New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-11-27


Salome
Then she recalled the exact ntonaton Of Portia
Nunallys laugh, and shivcred little as she did
Mrs. Gerry drew herself up. 1t would not do
TO yield in every way just because Saome
not we'll
Il think it's Of consequence for us TO he polite"
she said with some severity land that young
man"
Salome shrugged her shoulders again.
Pm so tired Of hearing about that young
man." she said
You're not tired of hearing me talk about
him." sharply replied Mrs. Gerry, who had
iceting inclination to put her hands on the girl
and shake her. for I've hardly mentioned him.
-
Mother" Salome faced round toward her com
panion, | don't know what shall do if You go
right on about him. ! - here she laughed.
Il don't know but l shall begin 10 cough If
cough you'll be obliged 10 he silent, for can't
hear what you say. Oh. you dear old thing
putting her head on her mothers shoulder, can't
you let me have few absurd notions? What's
the use of being woman if you can't be
reasonable? Just tell me that, will you?'
Mrs. Gerry brcathed long sigh Of relief.
Il must say you are taking full advantage Of
your being a woman she remarked But it
is isn't half so comfortable here. | didn't know
there such difference
After a while during which Salome had her
face steadily turned toward the window, with
out seeing anything, she began to repent that
she had taken this sudden action. But it was
not the kind OF repentance which leads to re-
formation
Her face gradually took on its most serious
expression.
She was going through one OF her habtual
processes of determination. and she was finding
herself very rcprchcnsible creature. She was
afraid there hardly leavcn Of good in her
She was quite discouraged about herself. She
had not had what she would have called "eood
spell" at determination since she had first
known she going to Florida.
She was convinced that determination was
an extremely wholesome process because il wiltcd
one so and was so diSagreeabe. Sometimes It
required full twenty four hours for her to re-
cover and regain anything like comfortable
view of herself after Of these spells.
Bnt thus far in her life she had found il an
absolute necessity 10 examine her own soul at
frequent intervals. and with a rigdncss and
lcntlessncss that would have suggested the prob
ability Of her finding some terrible moral cankcr
spot
At these times it if her identity were
under microscope and she had her eye upon
it, She found herself under that magnifying
power 10 be quite monster Of sin, and she was
fcrocious in her Judgment Of herself.
Was il at such times, and for hours after
such periods that her face had that austerc look
which was in such marked contradiction TO the
face ITSELF
Mrs. Gerry had had occasion more than once
during Salomcs childhood to demonstrate with
her upon her tendency 10 morbid conscien
tiousncSs.
The mother had told her husband that Salomo
growing too fast, that she did not sleep
enough that she must be out Of doors more. The
woman watching her child with healthy common
sense as we'll as with love- decided a. that cyni-
cal Tcnchman had long AGO decided. that the
conscience Of an extremely healthy human hcing
is usually quicscent, whether that human being
he good or bad But there was no cynicism in
this New-England woman's decision: and she
would have been ineXpcsSby shocked had she
ever thought TO carry out this kind of reasoning
still further.
Prosper Mcrmcc's recipe for the preservation
of hcauty-"a hard heart and n good Digestion
Is an excellent recipe for the procuring Of a
certain kind of mental rcpose that is. If a person
is willing 10 dcgcncrat" into pagan
Randolph Moore had never in his life had an
honr Of serious sclf-cXamnaton
There wasn't bit Of use in any such kind Of
thing that He meant 70 do about the riclt
thing. and if that wasn't enough he should like
20 know what Vas enough He wasn't going
in for that kind Of rot, not he II took all the
vim olt of fellow. Why fellow wasn't bet
ter than a wet rag if lie were continually poking
about in his spirituality, and GshIny up This or
that dreadful thing and making 10 end Of a row
over it. Why, contradictorily he knew a man
in his class in college who was always nm ~
that sort OF thing, digging down into himself
and analyzlng motives. and that He was an
awfulIy good fellow, too smart as a trap: lie
was minister now. He Moore wouldn't like
70 he one Of his congregation but Their. was
no mlk-sop about that fellow either-haI moral
courage, and moral courage was a thinp most
folks didn't have. 1t was easy enough IN Inc
brave physically, but when
So Moore uscl TO talk when he was mon fine
subject OF that classmarc Of his and the mare
mpersonal one Of determination
Al this moment this young man was in ,ho
smoking-car He did not care much for SMOKING
He said 1t was bcasty-whch il isn't as beasts
have no such human procliYitics, and besides. 10
baccO left such Il taste in ones mouth
Moore had walked Il GOOD deal up and down
the train, but so far during the day he had
kept himself from entering II particular sleeper
he had made a resolve that he would not be
hanging about them al the time He did not
find it necessary 10 explain who it was he meant
by them" And he didn't know but that they
might suspect something when the darkey Of.
fercd them breakfast. Perhaps he had gone too
far that time
lie played railroad whist" with some men, who
seemed if they would 90 on shunling and
dealing those cards for years, chewing the ends
Of their big black cigars they did 50, and
eruntng rather than speaking the few words
necessary to he uttered. At last Moore fatty
refused 10 continue lie looked at his watch.
lie glanced out Of the window. There were the
Carolina pines, ard there were the negroes rolling
about the barrels OF tar