Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1885-11-11

her mind than the fit of her wedding gown.
She listened to her husbands homilies on
the excellence of meekness in woman with
smiling lips and wandering mind, which,
however, did not wander quite 80 far as to
prevent her from mimicking the connubial
sermon to the next person she met, under
her husbands very nose. All that how
ever, was years ago. Mr.. Campion no long
er tried to improve his wife, or cared in any
way as to what she said or did, provided his
house was comfortable and his dinners good;
and she, for her part, had ceased to find
! amusement in laughing at her husband
She seldom thought of him at all, and nev-
er when any other man was present.
| night Linburn, on her left hand, di-
| vided her favors with Webster, sitting on
| her right. On the other side of Linburn
was the governess, next to her Schoenbein,
and then Mrs. Highbury Banks. Schoenbein
had recovered his temper, for his insight
ficant little partner had been shunted to
| the opposite side of the table, where she
| now sat between Webster and Kerr. The
second Miss Campion did not appear at din
ner at all.
The party split up into two sections
Mrs. Banks, Mrs. Webster, Campion, Schoen-
| bein, and Kerr forming coterie at one end;
Mrs. Campion, Linburn, and Webster, a
| smaller but still gayer, noisier conclave at
| the other.
The silent governess and her silent pupil
served as the dividing line.
You know the kind of dinner where the
menu is good, and the wine still better;
| where every one talks great deal, but no
| one says anything worth remembering
where there is much laughter for very in
adequate cause. So it was at Kolokythia
| Lodge, with this further advantage, that if
you drank more wine than was good for you,
you were only following the example Of
your host, and ran no danger of scandaliz-
| ing your hos ess.
| Under Mrs. Campion's auspices the fun
waxed faster than is customary in good So
ciety. Linburn, sitting between her and
| Mile. Lecoeur turned slightly away from the
latter, both because he wished to talk to
Mrs. Campion and because he did not wish
to having anything to do with Schoenbein,
who was on the governess's other side. 1t
is true there was an ill. feeling between
these two young men, the real origin of
of which has nothing to do with the matter
in hand.
With Webster, Linburn was soon en-
gagged in loud and shallow argument on
the immortality of the soul. Neither be-
lieved enough in anything to have stable
opinion on the subject, but both were still
sufficiently under the influence of old habits
of thought to be ticklcd at the profanity
with which Mrs. Campion treated it.
| At the other end of the table Mrs. Web
ster was endeavoIing to excite Mrs. High
bury Banks to combat by attacking her pet
hobby, "The National Tagdress Associa-
tion," of which she was president This
was scheme to correctly ticket the exact
social standing of the lower classes, and had,
as yet, besides the honorary members, only
one cOnvert-an old woman who put the
price of her conversion at three shillings a
week and unlimited snuff. Now and then
| Campion put in cumbruus oar on the the
side of Mrs. Banks, which gratified the lady,
but materially damaged her cause.
Linburn enjoyed himself thoroughly; po-
etic creature as he was, he could still appre
ciate the pleasures of the table, and the sub
| tie aroma of Mrs. Campion's presence ad-
ded the refining sentiment. Nevertheless.
he found more than one opportunity to look
over at Kerr, and each time it struck him that
Kerr was unusually silent. Linburn was
surprised and vexed. He knew that it was
| rather notion of Kerr to make himself all
things to all men, butnow to night he was
not even taking the trouble to please Mrs.
Webster Hesat gloomy and silent, star
ing at his plate or else abstractedly over in
Linburn's direction. Once Linburn tried
to catch his eye, to admonish him by a
frown that he was showing off very badly,
but before he could succeed in doing this
Mrs. Campion had again claims his atten-
| ton, and so for the moment Kerr's extraordi-
nary taciturnity passed out of his head.
Concluded in the neat Issue.]