The true northerner., 1884-11-20

for week or so. any way. Though I
might have given her trifie, perhaps
only man does not like to enceur-
age his wife in habit of that sort.
But never mind-she1l come round
again without dcubt-women always
do"
A few DAYS later, as Mr.. Van Dorm
went home to q late dinner, he was
surprised to see servant bring in the
meal, and ring the bell for them to
take their places ut the table.
"What is the matter? Is Mrs. Van
Dorm i'll ?" he asked, for q servant was
one OF the ARTICLES of luxury" his wife
had insisted upon getting along with
out. And, in fact, he had encouraged
her to do so on the ground that his
mother never employed one"
Il am quite we'll" answered his wife
herself at that moment, taking seat;
"but / am very busy now, and found it
necessary to have help about the house
work"
Dick looked at her in surprise. She
was quite pale, but there was sparkle
in her eyes that had not been there
since their first year of married life.
Still, he didn't quite like the idea of
her hiring a servant without as much as
asking his consent.
IL thought told you, DEAR" said he,
presently, that we would be obliged
to economic for a while. This Wall
street trouble has upset business all
over the country, and is making us a
lot of worry, and / don't. believe we
can afford the additional expense of a
servant"
Perhaps, Dick, were you to cut
down a few, a very few, OF your own
personal expenditures-such as wine
suppers, for instance-you would find
a considerable sum to your credit at the
end of the month, said Mrs. Van Dorm,
gently.
Dick blushed guiltily. He wondered
who had told his wife about that wine
supper. To be sure, it was foolish
bet made on the fall elections, and he
had lost it; but what could one expect I?
A man must be man, or lose standing
with his Yellowstone or the other. And
really it was, after all, none of Maria's
business. He earned the money, she
did not, and he had right to use it as
he pleased. All she had to do was to
sit there in the comfortable home he
provided for her, and be supported.
He was certain now that he didn't like
it about the servant, and he rose from
the table feeling that he had grievance.
What on earth did Maria need with a
hired girl? She had told him often
enough that Benny and Billy were just
as good as they could be, and that the
baby wasn't the least bit of trouble in
the world. All she had to do was to
see to them, and do. the little house,
work necessary for them all. Mr.. Van
Dorm would have been nightly Offend
ed if anybody had intimated to him
that his wife was drudge. Another
week went by. Somehow there seemed
to have come great change in Maria.
He was puzzled to account for it, when-
ever he had time to think about it. The
servant was still in the house, and q
nurse girl had been engaged to care for
the baby. Maria was certainly develop
ing peculiar method of retrenchment.
At this rate he would be obliged to
give up his elegant new fall overcoat,
for his salary was not large enough to
cover so many expenses. Maria didn't
look well. She was too pale; but then
she never had regained her bright
color since the twins came. Still, with
two girls in the house now, she ought to
soon be as bright as ever. AS the weeks
dragged on Dick began to experience a
feeling of loneliness. If he asked his
wife to walk with him, she excused her
self on the plea of not having the time
to so. If he came home a>trihe earlier
in the evening, she was invariably por-
ing over lot of newspapers. She no
longer welcomed him at the door. She
never now came into the dining-room
at meal-time until the bell rang. 1t
was, at the least, q very unpleasant
change; and it struck him suddenly one
day that it had been long time since
Maria had asked him for "little
money" 1t was all of six weeks since
he had given her a cent. When the first
consciousness of this detection came to
him, he was busy over his ledger.
1T can't be that she is running up
bills" he gasped; "she certainly
wouldn't carry it that far"
lllto Will bil
for, with all his careless selfshness,
Van Dorm was strictly honest, and hated
debt as he did the devil-he put on his
hat and started for home. He had only
turned the corner, when he saw his wife
coming down the broad steps of the
Bennett Building. Wondering what
could have taken her to newspaper
officer, he stopped and waited for her
to overtake him. He looked curiously
at her as she came nearer. There was
certain smartness in her apparel he
had not seen in long time. 1t struck
him that her gown was of fabric new
to him, and there was freshness about
the delicately gloved hands and the
pale-blue bonnet ties that he had not
noticed before, A sudden fury took
hold of him.
maria" said he as she halted for a
moment before him. "Maria, where
have you been, and what have you been
doing? Why is it that you have asked
for no money during all those weeks
Have you been running up bills at the
shops?"
81 have not" said she quietly. "And
deny your right to catechise me in
this fashion on the public thorough.