The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1882-06-01

| 40 OPChAJ ViOlotSu Wy u WuOlo pcOplcs
In the end, Ruth had her way. She
tormented Philip until he bought a
pretty cottage for her, and fitted it up
with the best that money could buy. In
other things, however, she found that
her influence over the man she called
husband was very slight. After six
months of married life, the opinions SO
confidently expressed in her honeymoon
were greatly modified.
philip cares no more for me than he
would for Kitten" she declared pet
ulantly. ''If I talk to him half an hour
without stopping to take breath, he
never hears one word. have half a
mind to ask President Young for d.
vorce"
"Why don't your" inquired her friend
Myra, to whom these complaints we're
addressed.
"Well, you see, with all his faults,
Philip isn't a bit mean about money. l
don't know any other man who would
be likely to buy me such house as this;
and as for dresses. you know yourself
that half the girls in the city are ready
to die with envy when they see mine.
I have not showed you his last present"
Ruth tripped into the next room,
and came out with an inlaid box in her
hand.
"He gave me this on my birthday"
she said, opening it, and displaying q
gold watch and chain and pair of brace
lets of elegant workmanship.
"Did you ever see anything 80 per-
fectly lovely in your life? I showed
them to Milly Allen yesterday, and she
looked ready to cry. She was married
the same week I was, and is wearing
her old things yet, and has to live in the
house with two of the other wives, and
they order her around as if she was. q lit
tie girl. But then, Milly never did
have any spirit. She couldn't speak
for herself, no matter how badly she was
treated"
"Brother Allen treats her we'll enough
himself, doesn't he?"
"That depends ON what you call good
treatment. He isn't cross to her, but
he tells her he can't afford another house
and it's no use talking about it. You
see, the trouble is, he was sealed to
Milly and Sarah Spencer on the same
day, and Sarah happens to be the IA
vorite. She's got place OF her own,
and new things, and he spends half OF
his time with her, which is about all
that could be expected OF man with six
wives"
"I'm sorry for Milly," Myra said
"She used to be a good girl when knew
her, and she deserves good husband"
| "Well, I'm sorry for her too, of course
but she ought to have had more sense.
When a man marries two girls on the
same day, one of them is going to be
neglected-anyb body knows that. told
Milly how it would be, but she didn't
believe me-"
"After all, Ruth, I think you ought to
be pretty we'll satisfied. You have q
fine house and fine clothes, and your
husband spends half his time with you.
What more can you ask?"
81 want him to spend more than half
his time with me, and to act as if he
cared for me-" and then, to her friend 8
surprise, Ruth buried her face in her
hands and began to sob.
| Meanwhile, in the home that only a
few months ago was SO peaceful and
happy, an evil spirit sat enthroned.
The first wife, after a season of apathetic
despair, woke to full sense of her
misery; and bitter jealousy for the girl
who stood between her and her hus-
bard seemed to change her whole nature.
She might get over it all in time, so
she told herself, if every alternate week
did not bring Philip back to the house;
if she did not see his face and hear his
voice, knowing all the time that the
tenderness which he tried to show to-
warb her would be lavished on another
woman next week, that the kisses which
her outraged love refused would be
given to that dark-eyed girl, whom she
hated, with o vindictiveness that frigh
tened her when she stopped to reason
about her feelings.
| II don't wonder they say that q wife
who rebels against poligamy is possessed
by devils. feel as though had Q le-
gion of them in my heart"
This was Jessie's confession to Helen
Woodford. In reply to Jessie, Mrs.
Woodford said, with q strange, far-away
look in her eyes:
Il felt just as you do once, long ago
but got over it,"
"And huw?"
"By outliving my love for my hus-
band. As long as loved him I suffered
= suffered the torments of hell. You
know the house in which he used to
keep two OF his wives. At night. when
he was staying there, I used to walk
the floor of the room until it seemed
that I must 60 mad unless could es-
cape from the plsce-from everything.
Then I would rush out into the street