Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-09-23

to him that Kiss CarrowAy spoke with the
tropical Disqualification characteristic OF
her profession. 80. when she finished. he
smile: ., af.ably and :aid. AT least my intsn-
BE careful STR, responded Miss Car
I phrase .s with the other equally known. oh.
laughed merrily at the trick Of words,
and then the professor said. "1 will tell
you this much. that property u reserved
TOE .II1, very " event"
my marriage. It Is to be q wedding
present for my wife"
~ How. :. H1r pr. perfectly .sy. jolly. When do you
Il spoke Of the event as unlikely"
DO you mean that you have not met the
woman who is to be so blessed?'
If have have no reason to suppose
that she would accept the blessing-with
the conditions" laughed Mr.. Pearley.
Accept it," exclaimed Miss Carroway.
anyway. woman, who, If she understood
nilly"
Just then Miss Carroway, who was scan
ming all roads. espied the carriage they
had often seen coming up cross road and
she made sharp. quick turn toward 1t.
AS the two vehicles drew near, and while
he was yet laughing at his companions
sally, Mr.. Pearley saw, face to face. Mrs.
Ainsworth. He raised his hat with salu-
tation spoken loud enough for her to hear,
OUT she maze no sign Ildt SnS kne" UlUl
or that she saw or heard him. but at the
same time she flushed angrily. Mr.. Pear
ley was dumfounded. What could have
caused such treatment? A lady he much
admired, VINO had been almost constantly
in his waking and dreaming thoughts for
several days, who had been most gracious
to him when they last met, now cuts him
dead! He did not know how long he was
silent in bewildered thought when Miss Car
roway reused him to his surroundings by
the remark, You shouldn't have bowed,
professor"
Shouldn't have bowedr' he repeated.
THAT is a lady know quite well. though
have known her but short time. Why
shouldn't l have bowed?"
Because you are with me-" replied Miss
Carroway, calmly. Mind you, your offense
is not in taking the morning air with me,
but in not pretending that you didn't see
your friend just as she pretended not to
see you. 1t is nice point which may never
have been brought to your notice-in Hoko-
hoonk. There is a conventional pretense,
perfectly understood by those concerned, in
this community. When gentlemen ride with
me they are endowed with certain fairy
attributes: they are invisible, but they must
also be blind. You begin to understand?
Some times on the stage l hear an actor
shouting a secret which, If l was supposed
to know it, would end the play. To look
as if we did not hear aside which is
spoken so loud that the furthest gallery
god hears is one of the hardest things we
stage folks have to learn. 1t Is a stage
convention that you DO not near what you
are supposed to hear. and there is a society
convention that ladies like Mrs. Ainsworth
you see l know who she is-do not see
their men acquaintance under certain cir
The men understand and make
it easier by pretending that they do not see.
Then it is as if it were not. You may go
driving with Miss Carroway as much as
you like, SO long as you pretend that you
don't"
my dear madam" exclaimed the bewil-
dered professor II know of no reason why
1 should seek TO conceal myself while 1 am
with YOU
Don't your" asked the actress, and then
added with a laugh: you have much to
learn. Now we will go home:
She drove the professor to his apartment
and left him with a cheerful goodbye.
Then she telephoned to her friend Mr.. Car
roll that she had learned nothing of i'm
portance.
An hour later Miss Carroway was break
fasting with some companions, to whom
she repeated, as joke her and Professor
Pearleys chance use of the honorable in
tentions" and this is so sudden speeches.
In another hour the story flew that the
latest offer of marriage Miss Carroway had
refused was from the rich westerner who
was making the independent iron crowd
stand on the edges of their feet; in an hour
more the question was hotly discussed
whether Miss CarroWay had refused or &C
cepted the western iron magnate. and by
the time the evening papers were out with
hint that the engagement existed the
RlaltO had Ii as a TACT lDdt MISS odTIo"dS
and Mr.. Golden. vice president of the Hoko-
hconk iron works. had secretly married
that morning and he had given her mil
lion in Independent preferred as wedding
present.
Obliyious Of these whimsical appendages
to his mornings recreation, Prof. Pearley,
finding note from Mr.. BoWsar saying that
he had gone to a concert with the lady
from Boston, sought peace OF mind by
working on his paper Absorption VS.. Seq
regation of Immigration. tempting 10 MS
mental appetite as such an exercise usu-
ally would have been, he was now unable
to keep his thoughts from the events of the
morning He had been much disturbed.
Naturally a man Of con1ding impulse-es-
pecially where womankind was concerned
he was shocked at Miss Carroway contess
sion that he had much to learn OF her II
he did not know why he should have pre-
tended not to be in her company On the
other hand, he was more disturbed In mind
than ever before in his life by the thought
that he had sacrificed the good opinion of
Mrs Ainsworth. This thought had sur
prised him into the self-acknowledgment
that he felt for that lady degree and
character of regard until then unawakened
in his breast. Here was a predicament for
gentleman of oid-fashioned chivalry!
Surely Miss Carroway was not 10 blame,
yet he could not but feel resentment against
her as the cause of his hopeless case In
respect to Mrs. Ainsworth. But how I'M
reasonable such resentment! Could he have
expected Miss Carroway to say, Il would
like to have you 0rlVe with me III llle pal n,
but warn you not to recognize any or your
social rank you may chance to meet?
He was bewildered by the restrictions OF
a code of social conventions wholly new
and strange. And he was getting hungry.
He had not even breakfasted and 1t was
growing toward dinner time The faithful
Dandy was in corner of the room en-
gagged in an exciting game of solitaire. Mr..
Pearley told him to call a cab then to wait
for Mr.. Bowsar and direct him to the res
taurant where Mr. Pearley would be found
dining.
Even such distress as Mr.. Pearley's was
soothed by the clans in their icy piukness
with which he elected to begin dinner. He
smiled when having ordered a white wine
wherewith to season the early coul SEES of
his repast, he recalled that Goethe said that
white wine was the drink of somber. Had
his late but rapidly disappearing lnelan-
choly unconsciously dictated the first of his
wine order? Well, it would cure the III
which had suggested it, he thought, slipping
the golden wine as he further scanned the
menu.
While thus earnestly occupied he was
startled by the entrance of Mr. Bowsar, wild
of eve, pale, speechless and nervously grasp
ing a sheaf Of evening papers.
1My dear BoWsar." he exclaimed to his
friend who stood by the tables side, sit
Jrip hat |