The Washington herald., 1907-01-06

waiter and the grocer and the landlord.
Man'-and here Kitty waved her fork
dramatically. is a Fact"
What"
Woman continued Kitty. looking ar
me impresSively, cant get past him, so
she has tO-get around him.
] stared at Kitty for a fun minute
"Oh, well" / said when 1 had recovered
myself and resumed my dinner. "she
doesn't have to get all the way round
NM She can be pleasant and agreeable
and businesslike without-without-
Without getting anything she wants."
broke IN Kitty petulantly. as she fished
for another olive. Il don't suppose" ." she
added, studying the olive thoughtfulIy
that any man ever had a chariot wheel. %
Kitty l said coldly. IF you have
| quite finished that olive, it is time to
60"
You for instance?" went on Kitty, ig-
noring me and taking a deliberate but
careful aim AT the olive with her little
White teeth
II l have" I replied bluntly, I'm par
ticular what I tie TO it. l don't waste my
sweetness on the desert air, nor my laun-
/ dress nor my cook, nor the charwoman,
nor"
Your stenOgrapheT?" interpOsed Kitty.
sweetly.
Nothing I pursued, virtuously ignor-
/ ing her, "bores a man worse than the de-
/ vOtion Of a woman in whom he has no in
| terest. He will go blocks out Of his way
| and resort to all sorts of strategy to
/ avoid the attentions of a girl he cares
/ nothing about; and he won't spend two
/ minutes trying to be more than polite
to woman he doesn't admire. A mans
/ interest isn't in the game; it's in the girl
I When that is dead he lays down his
! cards and goes his way. But even when a
/ woman is tired 10 death of a filtration.
she VIII go on trying to keep ii up. just
/ for the satisfaction Of holding on 10 her
scalp or for fear some other girl may
/ get it, I've seen you, myself"
Mama will be expecting usl' exclaimed
/ Kitty, starting to rise.
I've seen you I continued inexorably.
| -waltzing madIy with that idiotic cub
! frem Harvard and trying to look delir-
! iously happy, when I knew you were pos
/ itively miserable and
It's dTeadfully late,' interrupted Kitty.
| gazing anxiously about in search of a
/ CloCk-and escape.
And. I pursued relentlessly. I've
seen you talking strenUously to that pink
tea man from London with your soul in
your eyes, when I knew you were dying
| Of"
oh, dear.' walled Kitty, sinking help
/ lessly back into her chair. wasn't that
bad enough, without being watched and
| scOlded for it?''
1T was bad enough" I agreed. prompt
| ly, but il wasn't the worst. In the end
every woman pays her own vanity tax
I "a Iee Z
much time tying men who did not in
terest her 10 her chariot wheel that sne
never had time 10 look about for those
who might interest her. Many a woman
has encouraged the wrong man and gotten
so deep into a Irritation with him that
she could not get out OF il except by mar
rying him Many a woman has smiled
on a cad. knowing his true character,
only 10 find that her smile had been mis-
| interpreted and traded upon. Many d
woman has fingered by the wayside SO
long, plucking the worthless flowers Of
Irritation that she has never reached the
garden Of love and has been so busy all
her life feeding her vanity that she has
let her heart starve-What are you staring
at, Kitty?'
For Kitty's blue eyes were fixed mes
merically on a young man who had Just
entered alone and was making his way
10 a corner table.
'Oh-nOthing." Kitty brought her eyes
back to me with q jerk
Il beg your pardon" l said, politely, II
thought il was-a man."
Kitty bent over her finger bowl. until all
l could see beneath the pink roses Of her
hat was the tip Of her tilted nose
And I thought" she pouted that you
were going to be kind and helpful; but
you're cross and horrid and you've made
me feel like a mUrdeTess and a penny pos
tai card and everything cheap and out
TageOus and"
My dear child,' I protested.
Il am very old-nearly thirty-twO-and
as a friend of the family who Kitty never
dreams could be silly enough to think
Well. never mind, Anyhow. ! am allowed
TO call Kitty by her first name and a few
others which I have invented for herr
My dear little Kitty" I repeated re-
pentantly, how can / help you?"
You can tell me-" said Kitty, smiling
up through her pOut, what I ought to
do"
Dor I inquired blankly. Haven't you
done enough?'
But what ought to do" insisted
Kitty, toto make him feel-not so badly
about it2''
''The only kind and rational thing you