Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-06-05

LOVES ExPEDiENT.
[Original.l

| vantages of wealth were drummed into
her ears till it was supposed that she
had learned her lesson well. She was
a quiet, Obedient girl, and as she was
attractive her mother had great hopes
| of at least seeing her the wife of ell
| Their a practical business man or the
| heir to an estate. Marcia knew that
| union with scholar, q ploddinS physi-
| clan, Clergyman or even lawyer
would be forbidden. AS to one who
followed the fine arts for Il living, Mrs.
| Ford would put her daughter behind
| bars rather than permit her to marry
one of them.
| Several men either of means or heirs
| to means became SuitOrs for the girls
| hand. but she gave no assurance that
she would choose between them. Then
her mother received a shock. She dis
| covered that her daughter was CORE
| spending with some ore who signed
| himself Arthur" and this is all the
| clew she had to his identity. Con
| fronting her daughter with the evil
| dence of her disobedience. she demand
| ed to know who Arthur was. Marcia
| declined to enlighten her. The mother
| stOrmed and pleaded and, finding her
| daughter Obdurate. shut her up and
| hired duenna to divide the watch.
Marcia made no effort to leave the
house, and though the two jailers
| watched with the greatest care. they
did not discover that the prisoner was
attempting to communicate with any
one. Weeks. months, passed, while
Marcia was the same obedient girl she
had always been except that she would
not reveal the identity of her lover.
But so long as she refused her promise
to give him up Mrs. Ford would not
relax her watchfulneSS.
No men except such as brought sup
plies to the house were permitted to
come upon the premises. Mrs. Ford
offered to permit her daughter to see
such visitors as she herself might APP
prove of but Marcia said that if she
could not receive whom she pleased she
did not care to see any one.
One spring. when the demon of house
cleaning enters into all good house
keepers. Mrs Ford determined TO give
her house a thorough overhaulng. Pa
pering was needed. but new paper
would not match old paint, and the
lady decided to have the painting done
country while the decorations We're be- |
ing made. but for two reasons decided |
to remain at home. In the first place, |
she wished to superintend the work |
herself. and, in the second. she dared |
not take her daughter where she could |
not as well watch her as at home.
Since it was at the height OF the sea-
son for renovating dwelling houses, |
but one painter was set to work Mrs.
Ford seemed afraid of man coming
into her home, even Il house painter
and followed him about under pre-
tense of seeing that he did his work
properly. He did not do it TO suit her.
but was very obliging, and when he
had painted a room a color that clash
ed with another room opening into it
agreed to do 1t all over again, taking
the loss upon himself.
Are you a journeyman?" asked Mrs.
Ford.
Il have been a painter five years."
replied the man meekly.
We'll" added the lady, much an
noyed at the delay and the position she
was placed in. you will never make a
living with the brush. You have no
idea of the harmony of colors. Paint
the room over. and 1 will divide the
loss of time with you
With marked good nature and pa
thence the man painted the room over,
but so slowly that by night he had not
half finished it. Mrs. Ford telephoned
to his employer to send the next day a
man who knew his business, but the
replied that he had not an
other man TO spare. So the next morn
ing the imbecile appeared and went to
work again. When he had finished the
room he had first spoiled the colors
We're a dream of harmony. and when
Mrs. Ford went in to look at it she
was surprised to see a decoration she
had not bargained for. There was
little niche in the room from which
rosy cupid smiled at her
did you do that?' she asked of the
laborer.
Yes, ma'am. l know how to paint
signs"
ITS very pretty, but l don't want ii 9
there. Paint it OUT G
The man, apparently not the least a
sensible to the want of appreciation of r
his work. ran his brush over it and be- =
gan to paint the next room. n
WI painter was ulb | n
lis brushes to leave the lady inspected :,
his work and found it had been done so =
badly that she was quite beside her
self. She stormed and threatened, and =
between her wrath and the painters
in defense of his work
the was kept some time. When the
PAINTER had departed she went to find
Ter daughter.
The bird had flown.
Mrs. Ford was without knowledge as
o where the fugitive had gone till the
lext morning. when she saw a notice
n paper that Arthur Parke, the ris-
ng young artist whose picture Loves
Ixpedient'' had been recently sold for
n enormous sum, had married Miss
darcia Ford, the daughter of Mrs. Pc
err Ford of NJ square. How the
over managed to communicate with