Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-12-12

The child trotted along aside her
mother toward the house.
! Mouse not want to go in she
cried as Ante opened the door,
''Oh, yes, Mouse; we will go into
papa's pretty room. Come"
And when they had taken off their
| cloaks and hats upstairs, Antje wenE
| with the child into the studio She
| sat down in the first chair she came
to and gazed straight before her.
| The child in the meantime played
about on the carpet.
Here, mamma" it said at length,
putting d little bow of red ribbon,
| which it had picked up into its
mothers hand.
Antje flung the dainty ribbon from
her as if some noxious insect had
crawled over her hand, and her eyes
| glanced at the picture on the easel.
The beautiful figure of the Spanish
| dancer was now enclosed in hand
| some gold frame, but the picture was
not yet finished according to Leo's
ideas. The sunbeams gradually stole
nearer and nearer, and everything
vase as still as death around the
woman thus lost in meditation; the
child had laid its head on a soft foot
cushion and gone to sleep There
was no sound throughout the whole
house except the deliberate ticking
OF the richly gilded clock On the man
tel-piece, and a mysterious rustling
and cracking as if ghosts were going
about.
They were not comfortable ghosts;
they whispered evil thoughts to the
pale woman sitting there; they told
Of broken faith, of a love that was
dead, and Of an unhappy, lonely
future. Antje had not been cowardly;
she had Gained her rebellious heart
On that evening by saying to herself
that he had not yet done anything to
make him unworthy of her love; 1t
was all to be accounted for by his
artistic nature, by his love Of beauty
dayS-even his desire TO paint this
beautiful girl and the need of paying
her homage. All, yes, it was that that
mad been his attraction for her, thai
he was so different from all the rest
She had not been able to bring her
self to tell him about the antiquarian'3
bill. She had secretly raised the
money to satisfy the man. Nothing
would induce her to squabble with
Leo about money She would not
dampen his creative ardor with these
petty cares; that was her duty as his
wife. No one but Ante herself and
her assistant knew that she had
drawn out through old Classen all the
savings that had been put into the
bank from her childhood up, and
added to these a valuable pearl neck
lace, the gift Of her godmother, which
the old woman undertook to sell
with many signs and shakes of the
head. And she could depend upon
Classen! The old woman wrung her
hands, it is true, and threatened to
tell her mother all about it. but she
was, nevertheless. as silent as the
grave as long as her young mistress
insisted upon it. Only Ante had to
hear her perpetual ordinations of:
"Oh, what have we come to, What
shall we come to, if yon never viii
say anything."
This is not the time for talking.
Classen," Antje would answer; 1T
will all come out right yet, you will
see''
Goodness me. 1 would give him a
| talking to-" grumbled the old woman
But Antje did not hear her.
She thought Of Maiberg; she felt
! that she had lost faithful friend.
Did Leo feel that, too Was there
any hope of Maiberg's coming back?
She did not know, and she would not
ask after that last scene, for it might
! look as if she had a deeper interest in
the doctor
| Leo had no time for thinking of
anything-he was painting Hildegarde
Won Zweidorf
! Ante preserved the same tone of
| friendliness toward this stranger who
was as cold and hard toward her as
the winter before their doors. The
| servants. who, scornful of the young
lady's shabby dress, and also moved
| by Classen's dislike of the intruder.
allowed themselves to be somewhat
| neglectful Of the youthful guest, We're
sternly reproved therefor by their
young mistress.
To be continued