The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-12-17
lUanted..H Companion
BY s. E. KISE R.

I hastening the end of the feast. though come to the coffee. when she looked across the table at him and said: Poor man."
 ! Its good of you" he replied, ito feel sorry for me. I shall be ionelier than ever after this is all over" | ,I was thinking of the cigar you | will have to miss."
 | Why must I miss 1t? I can smoke here. and you will wait for me. won't you?"
 | There was no provision in the con- tract to cover that point was there?" l No, l forgot that. It was a stupid oversight. But you might be lenient | and let me have it any way. This is Christmas. Be charitable" When the waiter had cleared the ta- ble and Stanton had stretched his legs toward the fire after lighting one of Havara's most fragrant products. the | charitable Miss Dane sat and watched him blow out rings of smoke and seen- cd to forget that she was glad her fool l ish adventure was about ended. Neither had spoken for long time. The gray line had crept slowly along | from the end of Stanton's cigar until 1t had almost reached the middle. | when he came out of his reverie to dis cover that she was looking at him rath- | her own condition--wondering wheth- CT she was not wasting her time in the study she had undertaken, wondering whether 1t would not have been better | If she had saved her money and remain ed at home. perhaps some day to become the commonplace wife of some common place man, in the little city from which she had so hopefully gone forth, and | wondering with something like an ache In her breast if success would ever be worth the loneliness and self-denial that were before her. feeling that was not unpleasant was awakened within Holmes Stanton. as he studied her expression. He kicked the ash from his cigar into the fireplace, and without realizing what he did looked at his watch. whenever you are ready" she said. you may take me home" T shall not be ready for long long time," he replied. "A happy thought has just come to me. There is play at the theatre near here that want to see. May I get two tickets for tonight? Wait-don't say no until I've told you something about it. I read the plot this morning while waiting to go to you. A man and woman. who have never seen or heard of each other meet in Paris where she is studying music. and he. for certain rea- sons, is living incognito. They are both Americans, both strangers there. and both desperately homesick."
 And" she said. when he stopped to puff at his cigar, T suppose she is beau- tiful and he is 'handsome--and rich and"
 And they marry? I must not tell you the end of it. You shall see that for yourself tonight"
 She protested that she must go home, and that their bargain ended rtyif hn Afny, |, Aat. who had discovered the value of per sistence argued and pleaded and beat down her objections, the result being that she finally said:
 T will go on one condition-that you will promise on your honor not have any communication with you"
 You drive hard bargain" he an- swered. but I'll agree to it on coudi- tion, to wit, as we lawyers say, that I may ask you when you part tonight If you still wish to have your condi- tion enforced. If you say then that you do I will ask no more and never bother you again"
 The play was well acted; the lines were poetic; there were intense mo- ments In it. but the end was not what Violet Dane had guessed it would be. It turned out, that the man had a wife--a wife who was wholly un-
 
 stood between him and the one whom Nature had intended for his mate e. Between the third and fourth ac.s Stanton asked the girl beside him i,ow in her opinion the case of the lovers should end.
 "If the wife would only die." she said, "the solution of the problem would be easy. Does she die?"
 "No, she refuses to be accommodate ing"
 Perhaps she or the man gets a di- vorce I shall be sorry if it has to end that way, though"
 Don't you believe in divorces?"
 Tn a case of this kind suppose one would be justifable."
 Tt happens that the man can't get a divorce and the woman won't"
 For answer she drew a long sigh
 Under the circumstances" he went on. do you think the man and the girl have the right to love each oth- er?'
 'No, they have no right--but won der if people can always govern their emotions, and keep from loving when they know they have not the right?"
 Tt is curious. have been wonder ing that, too.''
 The play ended with the girl offer- @--------=------ ---==-==--------=-=-=z--=-