Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1907-11-29
"A LOSS AND A GAIN"
CHAPTER /

She had been entirely consistent, and
she had stuck to her colors, and now, if
there was one miserable woman in Lam
cashire, it was Miss Anne Braithwaite
the heroine of the Leachester election,
the woman, who by her quick and witty
ences until those who had come to ieer
remained to praise. Anne was popular
with the women, and the girls, who had
known her before, now followed her wher-
ever she went, and though they could not
sympathize with all her arguments, ev-
cry weaver lass in Leachester had made
up her mind that she wanted the vote
just to be up sides with the men,
They were noisy crowd; they could
shout with anyone, and their applause
had been showered on Anne. If they had
known it, this was the last thing that
she desired. Day by day she had grown
to hate the man whose candidature she
was upholding with all the practiced elo
quence at her command. He was a SUI
perior person, and he was entirely sure
that his own merit was sufficient to car
ry him through, and he was little con
descending to Miss Braithwaite, though
she was working side by side with him.
And Anne was just woman, and some
times she felt inclined to shrek the
truth at him:
''You won't get in! He's thousand
times the better man. And the men
know him, and they don't know you, and
if they did, they wouldn't like you! And.
after all, the men have got the vote, and
not the women! These crowded audi
ences don't mean anything. Why, there
isn't spinner here! He's spinner like
they are; he's lived amongst them all his
life, and they know him, and they love
him and-so do l."
But just because she was woman, she
said none of this, and she drove with her
candidate and wrote speeches for him;
and though he had despised the assist
ance of a newspaper woman at first,
free lance of journalism, .ho was doing
this for the notoriety it brought her, he
ended by offering her his complete ad-
miration. He was one of the most ellgl-
BILE bachelors in the three kingdoms, and
if Miss Braithwaite had liked But
the love that was offered to Anne Braith-
waite must have some special quality in
it, and when her candidate made pretty
speeches to her alone she merely looked
over his head.
The battle went on, each man talked
against the other, and the tide of popu-
lar favor turned this way and that. And
now it was all over, and they were gath
cred in the mayors parlor in the town
hall waiting to know the result of the
poll Mr.. Edward Clayton and Miss
Braithwaite had not met for a week, and
Anne was ashamed to look at him now.
She was miserable and unhappy, and,
being a woman whose appearance de-
pended upon her moods, she looked pale
and i'll. She was sitting in corner by
herself, and all the same old questions
were beating in upon her brain. Why
had she done it? Why, for the mere idi-
otic idea of being consistent and uphold
ing ridiculous cause. had she done her
best to damage the success of the only
man she had ever cared for in all her
life? 1t was ridiculous cause. She
was sure of that now. What did it mat
ter to her whether she ever voted or not !?
And then. merely because she could not
help it, she looked at Ted, and he hap
pened, by chance of course, to be looking
at neFs
He came over to her corner, and took
the ch:ir beside her.
''You look pretty used up" he said.
you have worked too hard!"
She did not answer him, and Miss
Braithwaite was not silent as rule.
The light was dim in the mayors parlor,
and he looked more keenly at her, and
looked away again.
'Well," he said, you've won. 1t was
my popularity against yours, and L
hadn't dogs chance. If all the women
they send out are like you-"
Il hope they're not like me-" said
Anne to him. 81 hope they're not horrl-
bic hypocrites like I am. I didn't want
the man to get in! I shall hate it If he
does, and-and-"
ooh, he'll get in right enough" said
Ted. you've made it a pretty safe
thing. All the women are on your side,
and the men will vote as they're told.
They daren't do anything else," he said,
with a laugh. "1'he hand that rocks the
cradle, you know"
81 think" said Anne shrewdly, with a
spark of her old humor, "that the men
will do as they've always done. Tell the
women one thing, and do another. "They
ran after me because | was new, and be-
cause this thing is all in the air, but they
don't really care"
Don't they?" said Ted. TITS pity,
isn't it. that there are such lots of differ
ent kinds of women in the world?"
He was looking at her as she spoke,
and if ever mans heart was in his
ewes, it was in Ted Clayton's now. Anne
gave him little hasty glance, and she
laughed, and her eyes shone and all her
beauty came back.
"We're not different she said. "We're
lust like the men-all the same"
There was little pause, and the mag
istrates' clerk coming in at the moment,
with sheet of paper with the figures on
it in his hand, they all stood up while
the result was read, and to the astonish
ment of all those present it turned out
that the Liberal candidate was more than
q thousand votes to the good.
1t seemed to Ted at that moment that
he was more shocked than pleased, but
there was some qualification in it, and
forgetful of the ropulace outside, the
men standing in serried rows waiting to