St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-03-27
AN UNWOMANLY WOMAN.
New York Times.

servants must be discharged except De-
borah, who should be caretaker and
prepare her masters breakfast, and
Paul must dine at the club, and, thank
goodness. they had friends who would
try to make the time pass pleasantly for
him. There were the Revells, the Nun
sons, the RobinsOns-yes, and the Du-
points, too, they were such good COM
pany, and one must not believe all one
hears-and Paul did need busting after
a day among the books.
So Ella communed as she packed,
wiping away furtive tear the while,
for she was a tender little thing. and
had never been separated from her hus-
band, and so it was arranged.
"Sister Anne will arrive to relieve me
certainly within a month";" she SAID III
parting. "And then | shall return, and
it will be as if hadn't been away. SO
write every day and try to keep happy.
and wear your rubbers, and do find
some enjoyment outside that stupid
library, and-and--Oh, there's the
whistle! Do hurry and don't jump. God
bless you, my precious one! Teddy,
look out the window and KISS 90 mana
to 90 papa"
Paul Minturn's throat troubled him as
he fastened from the car, and his eye
glasses grew so opaque as the train
rolled away that he couldn't distln-
guish his heirs salutation. What
dear. sweet little wOman-the dearest,
the sweetest in the world! Well, per-
hapS it was beneficial to once climb the
heights of Absence, and thus obtain
full view of the Valley of Felicity. Be-
sides. in few weeks she would return,
and their old life would be their new.
Meanwhile
Meanwhile, Paul was busy man. as
the competent head of the great Claren-
don library must needs be. On the pad
which lay on his desk were fifty impor-
tant memoranda of things to be done.
He bethought him OF these and boarded
a passing car and returned to his work,
and throughout the day was absorbed
by it. So, too, was Ella abSorbed-but
with visions of her husband.
Paul Minturn looked the scholar tina
he was. He was tall and slender, with
a pale face and clOSe-crOpped brown
beard. and glasses which Scintillated
until he removed them, and one per-
ceiyed that it was his blue eyes that aid
the sparkling. One also perceived at
the same instant that he was much
Younger man than he had seemed. In
deed, Paul possessed two personalities.
The more youthful one he put on after
sunset. At the library he was demure,
stiff, earnest man. AT home with the
children he was rOmp. with Ella an
ardent young husband, with their friends
and these were as numerous as they
pleased-"the life of the party"
"W ait until Paul Minturn comes" his
admirers would say, and then the cur
tain will rise. And so it was. Formal
lily, his auxiliary by day, was his beaten
zoe by night. He was no sooner i'll
trenched before fortress Of stupidity
than he occupied it. What store Of
gayety he could concentrate, to be surel
Did ever one laugh so contaglously or
| sing so blithely or weave tales so enter
tainingly! He toiled in the prison OF
| duty all day and forgot that it was a
| prison; but when the gates were
| open, he remembered and rejoiced
that both he and the night were
| young. He was popular with
| the women for these qualities, and with
| the men because he seemed unconscious
of their liking. And there was no de-
! ceit in this appearing. He had mar
ried the one he loved, and he loved her
the more after marriage. This love
! gave him caste, which he sci upulously
respected, and to which no one save
| Ella could belong. He had, however,
from this very saDctlty, an Indifference,
| which, Joined to a somewhat caresslng
| manner, gave him all enticing charm
| for those TO whom a charm can be en-
| ticing.
Naturally, then, the RevellS, the Mum
sons, the RObinSons, did not suffer their
| friend Paul TO langulSh IN loneliness.
No, the pad on his desk was each day
! surrounded by dainty little notes, and
husbands VINO were accused of stopping
| in the club nights before dinner were
| excused if they brought Paul with
them. As for the DupOnts, of whom
Ella had spoken somewhat obviously,
their c0mpanlonShip, as often happens in
such cases, passed from the conditional
into the indicative mood
For one recognized thing, Robert Du-
pont, the husband, a successful mor-
chaut of acute inquiring mind, was a
man after Paul's heart; for another,
vet unknown, EdiCh, the wife, was a
woman who appealed to the weaknesses
of his nature. Ella had heSitated
slightly in their intimacy because, in
fact, there was certain Col. Ashford,
with whose name Mrs. Dupont'S was
sometimes whispered. All, what con-
stantly increasing circles the tinlest
pgbble of a whisper will generated She
had hesitated, therefore, because she
was woman,s and, slightly, because
she was herself.
Now Paul, in the careless intimacy
which lie gradually formed, considered
| the husband far more than the wife,
Had he analyzed their influence he
would have said that the fOfmer was
actively attractive and the latter
passively repellant. The one, at least,
can talk and smoke. AS for the other
what was there in her to like? She sell
dom smoke, and when she did she didn't
say anything except complaints or ROD
ert. She never did anything except loll
and fan and toy with her rings. unless,
indeed, there were sweets or wine, and
then she was greedy. She was so large,
so colorlesS, so languOrOuS. Her eyes
were so black and so dilated She was
such a contrast to his little Ella Aas
provoking as the shade of a tulip OIL a
iily of the valley. "Confound the wOnl-
amp Paul used to sOlilOquize as he
walked home. IF | were bound to such
an inert lump think would shoot my
self" And yet. once and again, he
checked idle thoughts about her, and
once and again she obtruded Oh his
dreams.
One evening, after dinner at the cluD'
Paul walked leisurely around to the Du-
points to keepan engagement for whist,
which he had made the previous week.
He went rather reluctantly, for he
Shrewdly suspected that the gallant
| colonel would be a fourth. and he didn't
relish the idea.
by Jove," he muttered. ats too
bad-and Bob is so generous, so unsuS-
pecting."
He entered the tiny reception room,
Eastern in its barbaric luXurlance. His
hostess half rose from the cushions OF
the dlvan and gave him her warm white
hand, then sank back comfortably.
81 am early" ne began.
"Oh. no."
"Where's Bob then. the lazy fellow?
is he lingering over his tOllet?"
Bob has been unexpectedly called