Evening journal., 1900-03-16

friends for her husband would not al
low her to receive any one save the
men he brought to their apartments.
She never went ont unless Fanshaw,
suspicious and sardonic, walked az
her side.
The poor woman was virtually a
prisoner. Her beauty was used by
her husband to lure men to his table.
His rabid jealously however, protect
ed her. Fanshaw's guests We're con
tent to admire his wife at safe dis
tance.
One night there came a new victim
TO the gamblers table. He was a
stalwart. handsome pink-cheeked boy.
with honest blue eyes and q good.
clean pair of lips. He was seeing life.
He had money to burn" one of Fan
shaw's familiars informed the gam
bier He burned It in Fanshaw's fat
He came again and again. 1t was
soon palpable 10 all that the copper
haired woman had bewitched the boy
He was simply infatuated with her
beauty and grace. But In vain did he
try to get speech alone with Mrs.
Fanshaw. The dull. smoldering eyes
of Mrs. Fanshaw's husband were ever
upon the pair.
One night Harry Gillette. the lamb
who was slowly but surely being
1eeced by the wolves in the little up
town fat, slipped a note in Mrs. Fan.
shaw's hand She cast one frightened,
imploring look at her husband who.
she well knew. had seen the transac.
tion. She tucked the note away In the
lace of her corsage and in sheer des-
peration faced the reckoning she
knew was impending.
When the last guest had departed.
Fanshaw, who had lost. and conse.
quently was in an ugly mood. turned
savagely on his wife. Give IL 10 me"
he demanded peremptorily She
obeyed.
He read it. and then. lifting his dull.
heavy eyes. said: Men do not write
such notes unless they are eneour.
aged"
Dick. never"
"Of course not Women never do
Now listen. For this / will squeeze
the very blood ont OF that fellow s
veins. Any one can see that he Is mad
about you. Damn him"
He flung the note in her lap Read
it," he commanded. She read.
Dear Mrs Fanshaw: You look so
wretched. so unhappy that it really
makes my heart ache Is there any
way ! can help you? Is Fanshaw as
cruel to you as every one says? Do
let me befriend You. Yours,
-
Dick" she said bravely. chat Is
not a love letter The man Is simply
sorry for me- That's the first kind
words ! have had for years"
We'll. it's the last you'll have for
years" Fanshaw retorted so every
one says I'm cruel to you. BY God Il
I've the name I'll have the game. An.
swer that note. Answer il. / sayl" as
his wife shrunk back before the look
in his face. Tell your lover that you
are wretched and that your only hap
| piness is to see him here every night.
"Oh. Dick. cannot" she moaned.
you will do as I command you,
Fanshaw replied, his smoldering eyes
on hers. How dare you tell me you
cannot?'
Two days after this encounter, Fan
shaw came home looking as genial as
possible for him. He tossed a parce
into his wifes lap as she sat silent
lonely, brooding There; take that,
he said, "and fix it mp and make your
self as pretty as you can when the
boys are here
She opened the package and re
pressed a cry Of plasure. The silver
brocade fell out The sheen and
sparkle Of the splendid fabric would
have appealed to any woman. Mrs
Fanshaw was quito touched by hel
husbands gift. She rose to give him
a timid caress, but he pushed hel
aside. and going to a desk in the cor
ner of his den took a pack of cards
from an inner drawer.
The woman who was watching him
grew pale. She had not seen him brins
out that pack for years. She crossed
the room and looked over his shoulder
as he sat there fumbling and studyinl
them. Dick" she cried what arc
you going to do?"
"Do?" he growled. Pm going to dc
your friend. / see his finish"
Mrs Fanshaw turned without Z
word and went back to her work. Bu
a new light crept in her soft, deeI
eyes and resolute lines curled the
corners of her lips.
The next night she stood before hel
dressing table and regarded hel
beauty with mournful intensity o.
/, | Muhl aNulA Aun IL nNCn W HNA W Hu
had it brought her but misery? AnC
tonight prescience Of something
terrible lay upon her. a gloom she
could not shake off. With a sigh shl
! patted her beautiful hair and tried L
smooth the lines that we're beginning
to creep around her red lips-lipl
/, formed for love and kisses. but droop
ing now in pathetic curves.
The old silver brOcade became he
marvelously. she had resurrected
few yards Of cobwebby lace, remnan
of former grandeur. These she ha,
! .draped about her perfect shoulders
rising white as marble from tn
filmy meshes. She had no ornaments
, nor did her beauty require them
When Gillette came I'm that evening
he gave a palpable start as the SUPER
! woman rose to greet him. He hai
! never dreamed she was so beautiful
, "Will you accept these?" he asked
! proffering her a huge bunch of Parm
violets.
Mrs. Fanshaw took them with dc
light She inhaled their perfume wit
ecstacy. Then she pinned them on he
breast
, Fanshaw watched this little seen
Il