The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1886-07-22

in such a way, to scoh her all dinner.
time for being depressed. But so it was.
The FitzJ ohnson family ark, pretty little
vessel as it was, with ita fresh paint and
dainty furniture, had driffed into the cur
rent which, sooner or later, must land it
upon the rocks Geofffey. blinded by sell
fish vanity, became bored by his wife's
well-meant but Intellectual efforts to please
her much-changed lord" Her lavish
affection, varied only by iil-concealed and
sometimes fearful dependency, irritated
him and made him more bearish than ever
1t was the old story. Things went from
bad to worse. At last the.first cruel rock
loomed in the distance Snd shipwreck
seemed imminent. Lady Angelica Lans-
dell was, so she said, very old friend of
Geoffrey. 81 knew him when he was
quite boy-such nice boy" she told
Florrie the afternoon she paid her first
call in Curzon street. She was wonder
ful and Ouida-ish parsonage, of the Cleo
patra type of beauty, 1.-the and serpentine,
with voice that could COO like dove or
hiss like serpent at will. She used a pe-
culiar kind of scent that hung about the
room long after she left it. She was mys-
teriously fascinating, and Florrie detested
her. This was great grievance of Ge-
otfrey, who was blind to the pearl powder
and impervious to the scent. "Angelica
(he called her Angelics) twas a charming
woman-a most valuable friend" Was
it not common knowledge that Cabinet
Ministers met as often in her rose-lighted
drawing-room as at Downing street-that
she had finger in every diplomatic pie
that her craftsmanship had brought about
war? Even Joey admitted that she was
an unavoidable necessity. Her smile or
frown could make or mar a man. If the
FitzJ ohnsOns ever hoped to be anything
they must cultivate Angelica. So Florrie
had to submit, but not even the husband
she adored could make her more than de-
Gently civil to the enchantress with the
cruel smile, who called Geoffrey "Geoff,"
and who was always sending him mystic
rlous little notes about goodness only
knew what, for Florrie was never told
their contents.
"The silly little fool is jealous" laugh
ed her ladyship to herself as she sat in
corner, aloof from the madding crowd"
of Foreign Office crush, pretending to
listen to Geoffrey's earnest conversation,
and watching with interested amusement
his wife trying to keep an eye on her hus
band and ut the same time respond CO.
herently to the civilities of voluble at
tache.
"Pll teach her lesson," muttered the
siren, with an angry glitter in her dusky
h., Ia Il
trcsscd face with appealing eyes was
Accordingly when the thirteenth time
the melancholy operation was repeated
the distress on the pale face gave place to
horror and the eyes were fixed and blank
as they saw Lady Angelica with her most
enhancing smile place her hand for
moment caressingly on Geoffrey's arm
only for a moment, because it was instant
ly grasped by both of his.
"My dear old girl! What is the mat
ter? Are you seedy?" exclaimed Joey
as he plunged through the crowd to his
sisters side.
"Come to morrow as soon as Geoffrey
pered Florre, brokenly, as her brother
deposited her safely at her own door.
X
Next morning brother and sister had
long confabulation, during which Joey
tuggcd hard at his phantom mustache
and Florrie blew her nose very often.
The result seemed hardly satisfactory, for
Joey departed, remarking that it was
the very duce," and Florrie sat looking
into the fire until it went out in self de-
fence. However, at dinner that evening
there was marked improvement in Mrs.
F'itz Johnson's spirits; indeed, so hilarious
ly cheerful did she become by dessert
that Geoffrey, acclimatized to dead lev
el of depression, felt inclined to resent the
rise in the domestic barometer. The rise
was steady one. Next morning, when
the slaves ought to have been in close at
tendance on her master, cutting the end
off his cigar, filling his matchbox and
meekly receiving the orders for the day,
was playing polka on the piano, and
actually forgot to wish the great man
goodby. On and off during the day
Geoffrey found himself pondering on the
alteration in his wife. 1t was, of course,
a bore to have her following him about
looking like a whipped dog; but, after
all, that was fault on the right side. and
showed that she appreciated her position
as his wife. 1t was sign of proper, If
excessive subjection; but to sit playing
a polka when the hat-brush was mislaid
was an unheard of dereliction of duty.
Geoffrey returned home exactly half an
hour earlier to administer a carefully pre-
pared lecture to the culprit, only to find
that she had gone to the Gaiety with Joey.
The solitary dinner with no one to scold
was dismal experience, and Geoffrey
felt distinctively aggrieved. Next day
things were no better. Florrie was in
tearing spirits, received the deferred lee
ture with rapid laughter, dismissed his
theories of wifely duty AZ "bosh," and
had the audacity to refer him to Lady
Angelica, who "no doubt was an author
ity on that subject as well as every other"
Geofrey was very moody all that day.
The men at the club voted him slow, and
Lady Angelica called him a bore to his
face. 1t was very annoying, but he was
obliged to admit to himself that his tri-
umph over the subjugation of his wife
had been little premature. The pro-
cess must be continued, and one great
element in it's final success was, lie told
himself with secret glee, the fact that, un-
less she had suddenly and unaccountably
altered, she loved him to distraction. AS