road?"
"No," said his wife, "I was hurrying home to get supper."
"Maes said there are rumors of a German army on our frontier," saidFather Van Hove.
His wife paused in front of him with her hands on her hips. "Whobrought that story to town?" she demanded.
"Jules Verhulst," answered her husband.
"Jules Verhulst!" sniffed Mother Van Hove with disdain. "He knows morethings that aren't so than any man in this village. I wouldn't believeanything on his say-so! Besides, the whole world knows that all thePowers have agreed that Belgium shall be neutral ground, and have boundthemselves solemnly to protect that neutrality. I learned that inschool, and so did you."
"Yes," sighed Father Van Hove. "I learned it too, and surely no nationcan have anything against us! We have given no one cause for complaintthat I know of."
"It's nonsense," said his wife with decision. "Belgium is safe enoughso far as that goes, but one certainly has to work hard here just tomake ends meet and get food for all the hungry mouths! They say it isdifferent in America; there you work less and get more, and are fartheraway from meddlesome neighboring countries besides. I sometimes wish wehad gone there with my sister. She and her husband started with no morethan we have, and now they are rich--at least they were when I lastheard from them; but that was a long time ago," she finished.
"Well," said Father Van Hove, as he stood up and knocked the ashes fromhis pipe, "it may be that they have more money and less work, but I'velived here in this spot ever since I was born, and my father before me.Somehow I feel I could never take root in any other soil. I'm contentwith things as they are."
"So am I, for the matter of that," said Mother Van Hove cheerfully, asshe put Fidel outside and shut the door for the night. Then, taking thecandle from the chimney-piece once more, she led the way to the innerroom, where the twins were already soundly sleeping.