The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1889-03-05

question before you, and i had no al
tentative. You would not have come
had asked it."
Certainly not" and Regina turned
to 60. Phil laid his hand gently on
her arm.
Surely" he said, .you will not be
unfair to me?" And then, all in a
breath, he turned to his step-mother.
do you remember" he said, when
you once asked me about a glove you
found in my room? You leased me-"
Mrs. Fields laughed. Certainly.
Do you want me TO tell what you
said?"
II do"
ut wouldn't be polite, Phil"
Indeed you are mistaken. 1t would
be very polite-and true"
You said it belonged to the pref
test girl in America"
II can not see," said Regina, ''hOw
this interests me-"
Phil made no answe r TO her.
Then you asked me who she was"
"Yes, and you said she was some
sort of professional character.
"a prize-fghterP said Phil
Mercy: no. Your father calls her
that. because he is so indignant with
you; but you never said so. 1 under
stood you perfectly. Some kind OF
athlete; not "a teacher of calisthenics,
but something like it."
Again did this young man burst into
laughter; but he controlled himself,
and it would not have been wise to
have irritated Regina much farther.
''Oh, mother" he said, now that
Mrs. Darlington is dead, why do you
want TO play her Elisha? Did / say
caliSthenics and professional"
Il do not care what you said" cried
Regina; and again she turned. and this
time ran away, leaving poor Phil look
ing like the stupid she had called him.
Now Mr.. Fields always said when
he was congratulated on his daughter
ie-law that he made the match. He
certainly never made the explanation.
and convinced Regina that Phil had
said the glove belonged to "a cham
piOn." and he never showed the glove
to Regina and made her confess that it
was hers, and she had missed il. 1t
was very true that the old gentleman
knew that Regina played match games
of tennis, and had carried off the title
and hOnors of champion" but he
never COMPOUNDED her with prize
fighter He always held TO a vague
belief in the existence of reprehensi-
ble young woman from whom Regina
had won Phil. and that he had induced
her TO DO so. and when Phil called her,
by way of pet name, a synonym, he
asked for no explanation OF the joke,
if joke he considered it 1t was Phil
only who could have told what an up
hill task he had in convincing Regina
that If he loved now, so had he loved
her always. How many times before
the summer was over did he hold his
breath thinking of his step-mOther's
imagination and his fathers credulity.
To have said he was engaged TO her
was ever Regina's grievance, and it
was difficult TO persuade her that what
was once fiction of others should be
fact OF their own And indeed he
made little Roadway until he found out
that she liked men in business after
she found he was in brewery, and
that Wall street was not enticing to
her.
But of course it all came right at
last. and every one was satisfied. And
when Phil went into politics and made
short brilliant campaign, both the
fathers were delighted. and Regina in
Washington was more charming than
ever TO them.
And so Mr.. Fields pride and COM
placency over his feat always remind
me of Jack Horner. 1t is all very well
to be proud of your plum, but where
should one look for plums if not in a
Christmas pie?-Hdrper'S BczGr.
- -