Willmar tribune., 1899-10-04

Sne mounted the steps or the handsome
house, Virginia breathed q sigh$of res
lief, even il the face Of the interview
with her grand mother, and when the
door shut and she was in the wide hall
with her homeless outcast she felt equal
to any thing that might now come.
Mime. Page was in the library. Hear
ing Virginia come in, she came into the
hall Virginia stood there supporting
Loreen, who stared stupidity at the rich
magnidcence Of the furnishings around
her. .1*.s s4S*. 5s5':5: s. s.<z 4:2 nv
. Grandmother - Virginia spoke
without hesitation and very clearly
81 have brought one Of my friends
from the Rectangle. She is:in trouble
and has no home. am going to care
for her a little while 7 .-.:< z.... "a
" Nine Page glanced from her grand
daughter to Loreen in astonishment.
'sDid you say: she was one Of your
friends q she asked in cold, sneering
voice that hurt Virginia more than any
thing she had yet felt. =sz==,.. ~, =.
Eyes; i said so, y Virginia's face
flushed, but she seemed to recall the
verse that Mr.. Gray had used for one
of his recent sermons, IA friend of pub.
licans and sinners" Surely Jesus would
do this that she was doing. a.
''Do you know what this girl is?'
asked Nine. Page in an angry whisper.
stepping near Virginia. j. u.
II know very we'll She is an out
cast. You need not tell me, grand
mother. I know it even better than you
do. She is drunk at this minute. But
she is also a child of God. have seen
her on her knees repentant, and have
seen hell reach out its horrible fingers
after her again, and, by the grace Of
Christ. I feel that the least can do is
to rescue her from such peril. Grand
mother, we call ourselves Christians
Here is a poor. lost human creature
without home, slipping into possible
eternal loss, and we have more than
enough have brought her here and
shall keep her.
Nine. Page glared at Virginia and
clinched her hands. All this was con-
trary to her social code of conduct.
How could society excuse such famil-
iarity with the sscum of the streets 2
What would Virginia's S actions cost the
family in the way Of criticism and the
loss of standing and all that long list of
necessary relations which people Of
wealth and position must sustain to the
leaders of society? To Nine Page So
ciety represented more than the church
or any other institution. It was pow
er to be feared and obeyed. The loss Of
it's good will was loss more to be
dreaded than anything. except the loss
Of wealth itself
She stood erect and stern and con-
fronted Virginia, fully reused and de-
termined Virginia placed her arm
about Loreen and calmly looked her
grandmother in the face.
''You shall not do this, Virginia
You can send her to the asylum for
helpless women. We can pay all the ex
penses We cannot afford, for the sake
Of our regulations. to shelter such a
person
"Grandmother, I do not wish to do
anything that is displeasing to you
but am. going to keep Loreen here to:
night and longer if I think it is best.
'"Then you can answer for the conse-
quences. I do not stay in the same
house with a miserable''- Nine. Page
lost her self control Virginia stopped
her before she could speak the next
word.
"Grandmother, this house is mine.
It is your home with me as long as you
choose to remain, but in this matter I
shall act as fully believe Jesus would
in my place. I am willing to bear all
that society may say or do. Society is
not my God. By the side of this poor,
lost soul do not count the verdict of
society as Of any value
81 shall not remain here, then, said
Nine. Page. She turned suddenly and
walked to the end of the hall. She then
came back and said, with an emphasis
that revealed her intense excitement
and passion:
''You can always remember that you
have driven your grandmother out Of
your house in favor of drunken wom-
an" Then, without waiting for Vir-
ginia to reply, she turned again and
went up stairs.
Virginia called for servant and
soon had Loreen cared for. She was fast
lapsing into wretched condition. Dur
ing the brief scene in the hall she had
clung to Virginia so hard that Vir-
ginia's arm was sore from the clutch Of
the girls fingers. r..
f. Virginia did not know whether her
grandmother would leave the house or
not. She had abundant means Of her
own, was perfectly well and vigorous
and capable of caring for herself. She
had sisters and brothers living in the
south and was in the habit Of spending
several weeks in the year with them.
Virginia was not anxious about her
welfare, so far as that went, but the in
terview had been a painful one to her.
Going over it, as she did in her room
before che went down to tea, she found
little cause forregret, however. hat
would Jesus do There was no ques-
tion in Virginis's mind that she had
done the right thing. If she had made
9 mistake, it was one Of the judgment
and not Of the heart. hen the bel
rang for tea, she went down. and he1
grandmother did not appear. She sent
q servant to her room, and the servant
brought back word that Mime. Page
was not there. a few minutes latel
Rollin came in He sbrough ghtsWord thai
his grandmother had taken the evening
train. for the south. He had been a
the station to5ses some friends off ant