Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-08

il
| a radical change of sentiment toward them.
Ii did not occur to Elinor that this brief
| revival or interest might be coincident with
t me report that Richard Strong had bought
| THESE securities, and that certain people
We're willing to follow blindly In his foot
| steps. attaching some deep Significance and
secret source Of Information to his action.
Yet even while thus endeayoring to reas-
sure her pride. she also felt intuitively that
! ne had not been Influenced by selfish mo-
| yves. He had undoubtedly acted with Mr..
Rossiter's welfare In view; conscentiously
MY dearr'
She turned; Mr.. Rossiter's hand touched
| preston. -
MY dear" he repeated; I'm afraid L
| am growing oldi''
| oh" she said. with sudden conjunction.
ana added after moment: Papa. prom
| ise me you won't have any more business
| dealings with Mr.. Strong"
| lie regarded her In puzzled manner
| then laughed easily.
! don't think there Is much likelihood OF
my becoming involved In many business
| transactions My affairs now are very
! simple and I won't trouble Mr. Strong
ABOUT them. l am not sorry 1 mentioned
| the bonds, though. His confidence In
| them certainly removed a great worry from
my mind-a worry that has been causing
me much care and anxiety OF late"
She looked at the slight debonair figure
| Your she said with tho playful accent
/ him p'-
'Tf I hadn't sold those bonds He
paused Certainly it was most opportune
| for your mother and myself"
Her eyes clouded.
Which reminds me-" he went on sudden
~. that l have an engagement at Cruet's
to meet your mother"
Then we had better go back" she said
quietly
Upon reaching the door of her house he
hesitated and regarded her almost ques-
tlOnlnglY. She seemed SIlhdlIa6 than
when they had set out together; again, he
vaguely wonderd If all were as well with
her as he had fondly imagined. But she
returned his glance reasSuringly and he
forgot his incertitude as he moved away.
Elinor, standing a moment on the steps,
heard the postman's voice, and taking the
| letters he handed her, re-entered the
house. Sorting out the missives-some for
Mr.. Strong, a few for herself-she slowly
mounted the broad staircase to her own
sitting room. She seated herself at her
desk and glanced at the messages. One of
these-which bore on the envelope the pic
ture of a mammoth hotel-she opened. 1t
was from Posie Stanton and postmarked
Newport.
MY clearinghouse was nothing If not
extravagant in her mode of expression
"all the world is here-that u.s. the feminine
part of it, Man. the browning wonder of
creation alone is absent Still there's no
time for repining. We dress and undress
and dress again. The bathing costumes
are as ridiculous ever, and mine makes
me look like an inflated balloon. You can
imagine, having that effect on poor little
me, what such a dress looks like when 1t
adorns mfddle-aged embonpoint-"
The letter dropped from Elinor's hand;
at that moment even Posie's viyacous style
palled upon her. She arose; took off her
hat and laid 1t on the bed, picked 1t up
again and gaZed at it contemplatively.
Then. sinking into chair the window,
she robbed the offending bit of millinery of
a flower The result pleased her no better;
n tn ha
modtsh creation of Madame Camille. Once
more she turned to Posie's missive:
of course we have seen In the papers
all about Mr.. Strong and D. B. and C.
Papa says he is grand-the highest type of
the real couldn't-fail-if-he he wanted-to Amer
ican-or something like that
This time Elinor resolutely perused the
missive to the end, italics and all, even its
three postcripts scrubbed sidewise on the
various pages. Then she pushed back her
chair.
The day promised to be long one. espe-
cfally as she felt Discrimination for the
usual attractions of the outer world. She
thought of reading, but books. lately, had
seemed inadequate to her needs. Passively
she watched the sunlight notwithstanding
SO slowly-along the floor.
How quiet the house was! How quiet and
large and-almost tenantless, 1t seemed!
The upper hall, too. looked very dark, as
she now stole along 1t, pausing before Rich
ard Strong's private study. The door was
ajar and she entered, placing the letters
that were addressed to him on the mantel.
The room was fair-sized, yet almost de-
void of ornamentation. Upon great desk
were many papers. lamp, an ash tray and
a box Of cigars. The papers she glanced at
without disturbing their arrangement. They
were full of technicalities and legal phrases
she did not understand. The ash tray
then absorbed her attention; 1t had not yet
been cleaned and she counted the cigars he
had smoked the nigt before. He had once
told her 1t was not his practice as rule
%
for rest in the evening. She did not believe
he ever allowed himself any relaxation of
late.
A small case contained a number of
books. She had never looked to see what
they were, but she did now, and discov-
cred that, for the most part, the volumes
consisted of government and state reports,
legislative manuals. documents pertaining
to railroad and mining commissions and
kindred literature. Among that grim, sta
tistical company, with their dusty backs
and funereal bindings, not single volume
of fiction verse had crept in to alleviate
the severe usefulness Of those uninviting
shelves
Upon the case stood a small, but per-
feet. model Of locomotive which she re-
garded contemplativeiy. 1t was made of
silver and gold and a tiny plate, beneath
the miniature headlight, said something
about it's being a presentation from some
friendly disposed fellow directors.
Affixed to the standard upon which 1t
James O'Brien, on the real. live monster
this dainty toy was tiny copy of.
That Richard Strong treasured the model
and the sentiment 1t represented, was evil
dent from the conspicuous place 1t occu-
pied. So, she told herself. he did see poetry
in certain phases of life. To his virile
mind real things, commonplace matters,
were poems. The imagination of the in
ventor was the inspiration of his muse; his
rhymesters beat with hammers.
With hands clasped behind her, she stood
still Her conception of existence seemed
all at once aimless, indeterminate!
After lingering a few moments longer in
his study. she returned to her own sitting
rooms. Certain little sins OF omission In
their domestic economy she resolutely be-
gan to repair and In a sudden fervor of
aiertness and attention to detail, she found
that comparative forgetfulness she courted.
The neglected ash-tray was the starting
point. The deposition. examination and
testimony regarding this crime of careless-
ness: the summoning of witnesses directly
and indirectly concerned. were aatidotes to
her d.squietude. She abruptly developed
into despot. and her subjects--or servs-
tors-with CONSERVATION discovered that her
regime promised to lack that supineness