The advocate., 1894-03-14

ness is seen by eager eyes from the
windows of some mansions too.
After supper John went to a barber
shop and was shaved; and even in
dulged in the unusual luxury of pro-
fessional "shine" put on his boots by
the barber-shop artist in black. The
greatest men are sometimes guilty of
folly to please women. Tradition says
that even Aristotle let a pretty young
woman make a ridiculous fool Of him
by getting him to walk on all fOurs and
pretend he was donkey while she sat
on his back. So let us pardon John
his disposition to "fix up'' for this odd
visit of his. He wished to go; in fact
he felt that common good manners
made it his duty to go; yet he dreaded
it almost as much as if he were going
to be hanged. What should he do and
say when he got thereP Suppose Maj.
Delorme should be there? Was he
not making arrangements to get into a
lot of trouble? These thoughts and
many others like these passed through
his mind as he wended his anxious
way to the fine residence Of Maj. De-
lorme.
He rang the bell at last about s
O'Clock and the door was almost i'm
mediately opened by Mrs. Delorme
herself. She greeted him cordially,
perhaps eagerly, and led the way to a
back parlor which, in Johns opinion
at least, was magnifcently fitted and
furnished; and in the MONDAY eff
fulgence Of the electric lights he for
the first time had good look at his
hostess. Mrs. DelOrme was tall and
heavy, with the form and easy look Of
a JeWess, but her hair was light and
her eyes blue, and her complexion sug-
gested a delicate, perennial blush. She
had seen nearly fifty summers; but,
save for a certain fullness of figure,
she might easily have passed for thirty.
Her pleasant cOrdiality put John at his
ease, and in few minutes he was as
little self-conscious as if such visits to
handsome women had been everyday
affairs with him.
81 wished particularly to see you
this evening, Mr.. Cotterell," said she,
"and so took the liberty of asking you
to call. 1t is kind of you to heed the
request of so total a stranger"
am be glad if there's anything | can
do to oblige you," answered John.
"You said you were interested in So
cialism."
"Indeed l am deeply interested in it;
but, as have no doubt your penetra-
tion has already apprised you, my en-
vironment is not highly favorable to
the cultivation of the philosophy. My
husband is a business man, with the
ideas, views and feelings of his class;
and, of course, he thinks socialism not
only moon-shine but an abominable
Of course, he knows moth
ing whatever about it, and he would
be highly displeased if he knew have
been studying it. He is a good hus-
band, but he has the old time notion
that wife should subject her thoughts,
as well as her will, to her husbands
conception of propriety. cannot do
that, nor do Ithink l should. A hus-
band is not husband merely; he is a
man. Why should not a wife be
woman as we'll as wifep | rebel
against the Byronic idea that
Love is Of mans nature a thing apart
tbs woman's whole existence"
1t is not her whole existence and can
not be. Has she not reason and as
pirations as we'll as affectionsp l have,
at least, and 1 do not believe | am
bound to extinguish them out of re-
spect for foolish and harmful social
If the Major wished to
take up socialism would he ask my
permissionH And why may not l use
my mind as seems best to me?'
"You are right, Mrs. Delorme.
Y ou'd be a slave to do otherwise.
"Now that we understand each