The Monmouth inquirer. [volume] (Freehold, N.J.) 1865-1933, 1906-08-30
Love
Is Gnousb
By o. R PHELPS
Copyright, 1905, by G. H. sutcliffe
By 8. R PHELPS

'oa Il story" Alwyn commanded. III
,egins as stories ought always to be
III. Once upon time -
Dear mel 1 know | shant like it
lose once upon time things have
3wn to be such bore. Lolita muir
red pIaintively, but without in the
Il checking the story teller.
e ran on, his eyes fixed high above
head "A foolish fellow, foolisher
the common, set himself to hate
/ dom, whose other name is wom-
He got his come uppance, of course.
hey always do in stories. never out
Il them," Lolita interjected dispassion-
ately.
This time Alwyn laughed. Whose
other name is woman-woman,' he
repeated with all the emphasis of capt.
tails. But you're dead wrong. He got
$40 come uppanee. 1t was rather his i'll
luck to come down very hard-so hard
he groyeled in the dust when one par
Ieular woman looked him over with
out seeing him. That has happened,
let me see, about three times day for
full six weeks. Result
zone hundred and twenty-six grow
els. if your figures can be trusted.
doubt it. / doubt, indeed, if there is
anything trustworthy about you" Lo-
lta flashed at him, with a smile so
coyiy engaging it took all the sting
from her speech. Suppose you stop
being tiresome," she went on. 81 don't
ask you to be sensible. I'm so far from
sensible myself. But let's get away
from the eternal me. There must be
such lots of things better worth while"
What will you have? Shall l dis
course on ships and shoes and sealing
wax and cabbages and kingsY Al
wyn asked. his voice submissive
enough, but dancing rebellion in his
eyes
Lolita smiled demurely Il think"
he said, with an air of grave reiec-
ion, IF you don't mind. 1 had rather
lear things about Gordon Fleming"
There's nothing | can tell you-he's
% openly, so Extensively, so disgust
ngly rieh-and so patiently in love with
you," Afwyn burst out.
Lolita gave him a sidewise look. Are
you sureg' she murmured. Don't you
see it would be cruel TO experiment
with my credulityY
las cruAll~s as your experiments with
my Affection" Alwyn flung back at
her. trying to speak tragically, but
laughing in spite Of himself. What a
rogue she was to play with him so. She
loved him almost as he loved her. 1t
had been instantaneous-they had
hardly more than looked at each other
when eye spoke TO eye, heart to heart.
But she had flouted him daintily all
along. thereby making him more than
ever captive And he in turn had
teased and vexed her. now with exag-
gerated and open devotion, now with
reproofs for wholly imaginary faults.
Really he did not think she could own
a fauIt-sbe seemed to him perfect and
altogether lovely. But In spite of his
overcoming, he had wit enough to see
that tame and abject devotion would
never suit her-he must show himself
a man Of spirit and temper else he
would be no man for her
1t was ten days since they had come
together at the Glenwold house party,
ten bIissful days of Lolita and love.
incidentally there had been walks,
rides, drives, golfng and moonlit
maunderings. Mrs. Arklow. Glen
woods chatelaine, had looked on in
smiling approval Lolita had but
scant fortune, and Alwyn, though not
oyerrich, was clearly at the beginning
of a great career. Were not the Flem-
ings, father and son, behind him, the
Plemings who had millions in hand
and the potentially OF other millions
in their mere approval? Gordon Elem
ing. the son. was We. the middle
age; he had Marie ly-as had
his father before 1T it had
turned out very Dat, year there
had been a separation, ater the threat
of divorce, but fate stepped in to save
the family pride. The wife sailed away
on a ship that went down at sea. She
had not been heard of in the fifteen
years since. 50 it was safely assumed
that she was among the lost. None OF
the few survivors had any knowledge
of her; she was. moreover, SO slight
and frail she could hardly have livec
through the terror.
Morally and legally her husband was
free-to love, to WOO, to marry, If he
chose. So far he had not chosen. In
deed. until Lolita came in his way wo
men had been to him as shadows
shadows which must be well and ten
derby used, but given no furthel
thought Her freshness, her unspoiiet
fairness, her simple natural charm, hat
swept him off his feet as completely al
they had bowled over Alwyn. At frs
he had seemed to see how the land lay
between the pair and contented himself
b standing aside to watch their de
at In each other. But for three days
t he had shown a disposition to en-
the lists-a disposition which reused
AJwyn rather pity than apprehen
a. Lolita knew-that was his SURE
ezknew what it was to love, to b.
soyed. All Flemings millions were NJ
offset to the knowledge. Still, it did M
harD, 10 vaoHo boliavQ no was in faal