Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1904-05-19
MALLORY'S
READINESS
--'' BY Bertha TfevelyAn
Copyright, 1906, By 7. C. Mcclure.
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BY Bertha TfevelyAn

was by no means Cue u cIHNSP. " HeH
be wanted anything he began by look
ing the field over carefully, noting all
the salient points-the advantages and
the disadvantages. Then with his feet
up and a cigar between his lips he
would consider all available methods
Of securing the thing desired.
Having finally arrived at decision
as to the best course Of action to pur-
sue, he pursued it with an energy and
single mindedness that were open to
no encouragement, admitted no defeat
And the result was that, as life goes
Mallory was accounted lucky.
He was a handsome. vigorous man
of fifty when. business affairs making
it necessary for him to spend num-
Der of months In New York, a letter
of introduction secured him the very
delightful privilege of rooms with the
Fosters, whose story of waning for
tunes he had heard from the friend
who sent him to them. The ominous
length of his upper lip was hidden un-
der n short gray mustache, or Miss
Foster would have known from the
first that it was useless to oppose him
once his mind was set upon anything.
The romance Of his youth was
beautiful memory, a thing as faint
and elusive as the scent of lavender
But he had been loyal to it for twenty
years, having been left mt thirty wild
over with two children. AS he sat in
the great dim drawing room where
everything was eloquent of other days
he noticed several things-touches I'M
usual In stiff city drawing rooms, but
which made for LONELINESS. He sighed
with sudden usefulness altogether
out of keeping with his height, breadth
and floridness.
In the midst Of his reverle Miss Eos
ter appeared, her delicate slightness
heightened by the massive doorway in
which she stood framed for moment
AS she rose to greet her he wondered
idly what could have given her that
harassed look, this little woman with
the oval face and the piled up hair.
Her smile, he thought, was oddly shy
and girllsh and in few minutes they
quaintance
With a businesslike air that sat
amusingly on her she showed him the
rooms that she and her mother rented
to exc out their small and uncertain
income, and the next day found him
installed in them.
Often during the following months
he would spend an hour with the moth
o. and daughter. noting with hidden
amusement the latter's unnatural little
air Of elderliness. She would forget
and laugh and chat gayly at times;
then, in a moment, she seemed to re-
member that she was no longer young,
and she became in trice the prosaic,
careworn woman again, drawing her
mantle Of years ungracously about
her 1t was as if she had determined
not to be surprised by old age and so
had rushed out to meet 1t.
Her references to herself were slight
ing always, as if to one to whom moth
ing but the dregs of life were left,
whom romance could not possibly
touch. whose role was one OF duty I'M
touched by grace.
At first Mallory took her at her own
estimate, concluding that she was about
his own age. Then one night she APP
peared In a gown of filmy violet, with
her brown hair rising in a swirl above
her face, and he looked at her with
puzzled but admlring wonder. she
turned her head and the surprise of
her profile fairly made him start 1t
was singularly delicate and youthful,
with a small high bred nose and full
Tipped mouth.
His speculative glance now told him
that she could not be more than forty,
If she were that. But by the way IN
which she was always putting forward
the young girls of her acquaintance It
was evident that she thought herself
too old a woman to be Of interest TO
any man.
"She belongs to the old regime" Nal
Tory soliloquized, "and has probably
considered herself an old lady ever
since she emerged from her teens. She
hasn't been able to asslmilate this
bachelor woman idea" And he smiled
TO himself
'By the way Miss Marion" he said
nonchalantly, Il have tickets for the
opera tomorrow night Be good and
come too
There was IA flash of surprise in her
face that for one brief, fleetlng moment
said frankly that he must have taken
leave Of his senses. Then courtesy
prevailed. and after hestating for an
appreciate moment, in which ii was
apparent that she was casting about In
her mind fog some plausible excuse.
she accepted.
When the time arrived she was dis
turbed by an uncomfortable conscious
ness. She had the air of a person who
felt thai she was -oing TO be subject
OF quickly exchanged glances and half
laughing comment. All this Mallory
OWNED, and he put forth every effort
TO make her forget herself to such good
purpose that by the end Of the evening
she was laughing and chatting as un-
concernedly as II Mrs. Grundy did nor
exist
With this excellent beginning things
went smoothly for awhile. Walks.
drives and theaters followed. and ap-
parsntly Miss Fosters fear OF appear.