Wichita eagle., 1890-01-15

| A few minutes later was in the conversa-
tory, lounging in delicious chair; beoom
| ing pink lantern swung above my head Up
| posite me, his chair drawn close to mime, sat
| a well proomed gentleman in evening dress,
| with expressive eyes and a vivacious, in
teliisent face. A charming picture OF man
ners, is it nota
Little by little gave myself UP to the
pleasure of the moment, which, when all Is
| said, is considerable.
He Is not the Philip of last year, but he has
! the same eyes and the same voice. The Philip
| of Last year never, indeed, existed, save in
my imagination; but have caught the trick
| of bien-efre In the society of this person who
| looks like him; of baking in the glow Of that
| radiant vitality, the warmth of thatmagnetic
presence.
.sMay take you in to supper?" said Philip
presently.
81 have arranged to &c in with Sir Guy
Ormond."
He looked at me curiousiy.
"The bloated arisocrat, But perhaps he
is friend Of yoursa'
81 was introduced to him tonight
"He's good fellow; a little sentimental
and dilettante, but you can afford to be sem
timental on thirty thousand year"
Thirty thousand a yearl Sir Guy was
person Of more importance than l had i'm
agined. dropped my eyes to my fan, and
Philip went on in his familiar, hooking
fashion,:
'Do you love blue books? Are you de-
voted to poor law reportss What is your
opinion Of Toynbee Hall? And when, Miss
Virginia Warwick, were you last at the Peo-
Piles palscea By such paths lies the way to
the royal favor"
looked up and met the glance, hooking
and serious and curiously intent, of his brill
liant eyes, At the same moment some one
brushed through the ferns and lounges to
where we sat and announced himself as my
partner for the next waltz
1t was Sir Guy Ormond.
Philip rose at once, with an air of ostenta-
tious magnanimity, a flourish of fair play in
every line of him. The look in his eyes stung
me. Was he insulting me, this polite person,
bowling himself gracefully aways But, after
all, is there any deeper wrong, any crueler
insult left for him to offer!
Let me write it down, once for ell, that
we must remain forever unspoken, unex-
pressed
If a man stabs you, or robs you, or injuries
your fair fame, do you take these things at
his hands in slences Even If he escapes the
worlds punishment, do you smile upon him
in the face of the world?
Idle questions, no doubt.
And II shall go on smiling at Philip to
the end of the chapterl
Ii.
I wonder, sometimes, that we do not go
oftener to the bad we girls Of well to do
classes.
If you come to think of it, it is q curious
ordeal we pass through at the very outset of
our career. Take girl in the school room
and see what her life is.
A dingy room, dowdy dresses, bread and
butter, and governessesi In all the house
hold there is perhaps no person of less inn
portance than she. Then, one day, this
creature, knowing nothing Of the world, and
less, if possible, of herself, is launched on the
stream of fashionable or pseudo-fashionable
life. At what has been hitherto her bedtime,
she is arrayed gorgeously, whirled through a
gas lit city, and finally let loose in crowded
ball room, there to sink or swim. There are
lights jewels, heavy scents and dreamy, de-
hrious music; it is all whirl, clatter, a
profusion. And there are a great many
people, gay, good looking, well dressed. One
person comes to her again and again. He is
great deal older then she, with all the as
surance Of strength and experience Defer
entail and tyrannical he entreats and COM
mauds at ono and the same time. And he
has a strange power of sympathy, wonder
full insight into her innocence; knows her
better than herself, it seems, this charming,
clever person. Everywhere he follows her
about; with every look with every tone, he
Gays: 81 love you"
She does not know why she is so happy.
All day long she dreams, dreams, or gossips
of the night to come. II she thinks at all
about h, she thinks prim thoughts such as
have been instilled into her, and which have
nothing to do with what she feels. The nat
ural promptings of her modesty she mistakes
for resistance to this unknown force, which
is drawing her to itself as inevitably as the
magnet draws the needle. With her little
prudish defenses, she believes herself equipped
for any fray; she feels SO strong, and, OIL
God, she is SO weak One day a bolt falls
from the clear sky; he is going to be mar
ried to a woman of fortune, of good connec-
tons; he is away in the country wooing his
rich bride. Pshaw, what a rhode
montadel
All the girls, nearly, have gone through il;
every one knows how Carrie lost her looks
after she came homes from Cowes, and how
Blanche fell OFF to a skeleton the year Fred
Birch was married. Carrie looked blooming
enough in the park the other day In her new
carriage; and Blanche is fatter than her hus-
band which is saying a great deal Not go
to the bad? But perhaps a good many of us
do go after all, though the badness is not
sort which demands the attention Of philan-
thropists, such, for instance, as Sir Guy Or
mond.
Sir Guy Ornond is very strong on all social
questions. He is also an agnostic, and
socialist of an advanced type. He regards
the baronetcy conferred on his father, be-
nevolent mill owner at Darlington, in the
light of burden and an indignity.
How do / come by my factsl I cleaned
them from no less person than Sir Guy
himself, in the course of two dances and q
hasty supper.
The hmpid fuency of that young mans
discourse Is something astonishing. How
ever, he is quite intelligent, in stupid way,
and quite good. Not an atom OF vice IN his
composition, should say, and not an atom
of humor
Mrs Philip Shand called on me some days
after the Westerleighs' party. She has that
air of putuianoe, of protest, that l have often
noticed in very rich people. They have got
In the way of expecting too much.
You set golden casefor happiness
And 10. the uncertain creature tiutters by
To settle on your neighsor's hand, who has
Perhaps no cage at ell
So much for the vanity Of riches.
Mrs. Philip was polite enough in her vague,
dumb way, and hoped we should meet that
night at the Rochamptons' dinner party. We
did meat and PbiliD was told off to take me