Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-12-03
DAILY SHORT STORY
Companion Boarder.
[Original.l

generally agreeable"
where do you expect to find such
person. asked Mr.. Trotter.
Leave that to me. We women know
women who know other women. I'll
ask my friends to help me-"
II don't approve of the plan,' said
Mr.. Trotter.
Mrs. TrOtter. who was really looking
to a slight addition to the income in
stead of cOmpanionship, would not give
up her point, and her husband at last
yielded. A young woman was found
who wanted home, and she went to
live with the Trotters. She filed the
bill completely, being kind hearted,
cheerful, amiable and paid her quota"
as she had the consideration to call her
board, regularly.
II told you So" said Mrs. Trotter to
her husband You think you know
more about domestic affairs than 1.
When man leaves his business for the
household he usually gets beyond his
DEPTH
''Since you are satisfied" said the
husband, Il see no occasion to be dis
satisfied. Miss Smead seems to be
charming girl
Months went by-months that bore
proof that Mrs Trotter was right in
the matter of Miss Smead. Several
disagreeable episodes occurred, but
nothing that could be even remotely
traced to Miss Smead. One of these
was a matter of business. One of Mr..
Trotter's creditors suddenly came down
on him for the amount due him and
when paid confessed that he had heard
that his debtor was in straitened cir
cumstances.
One morning when the postman de-
livered the mail Miss Smead, who was
expecting a letter, was watching for
him from the parlor window. Mr..
Trotter left the house as the postman
came up the front steps, and Miss
Smead saw him hand Mr.. Trotter a
letter Furthermore. she was near
enough to see that the address was in
a woman's hand. Mr.. Trotter thrust
the letter in his coat pocket and spoke
sharply TO the pOstman, who evidently
apologized for something and went on
to the next house. 1t was plain that
Mr.. TrOtter was receiving mail that he
had instructed the pOStman not to
leave at the house. but Miss Smead
was not the person to make trouble in
a family, and the last thing she would
have thought of was revealing the mat
ter to Mrs. Trotter. Besides. Mrs. Trot-
ter had few days before presented
her husband with daughter. and it
would be cruelty and might be MUIR
der for any one to excite any suspi-
ciOuS ri such Il time.
A few days later Miss Smead. wish
ing to borrow pattern for baby's
pinning blanket-for in her kindness of
heart she was making clothes for the
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT across the street to
Mrs Prior. who lived directly opposite.
to borrow one.
"Since you want the pattern for Mrs.
Trotter," said the lady, you are well
come to it, but that abOminable Trot-
ter should not have it on any account
whats the matter with Mr.. Trot- |
ter?"
Matter? Matter enough. He's cor
with some woman. Didn't |
1 see him receive letter from the post |
man the other day, thrust it in his |
pocket and scold the pOstman for de- |
livering it at the hOuse?"
Miss Smead stood aghast. Mrs. Prior, |
who had an object in view-to find out /
if the missive were really from wO- |
on:
you saw it yourself and were near |
enough to see that the address was in |
a wOmans hand"
Miss Smead was tempted to deny the |
fact, but hesitated. Hesitating, the Sc
cret was lost, the information gained.
Not long after this Mr.. Trotter re-
ceived an anonymous note in which |
the writer said, You ought TO know
that your husband is corresponding
secretly with a woman not his wife"
Then there were tears and crimina
tons in the Trotter family. Mrs. Trot-
ter was still in condition rendering
such an affair dangerous, and her hus
band found himself on the horns of
dilemma. He had been receiving let
ters concerning his wife's mother, who
was dying lingering death. He must
now show the letters or virtually adj
NIT that the charge was correct. He
produced the letters. Mrs. Trotter stood
the shock fairly well.
The matter was kept from Miss
Smead till Mrs. Prior had admitted
that she was the author of the anony-
nous letter and had gained the infor-
nation from Miss Smead. The Trot-
ters also discovered that when Miss
5mead had come to live with them
Mrs. Prior, seeing that they had taken
4 boarder," had inferred that they
we're in straitened circumstances and
had so informed the creditor who had
called for settlement.
The first intimation Miss Smead had
If the trouble was d curt note from
Mrs. Trotter requesting her to leave
he house The blow was somewhat
notified by Mr.. Trotter, who said to
her:
You are not TO blame for this, nor is
ny wife. 1 alone am the culprit. 1t
S false principle for a family to have
1nder their rooftree any one but them
'elves. When my wife insisted on TAX
ng you in, | should have had the
strength of character to decline on this