The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1904-10-02

getfulness TO all those things which are
better forgotten 49,.
1T may interest you to know" Sir
John remarked, setting down his glass,
that the wine came from the cellars
of q very rising young firm Of wine
merchants, Messrs. Montague Hill &
Co"
He has quite recovered then?'' Anna
asked.
Absolutely" Sir John answered.
The man seems to have come to his
senses in more ways than one
He is engaged to be married to
a little girl out Hampstead way.
and seems perfectly contented.
met them together in Regent street
this afternoon and had the honor of
an introduction"
And what were you doing in Re
gent street, sir?" AnnabeI demanded.
Sir John thrust his hand into his
pocket.
Buying these little mementoes of a
. very delightful day. he answered.
producing two morocco cases, one of.
which he passed to Anna and one to
Annabel. Come, EnnisOn. the car
riage is waiting and the division might
come off in a quarter of an hour now.
We must not forget that we are serv-
ants of the people"
They left the room amidst little
duologue of delight. Sir John knew
how to make handsome presents and
had sufficiently good taste not to at
tempt to choose them himself. Anna
bel linked her arm through her hus-
bands and insisted upon seeing him
off herself. She lit his cigarette,
pulled his tie straight and rearranged
the orchid in his buttonhole. When
the two entered the House of Com
mons a few minutes later an acquaint-
ance, who stopped to speak to Emil
son, looked after his companion with
an amused smile. .*.....
Never knew a man improved so
much by marrying a young wife as Sir
john" he remarked. Hes getting
positively jaunty.'
Ennison went on his. way laughing.
Back in Cavendish Square the two
girls were sitting over the fire in An.
ia beTs own rooms. They were sitting
very close together, and there were
traces Of tears in AnnabeFs. eyes. p.
Il think, Anna" she said softly,
that 1 am cured forever of expecting
romance only from romantic people.
L shall never forget-telling John. 1t
seemed to me fair to tell him, and yet
so very hopeless -,
Anna nodded.
Il too, think, dear" she answered
that it was wonderful
Il always thought of him. Annahel
continued. "as hide-bound in conven-.
tionality, and you know how engrossed
he was with this electtoheering. Yet
when 1 told him. it was just as though
such a place as Parliament did not
exist. He never seemed TO think of IL
or the election for a moment. ex-
pected to find him gloomy and de-
pressed on the journey. He was moth
ing of the sort He was sinnply deli
ciously excited all the time. And,
Anna. when he began to try to dress
like a Frenchman 1 didn't know
whether to laugh or cry. He wore
ready-made suit of French clothes and
a big hoppy tie, and I'm sure he prac-
ticed walking on his toes all the time.
1 never loved any one so much, Anna,
in all my life as I loved him then.
Everything seemed altogether differ
ent. 1t has seemed so ever since"
Anna smiled.
People are always so different from
what we expect" she remarked. You
meet an ordinary sort of person who
seems fairly obvious and after a time
you begin to find yourself bored with
him just because you feel sure that
you know all about him and exactly
what he would do under certain con-
ditions. And then the conditions come
and you rub your eyes and feel very
small. The timid person becomes a
hero. the stolid person discloses a mar
vellous vein Of sentiment, the cirtuous
person shocks US, and the rake becomes
a puritan. Look at our friend Mr..
Montague Hill, vulgar. passionate
man, half crazed with his own folly.
Yet he was not afraid to die with a
falsehoed upon his lips. 1t was fine
impulse which made him write and sign
that paper. Yet you might have
watched the man all your life and seen
nothing to make you believe him ca
pable Of It," -
Anna sprang UP and listened. A de-
nghtful smile had parted her lips.
Baby is awake" she exclaimed. Let
us go and see him."
Anna came first from the nursery,
and waiting for her sister drew aside
for moment the curtains which hung
before the window. It came to her
with a momentary flash Of recollection
that at the three great crises OF her in
ward life she had found herself Hike
this, looking out into the night. Was
it some secret desire for the sympathy
of these millions Of her fellow-crea-
lures, these sleeping and -toiling and
pleasure hunting sons and daughters
of the world, or was 1t perhaps because
the strain of life and her own emotions
had suddenly. become so tense that the
walls of buiIded houses had stif1ed her?
So much had happened since the fiat Of
David COurtlaw and her own passion
ate desire for real and intimate con-
tact with life and it's natural forces
had made of her something of an adj
ventures. Yet she was conscious now
of a certain delightful sense of rest