Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1894-08-31


anything by singing"
I'm afraid you're right, darling"
said her husband, gloomily, as he clink-
ed the few half dollars remaining in his
pockets. You could never make
public appearance unless'-and here
he smiled ut the quaintness of the idea
unless you make il In the public
streets, like that girl we saw with
crowd around her the other night, don't
you know? How delighted your amia-
BILE parent-confound him! would be If
he knew it, Wonder what he'd do!'
Julia was always ready to laugh at
quaint conceit, even in the midst Of
her poverty. But she did not laugh
now. She started as Van spoke, and
turned quickly away from the table.
Van rose also, went TO his easel, be-
gan disappearing nature, and in that
pleasing occupation very soon forgot
about old Sladger and the cantatrce
of the pavement.
All that day Julia was exceedingly
quiet and thoughtful.
Van, dear" said Julia suddenly
when they had been sitting talking for
some tim after tea, I'm going out"
"All right" said Van, I'm ready.
Where do you want to go?"
"Oh, not far, lNere are several little
things to buy. j can get them quite
well by myself. You needn't come"
Needn't come! But don't like your
going out ut night alone, dear. Besides
why should you go aloneY
For n wOman's reason. Because I
want to. Now don't be angry, Van.
You must let me have my own way. 1
won't come to any harm, l promise
you" And Van gave In, of course.
But he had y fresh remonstrance TO
make when he s,lw Julia wrap herself
IN faded old black shawl, and put on
h bonnet which had long been seen not
, anly its best but pretty nearly its
Worst days.
What on earth are you putting on
those wretched old things for?" he in
CURED. I'VE are poor enough, goodness
knows but you must have some re-
spectacle clothes left, anyhow"
Fer the sake of economy. 1 don't
care how l look about here" and with
that she hurried out.
Julia walked rapidly looking neither
to the right nor left. She feared if she
proceeded slowly, or hesitated. the cour-
age to carry out the resolution she had
made might ooze away.
At last she arrived near her fathers
house, handsome corner building. 1t
was about o o'clock. and old Sam and
his guests, for he was giving a dinner
party, were in the brilliantly lighted
dining room.
Sam Sladger had changed good deal
since his daughters departure from
home He looked aged and haggard.
He missed her sorely, and yearned to
L, 4
stuck stubbornly to his determination
to have nothing farther to do with her.
He had found, too. TO his bitter an
noyance that the opinion of nearly all
his friends was that he had treated his
daughter with undue harshness and Sc
verify, not to say actual cruelty. He
feared that vandeleur might be driven
by poverty TO resort TO some shady
means of getting a living that might
present themselves, and he was filed
with n vague terror that he might there
by find himself-the respected Sladger
involved indirectly In some scandal
brought about by his son-in-law.
The old man then, was not happy.
But on this particular evening he was
less unhappy than he had been for a
considerable time, for among the guests
was one of the "nobs' he worshipped.
well, as / was saying" remarked
the aristocratic gentleman, continuing
conversation, there was quite
scene. Regular excitement; everybody
upset. l don't say there was anybody
/ in particular TO blame. But a scene is
n thing / cannot really stand; and so
I've never been TO the house since"
There was n murmur of applause at
this very spirited and aristocratic way
of treating the affair." which had hardly
died away when Sladger's face sudden
ly became ashy pale.
| He hurriedly drank n glass Of wine,
and listened with feverish eagerneSs,
for ii was something he had heard
which had caused the blood quickly to
| leave his cheeks. Yes, there was no
mistake. .Tremulous and low at first,
| but growing louder and clearer now,
| wOm9n's voice singing Il simple bal
Lad could be heard
! There was nothing much in that to
! other hearers, but there was n good
! deal in ii to old Sladger. 1t was his
daughters voice. Surely he could not
/ be mistaken. Making some trivial eX-
cuSe for going to the window, he raised
I the curtains and looked out. There
| before his very doorstep was small
crowd; one of those crowds which
/ spring up in New York as if by magic;
and in the center of it was a young
woman wrapped in a faded and old
| black shawl, with patched and shriv-
elled bonnet on her head. In spite of
this it was clear from her general
appearance and the timidity of her
manner that she was not woman
accustomed to get her living by singing
/ in the streets. Some in the crowd
were sympathetic, others were mirth-
full, and others again, merely looked
on and listened, and wondered vague
! ly.
Old Sam knew her in moment.
He had not mistaken the voice. 1t was
his daughter he saw before him. He
looked out at her for some moments,
unable to decide how to act. He must
not have scene, and he must have
his daughter. He cursed himself for
having held out so long. This sort Of
thing must be put stop to at all haz-
ards. His daughter singing in the
streets! 1t would certainly come to be
known and talked about. The scandal
| would no tOO great