The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1898-01-12
A PROBLEM SOLVED.

ANY children querled Rose gently.
he Lad just given her the interesting
information that he was Il widowCr, al
though so young---35 at the outside
Gone, - he admitted, and his detected
tone seemed to imply that that one was
all unsatisfactory possession-not quite
right in its head, perhaps, or disGsured
with harelip. "We bad only been
married year. you know. She died
when it was born.
"Ah-h.' brcathed Rose, with soft IN.
tensity. She did not like to say more.
and the womanly pity yelling out TO
him in his misfortune was sufficiently
expressed. Having CONSUMED the after
dinner cigarette, indulged in at her ur-
gent bidding, he was at liberty to re
spond to it. They exhaled their slshs
together. 1t was. i'll fact, particularly
sympathetic pight-mild, still, solitary,
with beautiful moon. They sat out III
it alone, tete-a-tete, OH hammock chairs,
free to sit thus till bedtime, while their
host and hostess, her uncle and aunt,
dozed over newspaper and knitting IN
the drawing rGcm behind them, the
world forgetting, by the world forget.
'Son or daughter Miss Lascellcs
asked after pause, not willing to break
the thread of such an exquisite subject.
ga boy" said Mr. Bell, still with
that unfatherly air of discomfort. Some
times l wish it was girl. She could
lock after me by and by. l could have
her trained to be my housekeeper and
sew my buttons on-that sort of thing,
you know.
You would have to wait long
time" said Rose. "Judging hy-by
your looks" she turned adn,iring eyes
upon his very comely person, sit must
be a perfect infant at present. y
"Quite an infant-that is-let me see
Ia months and u little over. Yes, it
will be Is 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 al
odd, mirthful way, "you needn't waste
your pity ON him, Miss Lascleles He's
all right-rolls in fat-never allied a
thing in his life-miebt take the prize
in a baby show. So they tell me. 1
haven't seen him myself for {; good
while"
"You haven't:'' cried Rose, smiling
ly indignant. "Well, you are nice
sort of parent, l must say Don't you
have him with you at home, then?''
81 haven't got home | gave it up
when my poor girl died. What's the
use of home to me? should never be
there. My business takes ME all over
the country, and You can't leavea house
and a young child to servants. The lit
tie time that / did try to carry on by
myself they played the deuce with ev-
erythiug, child and all. One woman
started feeding it with thick arrowroot.
She'd have killed it to certainty
eyes, indeed. The ideal But it's in
credible what some fools of women Will
do in the way of lnismanaging a baby.
! used to see great deal Of that when
was a district visitor.
"A mother of half :, dozen, too,' said
MIR. Bell reflectively, lighting another
cigarette "Then girl who'd never
had any took to the job like duck to
water-knew just what TO do and how
to do it. l Will say that for her.
The instinct is in US all, y remarked
Miss Lascelles dreamiiy to the man in
the moon, who seemed to survey the
couple with his tongue ia his check,
cor if not it ought TO he. I'm sure
could give many mother points, as
you call it,
eve no doubt you could. heard
somebody say the other day that moth
ers are born, not made-verv true too.
You sec it III the little girls nursing
their dolls. I don't think anything Of Il
she child that doesn't want a doll as
soon as it can speak"
Il always loved them" declared
Rose
He leaned forward to look at I. spi-
der's web that the silver light had just
touched, making it shine ont from its
background of dark leaves and vcranla
post, and there was danger Of rupture
to the delicate thread Of the topic that
was weaving 20 charming a converse
tion, wherefore the young lady hasten
ed to inquire what had become Of his
little son.
II suppose" she said, she is with
his mothers people,
Slowly resuming his attitude of re-
pose, Mr.. Bell puffcd awhile in silence;
then answered: Moo, not exactly.
With friend of his mother $, not her
family. Unfortunately her family is in
England; so is mine. Neither Of Us had
a soul here belonging to us. That was
just the difficulty"
1T must have been great Difficult
ty," murmured Rose in feeling tone.
II believe you," asScntcd Mr.. Bell,
with emphasis. In fact, it put me into
the most ridiculous hole. the mCst coli
founded fiX-Cne that j can't for the
life Of me see my way cut Of, one that
However, l mustn't talk about it to
you It's not thing that che ought to
talk about to anybody"
And yet he yearned to talk about it
now and to this particularly sympa-
thetic woman, who was not young and
gi6Gy, trt, like himself, far out CT her
teens and experienced in t-e troubles of
life such as weighed him down. There
was something about her, he thought,
that irresistibly appealed to him, and
ne did not know what; but an author,