Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1901-07-27

tunately he was-they said it was a fault
the more-eXceptiOnally handsome. and
his manners, even they-the enemy-ad-
mitted to be not only perfect, but ex-
tremely fascinating 1t was on the
strength of these two points that Lionel
Winter had been received with open arms
by elderly ladies who had no RESPONSE
bilities and wished to make their parties
go, and by young hOSteSseS whose burden
of responsibilities was vet to come, and
who meantime aSpired to social success.
Once in the inner circle Lionel threaded
its maze with the utmost calm nothing
was complete without him, and the best
of it all was, the chaperons declared,
after while. that he seemed quite con
scious of his limitations and never made
love to anyone. But whether he got tired
of looking at happiness through other
mems eyes, or whether his former good
conduct had been mere dearth of appe-
tite, certain it is. any way, that Capt
Winters alteration of Miss Jefferson was
soon the subject of general observation.
Well, the family council preached and
argued Kitty, who had Just become Lady
SOmerille, spoke out of the depths of
her brand-new experience, but it was all
the sound of the wind. Maggie set her
pretty mouth and announced calmly that
it was Lionel or the cloister. This state
of things lasted for a month. and then
one morning Maggie forgot to return
from her morning canter and the ortho-
doX note was found on her dressing ia
bic Maggie Jefferson existed no more
Mrs. Lionel Winter had taken her place
Of course, there were storms and much
lamenting and crashing of teeth; but
Maggie sailed away triumphantly with
her handsome husband, who had eX-
changed into a regiment ordered to In
dia-for the sake of economy, as she ex-
planned in her farewell letter to her sis
ter. Lady SOmerville was angry, and
made no reply. Nothing was heard of
the lovers for half dozen years, when
one day Maggie arrived at her sisters
house with a sturdy little boy of , and a
tiny, delicate baby girl. Mrs. Winter
was much altered; her beauty had faded
like that of dollhouse bloom exposed TO
the outside air. 1t was the Indian eli
mate. she explained, that had tried her
so. Lionel was coming home. He was
giving up the army, and they were going
to settle in England
Maggie was not only altered physically,
as Kate Somerville soon discovered
everything about her was changed: and
when, the truth came TO be whispered,
and her sister taxed her with it, she
Just wept gently instead Of meeting it
with storm of anger as Kate had eX-
pected. She admitted that Lionel had
been forced &c leave the regiment, that
he had been accused of cheating at cards
the sort of thing one can't disprove.
she had said patheticaly-- without
conviction; but that they hoped to turn
over new leaf and live quietly.
The result had been a foregOne conclu-
sion. 1t was the very familiar and not
very interesting story Of all such degrin-
goiades, and it ended in nomalic exiS-
tence, first in one small German capital
and then in another, with some water
ing places thrown in as a variation
Al.
| perhaps too much. for Maggie. She
simply died quietly. leaving her boy
Frank and little Celia to struggle along
as best they could with their disreput-
able but still fascin iting father.
When she was l. Celia had awakened
to the true state of things. She realized
with the painful lucidity that comes
| sometimes so precoci0uSly To girls that
her father and her brother were simply
| blacklegs; that the people they mixed
with were either sharpers like themselves
or pigeons TO be plucked. She tried to
demonstrate with her brother, but he told
| her that his theory Of life was simple.
Some chap has sent such a lot of flats
| into the world. dent you Sc, Celia, that
| there are bound to be sharps to set them
| off
Soon after this Celia took matters into
| her own hands and wrote to her aunt.
| Lady Somervile. a widow by now, with
| one son, answered at once ana most eff
| fectually by appearing on the scene and
| carrying off her niece.
Barely two years later the crash had
! come. and Lionel Winter had blown out
| his brains, while Frank had completely
! disappeared. There had been consider
| able scandal over the affair; and the peo-
| pie who pride themselves OH their memo
| ries and their recollection Of who is who
| had naturally unearthed the whole story
Of lovely Maggie Iefferson's romantic
marriage, and 80 on, and 50 on; and that
| was why Celia Winter had beer kept
| discreetly in the background until a cou-
| pie of years ago. when. the war having
| claimed her cousin Jack, and so many
| pretty girls having been reserved,
| Lady Somerville thought the moment
| ~ 0pitious for launching her niece
| Fate or chance had interviewed, now,
ever. Jack had been invalided home, and
during his conyalescence the young man
| had seen more Of his cousin than ever
| before. with the not unnatural result
| that he had fallen in love with her.
Well. Celia was a good girl; and Lady
| Somerville, realizing that il is wisdom 10
| make as graceful a virtue Of necessity as
| possible. set ont to make series OF art
/ prnoon calls during which she meant 70
L tho nanny event.