Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1899-06-24

lHN NOullSn NllulNll, anu 90 n hoNNNA VI
fact, if one believed in Revelation there
is no other possible church for sensible
person to belong to-"
The speaker was Miss Clare Wynne,
an artist by profession. She was essen
TALLY a product of the latter end of the
nineteenth century. In no other era
could she have flourished as she was GER
tainly doing at present. The child Of
well-to-do people of the upper middle
class who had, however, no very strong
religious convictions, she had been
highly educated as far as her mind went
but her soul had been subjected to a
spiritual starvation which resulted in her
becoming what she termed a free
thinker" She was twenty-five now, a
bright, winsome, we'll set up girl with a
mild, sweet expression of countenance
that was utterly at variance with her pro-
nounced views and self-will, for she was
terribly self-willed.
Her companion was man who tow
cred above her in height and was proper
tionately built. He was not particularly
handsome, but had pleasing face and
manly, erect carriage. He was Clare's
affianced lover, Ernest Ward, the son and
heir of country gentleman of large for
tune, and he worshipped Clare with all
the strength of his mind and body. He
loved her with an intensity of love that
does not fall to every ones share and
treated her with reverential tenderness
that even she, with all her advanced ideas
of womans equality with the sterner
sex, could not but accept as the recogni
ton of her feminine frailty. In theory
she repudiated the idea of receiving
those small attentions and that delicate
courtesy which chivalrous man delights
in paying to womankind; she fattered
herself that she would have been better
pleased had Ernest met her upon more
equal terms, but we doubt nevertheless
whether she would have obtained the
satisfaction she fondly imagined from
such a course of procedure.
The betrothed pair had just left the
Church of the Immaculate Conception in
Farm street, London, where Ernest had
been assisting at benediction and Clare
had been feasting her aesthetic soul on
the beauties of the ceremony. They
were going to Clare's studio to view her
latest picture intended for the Royal
Academy exhibition. Ernest was look
ing troubled, as we'll he might, for the
following reasons.
Twelve months previously he had be-
come engaged to Clare Wynne, and now
in the meantime he had, during a tour
abroad, become convinced of the claims
of the Catholic religion to be the only
true one. To be convinced with him was
a near preliminary to being received into
the church, and so today, the feast of
Our Lady's Nativity, found him in real
truth a sincere Catholic. All his thoughts
were now for Clare, but his prayers and
efforts for her conversion to Christianity
had been so far unavailing.
~
The studio was reached, and Ernest
gently Invested Clare of her hat and
jacket, she submitting with very good
good grace for one of her Wanted opin-
ions.
She had chosen "The Death of St.
Agnes" as her subject, and well had her
talented brush done the work.
isn't she lovely" she cried, drawing
aside the curtain which hid her now
finished work, and Ernest gazed at it
long and rapturous!y "What inspiration
prompted you 70 choose that subject"
he asked at length. "If you were
Catholic in heart and soul as well as
being the little genius you are, it could
not have been done better.
ooh, flatterer!" exclaimed Clare, but
with heightened color that certainly
did not indicate displeasure. "Why
should l not take that subject as we'll as
any other from mythology; it is just"
She broke off suddenly as look at Ern-
est's face revealed if not actual displeas-
ure at least a certain disappointment.
81 beg your pardon" she said, "Pm
treading on your pet corn now, am l not1
Dul you khOW HuieS III SOe lhdb 1ON ~
lieved all these-these things" She had
been going to say fables" from sheer
force Of habit.
Ernest had recovered. He put his arm
round her slender waist and drew her
over to the large window.
Poor, little heathen," he said. eff
you could only share my happiness to-
day."
81 am very happy" Clare pouted,
with pretty shrug that was more indi-
cative of the spoiled child than of the
strong minded women of many rights.
"Well, let us sit down here" said
Ernest, pulling up lounge. 81 want to
talk to you seriously" And talk seri-
ously he did, putting before her the re-
sponsibilities which had come to him
with his new religion. Clare listened to
it all with comparative calmness till there
came the question of the promise that
would be exacted from her of allowing
any children of their marriage to be
brought up as Catholics. 81 could not
possibly promise such a thing. / have
been very liberal; you know believe in