The Hickman courier., 1874-09-04
WOULD SHE Or NOTg
BY MARY KYLE DALLAS.


this is what all women must put up
with, / suppose; but I never thought
that I should be neglected"
She hsteneN
Locked in his room again." she
said, " and after a long days absence !;
and am to go to bed and go to sleep.
What a goose I am not to do that con
tentedly, and forget him who can forget
me so easily. How long is it since he
has spent an evening with me? Two
months at least. Oh ?" she clenched
her little hand, '' how little 1
thought when I ranged that study,
and put the prettiest things in it, ard
was so proud o. it and 50 pleased with
it, that he would make it an excuse to
shut me from him. 1t did not use to
be so. When I was Rose Luttrell, and
he made pa so angry by staying in the
parlor until midnigHS; when he actu-
ally followed me about, and said that
every moment was wasted that was rot
passed in my cOmpany-ah, well, l was
too romantic. 1 loved him too much.
I should have renneGbered what Miss
Landon wrote:
If you would not suffer,
Be the one 20 give the pain
But you see, I thought him so good, so
fond, so constant" She listened again
Mute as mouse" she said
'' Studying French, indeed as if I did
not know that he was a perfect French
scholar long before I knew him, and
that he never would have held the po
sition he does in that great importing
house if it were not for his French. No
he is tired of me, and shuns my SO
ciety."
And Rose dropped her head head up-
on her hands and sobbed bitterly. It
was unwise of her, for the sudden move
rtIU tbs old Datyy ia
the bassinette at her side, affsf~Tt began
TO vail piteously. 1t was necessary to
dry her own tears in order TO dry his,
and crying Is a great luxury to wo-
man before she has spoiled her eyes IN
indulgine in it. But though she stop
ped weeping, she went on talking IN
low tone, addressing the baby as though
i5 could understand he~.
blessed little soul, she said, "we
know what it all means, don't we? Be
fore Won came was light-foOted girl,
but since then I've been very different
I cannot dance. I cannot run. 1 can
not even walk far perhaps I never
shall. If he had suffered in any way
for my sake, how I should have loved
him for it; but he ceases to love me for
the very reason tbatSsho Ild make him
more tender. Oh, why do women ever
marry? Why did 1 not say no instead
of yes, and then he would have loved
me forever"
She lifted her head. and locked into
the glass.
''Pm not ugly yet, nor old either"
she said, with sndden flash of her
black eyes. eff he no longer admires
me, other people may. Wives who
firt are always more thought of by
their husbands than constant wives are.
I'll"
''If you please'm," said voice at
the door, " gentleman.
Rose started, and held out her hand
for the card the girl presented.
" Chauncey Waldo" was written up
on it.
''You may stay here with baby, Mag
gie," said she. ''I will see Mr.. Waldo.
Mr. Winner is engaged"
She peeped INTO the glass again, and
settled her crimped hair with her pink
palms. Her dress needed no arranging
she was always well dressed in the
evening-and chen she went down into
the parlor, where Chauncey Waldo,
who considered himself the most fas-
cinating man in the United States, sat
waiting for her.
There was no harm in going down.
It was only right to go but Satan,
they say, is always on the lookout for
ones weak moments and it seems
likely that he sent Mr.. Waldo in the
nick of time. Roses vanity had been
stung, and she was anxious to prove to
herself that she had not lost her power
of fascination. She proved it conclu-
sively that evening.
Nothing was said, nothing was done
that Mrs. Grundy could object to; but
there are smiles that make the heart of
a lady-killer hutter, and smiles that pu5
him at distance by their very gracious
ness. Formerly Mrs. Winner had given
Mr. Waldo these latter smiles. To-
night she gave him the former. So that
he dared to hold her hand little Ion
ger than he had ever done before in
parting, and to say softly
" May call again very soon Ihate
to think of your being lonely"
For she had told him-yes, she had
indeed-that sc Mr.. Winner was forever
shut up in his study, and that she fan
cied she should die of ennui some
day." Which was true enough, but an
unwise statement for a pretty young
wife tomake to a Waldo.
Then, hushSl, and with a certain
sense of guilt upon her, she gIided past
the study door, and was really sound
asleep, when a weary looking man
opened it, and, went, without his slip
pers, up the stairs, and bending over
her, said to himself, &c Little darling,
may heaven bless you" and would not
kiss her lest he should disturb her
slumber.
If he only had kissed her, it would
have been much better, after all. For,
as it was, she said nothing of Waldo's
call next morning.
Demonstrative people have credit for
all their emotions uldemonstrative
people may feel as much, and no cne
suesses it.
Mr. Winner seldom said much about
his affection for his wife, and now that
he had taken the odd way of shutting
himself up every evening, she doubted
is existence, and grew cold in her own
There was never by quarrel. She
never reproached him-pride forbade
that-but there seemed to be frost in
her smile and ice in her words. She
meant that there shouId be. When he
said, so very soon after dinner, I" And
now for MY French Rosy" she would
say nothing, but, somehow, find an ex-
cuse for evading the kiss with which at