Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1905-02-04

E ~
And so | entered Mrs. Parsons beau
tifully upholstered coupe and rode behind
liveried coachman and footman for the
] first time in my life We ahghted under
magnificent porte-cochere, and entered
one of the truly palatial dwellings of the
! Windy city.
/ The great mahogany door swung noise
! lessly inward at our approach, and | soon
found myself in spacious nall, lined
with costly paintings and priceless rugs
and fragrant with burning incense; for it
| was one of Mrs Parsons fads to be al
ways surrounded by delicate perfumes.
| The house was g revelation to me. /
had seen the mansion from the street as
/ Joe and had speedcd past in our buggy;
| but the interior, with its rich, artistic
| furnishings and its distinct individuality,
| set every pulse of my body to singing.
| Far, suppressed and starved as it had
| been in my native town, crowded back as
| it had been in the little corner fiat, there
was a passion for the beautiful deep
down in my nature that was now reach
| ing up to the light and would not be de-
MED. | stood for a moment on the upper
balcony and looked upon the scene. j
could have cried but for the sense that
L.
| All at once l knew what | cravcd The
Rogers statuary and the cromos in the
little fiat had been the first feeble mani
| festations of a love for the artistic.
| had come to detest them of late without
| knowing what | had wanted in their
| place. Now ] knew,
"Oh, Mrs. Parsons" | cried Il wonder
| if you know how fortunate YOU are--if
you know how beautiful your home is!
| How lovely it must be to live in the
midst of all this"
Poor girll" she answered. "You've
yct to learn how little eXternals have to
| do with our real life She sighed. and
| an expression that / had never seen over
| Swallowed her face; but she was her old
| self again in a moment
Come" she said. we shall have little
time here if we are to yet TO the thcater
at a quarter of s. ] ordered dinner at
balfpast 6. and It's thai now"
But the atmosphere of the place was
like an intoXicant to me. and | could not
get over the excitement Of the day. [
found myself wondering whether the rc.
mark OF my hostess to the effect that
her husband was lust my kind" was 10
| be construed rs a compliment. For to me
ne was II dun and silent man. preoccu-
pied, and apparently indifferent 10 the
topics that engrossed us | was still too
inexperienced to guess that this couple.
who were 50 loaded with wealth that
they could no longer enjoy Simple things
| together. lived in wholly different worlds:
and once more, as / ate that wcIl.ordercd
dinner in magnificent dining room. and
noted the perfection of every detail in
that palace which Mrs. Parsons called
home. | said to myselfi This is the
life | was born to-" not comprehendine
yet, poor soul. that / was in the exact
spot into which God had called me and
PLAYING my part there most miserablv.
The evening entertainment under the
auspices of the Priscllas was pro
rounced success. netting more than a
thousand dollars for the Associated
Charities.
Again was / carried away with The dc.
light of being part and marcel of tbe
gorgeous scene. The handsomest theater
in the CITY had been placed at our dis.
nosaI h4con,inp availablo tbrouob Tho
sudden illness Of the expected Star, With
its soft lights. the abundance Of 4owers
flor we had flower girIs cycrvwberel its
multitude5 of ladies in evening Gowns. lis
handsome men. its rows Of boxes from
which flashed iowelcd tjaras and briohfcr
teves its fcstaI air of luxury and djspIay.
with its beautiful stagc-scttinos GIVING
lust the RIGHT BACKGROUND to @ur enter
tainment 1--WE had the dancers aftor ali,
the scene was more cvbiIarafino Than
ANYTHING I had ever seen, And 7 .Tohn.
ME Henninr-tbe airIisb norson who 81
long had beon in,mIn,ed in that I;+tIe Aat
over the grocery stnre-I was an active
r4icinant in Il
/ was chairman If Tho usbors for ,ro
had decided that a Dozen women =, e,.o,,-
inc drcs. world he more orna,nento1 tban
the conventional man.usber in Nal ~,
proved ornamental. notb;n" more 81.
though / had spent honrs in tbat cold
hall, irving 10 commas tbo secrets of ~