The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-09-15

tastic lotion concerning men. She was
named Idreana, which had the advan-
tage of being an unusual name aud
fascinating In it's long-drawn vowel
sound.
1dreana used to say in her soft. :
thrilling voice, that a man. according
to the notion she had formed of the
one she could love, honor, and obey"
must be a hero. morally and physical
~; that she pictured him as brave and
tender, chivalrous and true. A grand
great creature whom to look upon was
10 honor. revere, and adore, To lose
ones very identity in an absorbing
passion for lei a one, to sacrifice
everything for SO worthy a master
and lord, would be the happiest.
proudest, most glorious fate imagin-
able for any woman So she would
speak, this fairyllke feminine bundle
or nerves and sentiment, her whole
frame a-quiver with enthusiasm. Ana
Lolly. then in h thick of motley $50
ciety, would listen vaguely .~entranced,
compassionately amused, wholly as
tonished, wondering within herself as
to what would become of this self
deluding. imaginative small maiden
when she came to know the world
when Fashion and Frivolity burst in
like drunken clowns upon the holy :
quiet of her girlish ~fancies, and with :
blatant laughter and lascivious Jest
tore down the rose-colored veil she
had woven about herself, and forced.
her to look on social life as 1t Is, and
on men as they are. Lolly did not
suffer from sentiment as a rule; and ,
the only really violent attack of thai
malady she eve had was during her
intimacy with this weird little Idreana.
And now Idreana was married-had
been married three years or more. to
Captain LIE Marchant, whose regiment
was also stationed in india. but at a
rather dismal place, a good ray dis :
tant from h "happy valley where
Mrs. Claude Annesley held her social
court; and thus 1t had happened that
the two ladies, since their respective
marriages, had never met. But they
were going to meet now. Mrs. Annes-
ley had invited Captain and Mrs. LIE
Marchant to stay with her, and after
some little delay the captain had OBJ
tained a months leave of absence, and
the invitation was accepted. 1t was
after this acceptance of the LIE Mar
chants that Mrs. Annesley had be-
thought herself Of entertaining the
Maharajah. "It will astonish the LIE
Marchants," vas her first thought.
"It will please Idreana's picturesque
turn of mind was her second. Per-
haps if her motive had been probed
down to it's furthest root, 1t would
have been found to be nothing more
nor less than a desire to show off"
before the friend of her unmarried
! DAYS and nrnxra That hor nncftinn q q
wife was unexceptionable. She knew
hat La Belle Dame sans Merci had
made a poor match, financially on
sidered, and had heard (only through
friendly rumor, of ~course) hat Cap
tain LIE Marchant, though a "1ne
man." had contracted rather a dis
agreeable habit-that of getting heav-
lily drunk on occasions. But she could
not quite believe this. IF it
We're so, Idreana, with her fastidious
notions about men, would never have
married him." she thought. Yet she
admitted within herself that 1t was
quite possible Idreana. like other
women with fastidious notions"
might have been deceived.
1t was with a certain amount OF
curiosity and excitement, therefore,
that Mrs. Claude Annesley prepared to
receive the LIE Merchants on the after
noon of their arrival. They came a
few days before the date fixed for the
visit of the Maharajah, and 1t Is duo
to Mrs. Claude Annesley's sense of old
friendship and hospitality to observe
that she was much more particular
over the comfortable arrangements OF
the room set apart for Idreana and
Idrcana's husband than she was for the
adornment of those palatial apart
ments. the best in her large, luxurious
residence. which were destined tos re-
ceiye the Maharajah. She was ganuins-
ly' eager to see her little friend of
former days again, and wondered IL
marriage had altered her-if she had
lost that singularly sylph-like Belle
Dame sans Merci expression that a
once marked her out from ordinary
young women.
Her hair was long. her foot was light,
And her eyes were wild!"
hummed Mrs. Annesley. softly. as she
moved from room to room setting flow
ers here. a mirror there. and giving 10
everything thai final touch which Is
essentially feminine. and which imparts
even to ~lifeless furniture a sentiment,
confidential, and welcoming air. What
will she think of us all, | wonder?"
u ALL included herself and a very
large number of officers and civilians,
married and unmarried-"the boys" as
she called them. The wives of the
married ones did rot come into the
category, neither was Colonel Annesley
counted among "the boys" In fact. he
was not to be discovered in any par
ticular social roll call; he was not ex-
actly a boy" and as he was in a man
ner depe-ident on his wife, he was not
exactly a man. This is socially speak,
ing. In his regiment he was thought a
good deal of. But as this story has
nothing to do with his regiment, and
does not III the least concern his. mill
tary career. there is no occasion to en-
large on the ideas of the regiment o n
corning him. They were ol~d-fashioned
ideas, very blunt and commonplace,
and did not take in Mrs. Annesley at
all as part of the colonel's existence.
They are very we'll known, and have
been duly chronicled.
What will she think of us all?" re-
peated Mrs. Annesley, with a smile and
an approving glance at her well-drcssed
figure as she passed a convenient mir