Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1897-12-05
ANY children?' queried Rose, gent.

ANY children queried Rose, gent
~.
He had just given her the interest
Ing Information that he was now a
widower, although SO young 35 at the
outside.
One" he admitted; and his detected
tone seemed to imply that one was
an unsatisfactory possession quite
right in its head, perhaps, or disfig-
ured with hare-lip. I'VE had only
been married year, you know. She
died when it was born"
"Ah-h,' breathed Rose, with a soft
intensity. She did not like to say
more; and the womanly pity yelling
out to him in his misfortune was suf-
ficiently expressed Having consumed
the after-dinner cigarette, INDUCED in
at her urgent bidding. he was at lib
erty to respond to it; they exhaled
their signs together. 1t was, in fact.
particularly sympathetic night-mild,
still, solitary, with beautiful moon.
They sat out in it alone, tete-a-tete, on
hammock chairs, free to sit thus till
bedtime, while their host and hostess,
her uncle and aunt, dozed over news
paper and knitting In the drawing
room behind them, the world forget
ting, by the world forgot.
Son or daughter" Miss Lascellus
asked, after pause, not willing to
break the thread of such an exquisite
subject.
"A boy" said Mr.. Bell, still with
that unfatherly air of discomfort.
Sometimes wish it was girl. She
could look after me, by-and-by; /
could have her trained to be my house
keeper and sew my buttons On-that
sort of thing, you know"
you would have to wait a long
time" said Rose. Judging by-by
your looks she turned admiring eyes
upor his very comely person, lit must
be perfect infant at present"
"Quite an infant; that is--let me
seez-iourteen months and little over.
Yes, it will be fifteen months on
Thursday since he was born. And lost
his mother two days after"
poor, poor little thing" calculated
Rose.
oh" laughed the young man, in an
odd, mirthful way, you needn't waste
your pity on him, Miss Lascelles; he's
all right. Rolls in fat-never allied a
Thing in his life--might take the prize
lin baby show. So they tell me. |
haven't seen him myself for a good
while"
sYou haven't?" cried Rose, smiling
indignant. well, you are nice sort
of parent, l must say! Don't you
have him with you at home, them"
Il haven't got home. gave it up
when my poor girl died. What's the
use of a home to me? l should never
be there; my business takes me all
over the country, and you can't leave
house and young child to servants.
The little time that did try to carry
on by myself they played the deuce
with everything, child and all. One
woman started feeding it with thick
,arrowroot. She'd have killed it, to
certainty"
Eyes, indeed. The idea! But it's
incredible what some fools of women
will do in the way of mismanaging
baby. l used to see a great deal OF
that when l was district visitor"
"A mother of half dozen, too" said
Mr.. Bell, refectively, lighting another
cigarette. while a girl, who'd never
had any, took to the job like a duck
to water-knew just what to do and
how to do it. I will say that for her."
1.-THE instinct is in us ALL remarked
Miss Lascelles, dreamily, to the man
in the noon, who seemed to survey
the couple with his tongue In his
cheek. "Or, if not, it ought to be.
Tn. sure l could give many mother
points, as you call it,"
m "I've no doubt you could. I heard
somebody say, the other day, that
mothers are born, not made. Very
trus, too. You see it in the little
Girls nursing their dolls. / would hot
think anything of a she-child that
doesn't want doll as soon as it can
!, speak"
81 always loved them," declared
Z Rose.
He leaned forward to look at a
spiders web that the silver light had
Just touched, making it shine out from;
It's background of dark leaves and
veranda post and there was danger
Of rupture 20 the delicate thread of the
.opl, tat was weaving so charming
conversation. Wherefore the young
lady hastened to inquire what had be-
deme of his little son.
Il suppose" she said, che is with
his mother people?"
Slowly resuming his attitude OF re-
pose, Mr.. Bell pulled awhile in silence,
then answered, Moo, not exactly.
With a friend Of his mothers, not ner
family Unfortunately, her family =
In England; so is mine. Neither o.
us had soul here belonging 70 us.
That was just the difficulty"
at must have been a great difficult
H." mummured Rose, in feeling
lone.
"a believe you," assented Mr.. Bell,
with emphasis. "In fact, 1t put me
Into the most ridiculous hole, the
rnost confounded fix-one that l can't
for the life of me see my way out Of
one that. However, / mustn't talk
about it to you. It's not thing that
one ought to talk about to any0oGy.-
And yet he yearned to talk about it,
and now; and to this particularly
sympathetic woman, who was not
young and giddy, but, like himself,
far out of her teens and experienced in
the troubles of life, such as weighed
him down. There was something
about her." he thought, that 1rresist-
IDLY appealed to him, and he did not
know what; but an author, VINO
I knows everything, knows exactly
what it was. 1t was the moonlight
night.
l,ov hon