The Florence daily tribune., 1899-01-09
THE CONQUEST OF 4
MRS. VIVIAN. |
BY cHsRLEs-kEnSETT sURRow.
THE BRIsTJs7E garden party wa.

delicious responsibility of Jack Nivi-
an, the sense OF duty theory collapsed.
Mrs. Vivian, ! thought. had been in
clined 10 treat me somewhat coldly,
and / wondered, rather angrily, how
she came to have such daughter as
Jack. There was a certain vague sem
blance between them, certainly, but
nothing could convince me that Mrs.
Viviau had ever been slight, and my
imagination was not strong enough
even TO suggest that she had ever been
irresponsible.
There were not more than half a
dozen people whom l knew. and of
them not more than two whom / cared
TO talk to. Most OF the men seemed
to have got together in the middle of
the tennis lawn. the ladies were lam
gushing in the SHADE of the beeches;
only one or two couples seemed TO be
engaged in occupation for which. sure
ly, garden parties alone were invented.
Mrs. Bristowe my hostess, seemed very
much depressed.
"Why don't things move faster, Mr..
Mildmay?' she asked, plaintively
"Why don't those wretched men do
something?"
my dear lady" said, "they never
do at these affairs. l don't know why
il is; perhaps there's too much daylight
for them"
But one must give garden parties" /"
she said.
II thank Providence i have no gar-
den," | said. 81 might manage a little
dance, very little one, in my studio,
but bachelor can't do that kind of
thing, you know"
II wish you'd go and talk to Mrs
Vivian" she said; shes sitting all
alone there. and thinking of nasty
things 10 say afterward."
/ wanted to talk to Mrs. Vivian, so l
went. The fact is, knew that Jack
had great talent for drawing and
wanted to cultivate it, and | had q
vague idea that | might inducS Mrs
Vivian to allow me TO give her daurh-
ter lessons, particularly as it would
cost her nothing 1t was a wild nc
ton, hut worth trying, and Jack agreed
with me. 1 therefore strolled up to
Mrs. Vivian and sat down by her in a
casual way.
The parties here are always SO slow,
aren't they?" she asked.
Are they slower here than anywhere
else?"
II trust ours are not so dull" she
snapped.
"Ah, but you have a genius for social
organization" | said, unblushingly (;
''and so few people have even talent"
| do not wish to depreciate Mrs. Vivian.
but her love of fia,tery was as great as
| her capacity for small and totally pn-
necessary lying. She condesceDded TO
smile upon me. people are so differ
emit" she said.
lyon would notice that all the more
after your stay in the country said.
"How charming the coast is at PEN
quite. and what glorious sketchiLg
ground? | suppose Miss Vivian did
some work there?"
She ignored the last part of my ques-
ton.
''Do you know that part of the
world?" she asked.
"Oh, yes" l said. perfectly
THAT reminds me-" she said, smiling
again, "that met Col. Mildmay at
my cousins house. II did not occur
TO me that he might be relative of
| yours. Is hep
Hes my uncle, and a desr old boy.
too; but don't see much of him now"
Her manner instantly thawed; / be
lieve she had an idea that an artist
must necessarily be the son of a fraud
ulent bankrupt or fourth-rate actor.
| or something of that sort. Then she
condescended to answer my previous
question.
Indeed, how strange that we should
meet in that way. Phoebe painted a
good deal while she was there
] wondered. for moment, who
Phoebe was-I had called her Jack for
quite three months.
felt that | was getting on famously,
| and was just arranging in my mind
how to make the next step when Mrs.
Vivian spoke again.
What a charming place Lord ST,
Alleyn has at Polgarth," she said.
Very" l answered, eying her fur
lively.
And what a delightful man he is"
she said; 1--WE diped there twice.
Hes an old chum of mine" said;
I'VE were up at Oxford together" l
saw her vince, and her manner re-
laNed even further. | felt profoundly
sorry for Jack.
How interesting" she said
II see almost more of him than of
any of the old set said. 1--WE used
to get into glorious scrapes together.
He never did any work"
And l suppose you did?- she sug-
gested.
"A little" I admitted.
"oh, you young men," she laughed.
and wagged her false old head.
have not. as rule, been a particu-
larlylucky man, but certainly that aft
ernson the fates were on my side. AS