Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1908-01-30

were pure ana OF very clear water.
1t was she who broke the silence
once more WELL" she drawled,
coughing genteelly at the same time,
better late than never, as the saying
is. wonder who it is gifts up all them
comical sayings?' Apparently she had
no genuine desire for light upon this
mystery as she continued Immediately:
II have a gentleman friend that's al
ways gittin' 'em off. WE'LL he says,
the best of friends must part and
Thou strikest me to the heart'-all
kinds Of cracks like that. He's real
comical And YETI she went on in an
altered voice, 81 don't like him much.
I'd be glad if I'd never seen him.
The change of tone was so marked
that Ariel looked at her keenly, to find
herself surprised into plying this
strange client of Joe's, for tears had
sprung to the woman's eyes and slid
along the lids. where she tried vainly
to restrain them. Her face had altered,
too, like her voice, haggard lines sud-
denly appearing about the eyes and
mouth as if they had just been pen
ciled there-the truth issuing from be-
meath her pinchbeck simulations like
tragic mask revealed by the displace-
ment of a tawdry covering.
81 expect you think I'm real foolish"
she said, "but ben waitin' so awful
long. and got good deal Of worry
on my mind till see Mr.. Louden."
81 am sorry" Ariel turned from the
roses and faced her and the heavy per-
fume. II hope he will come SOON"
81 hope So" said the other. tits
something to do with me that keeps
him away, and the longer he is the
more it scares me-" She shivered and
set her teeth together. sIt's kind of
hard waitin'. / cert'nly got my share
of troubles
Don't you think that Mr.. Louden
will be able to take care of them for
you?"
"Oh. hope so, Miss Tabor! If he
can't, nobody can" She was crying
openly now. wiping her eyes with her
musk soaked handkerchief. "We had
to send fer him yesterday afternoon
''To come to Beaver Beach, do you
mean?" asked Ariel, leaning forward.
eyes, ma am. 1t all begun out there
leastways it begun before that with
me. 1t was all my fault. l deserve all
that's comm to me, guess. done
wrong! / done wrong! I'd oughtn't
never to of went out there yesterday"
She checked herself sharply, but
after moments pause continued, en-
fouraged by the grave kindness of
the delicate face in the shadow Of the
wide white hat. Il oughtn't to of
went" she repeated. "Oh, l reckon
I'll never, never learn enough to keep
out o. trouble, even when I see it
comm! But that gentleman friend of
mine-Mr. Nashville Cory's his name
he kind o. coaxed me into it, and he's
right comical when he's with ladies,
and he's good company, and he says,
'Claudine, we'll dance the light fan
tastic,' he says, and l kind o. wanted
something cheerful. I'd ben workin'
steady quite spell, and it looked like
he wanted to show me good time, so
l went, and that's what started it."
Now that she had begun she babbled
on with her story, at times incoherent-
ly, full of excuses made to herself
more than to Ariel, pitifully endeavor-
ing to convince herself that the re-
sponsibility for the middle she had
made was not hers. "Mr. Cory told
me my husband was drinkin' and
wouldn't know about it, and, Besides,
he says. what's the odds?' OF course
l knowed there was trouble between
him and Mr.. Fear-that's my husband
"a good while ago, when Mr. Fear up
and laid him out. That was before me
and Mr.. Fear got married; I hadn't
even ben to Canaan then; was on
the stage. / was on the stage quite
awhile in Chicago before l got ac-
quainted with my husband"
''You were on the stagep Ariel ex-
claimed inyoluntarily.
"Yes, ma'am-livin' pitchers at Gold
berg's rat'skeller, and amunchoor
nights nearly always done sketch
WILL SCA lC1AdlA Al1CuOs LAdt . Lie
way met Mr. Fear He seemed to be
real struck with me right away, and
soon as | got through my turn he asst
me to order whatever / wanted He's
always gen'lemanlike when. he amt
had too much, and even then he vurry,
vurry seldom acks rough unless he's
jealous. That was the trouble yes
terday. l never would of gone to the
Beach If I'd dreamed what was COM
in! When we got there / saw Mike
that the gentleman that runs the
Beach-lookin' at my company and me
kind of anxious, and pretty soon he
got me away from Mr. Cory and told
me what's what Seems this Cory
only wanted me to go with him to
make my husband mad, and he'd took
good care that Mr.. Fear heard I'd be
there with him. An he'd ben hangin'
around mo ovoru tiYyao ho c%rf1nIy town