The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1908-02-13

'lt" IL l1it vi u li"ecuy iOi hlN' w.
ehY You see, had been away on
buliness for the frn. TO New YORK
aa Lorisaua. apf' tatH came
30 ia'I the m'i'3c oi tie Whole
IA hls agG.d. We hpd ra,hs. int
mate business with Statham S house,
and used to see him good deal
ani talk thirGs over at night. | got
tie whole iclit,on In mlRVte--in
40. if you like You remember
W3liag-a little fellow, well set up,
close curly golden hair, blue eyes,
with twinkle. and that mustache
CT his you spoke of--a yellow one
that looked as II II carried him about.
You fellows didn't know the ran
hore-no. as | knew him and saw
him in that menage. His eyes had
q a!fferont quality; they didn't flick
or. but went soft, when he talked to
woman. SO did his voice, and his
mustache dropped.
81 hated him. until one day 1t
came into my head that. but for the
grace of God, there might have gone
me. Anyhow. | pitied her. There
we used to sit at that dinner table
of theirs: Statham with his head
buried between his shoulders and
gigantic screen behind his back;
hygienic clothes and blue flannel
shirt that swathed round his neck
like that sort of patent Logging you
see advertised. Well he had his
tragedy, too, poor beast he looked
like an old bald crow on a railing in
a dripping fog.
"As for her, she'd sit opposite.
with Waring near her. She'd look
at her husband, and practically age
as she looked at him. There'd be
lines on her face.
"She had grown up. as said.
Some women never do; but she had,
and hardened in type. 1t was pretty
sad to see, because she used to be.
oh. q glorious girl. She was a glor-
ious woman, too, when she didn't
happen to have her eyes on her hus-
band. But the face was intensely
proud.
What she clung to most desper-
ately was the tradition of indisting
Instability. of being like everybody
else. Aynthing else amounted to-
what do you call It: 'albinism'? when
you're white chafIinch in a flock
all alike. It's race instinct. accen-
tuated by moral code. when ,ou
come to think OF It. and this vas
like @ blow from a clear sky, some
thing unheard of and quite hateful.
She was horribly afraid was was
noticeable as far as Waring went.
/ could see It in the way she looked
at me. as If she were trying to catch
me noticing 1t frightened her.
and fascinated her; and Statham was
no kind OF moral support.
''She would look at him. and l
could see sort of light in her eyes;
flashes of rebellion against, not Stat
ham, but the Infinite that had tied
her to him. Then Warlng would
say something, in voice as II he
were gargling eau sucree. voice
you never heard here. She would
take sip of wine. ana brighten up;
flush all over; become like Bac-
chante. There was sort Of fitness
of things in It, That sort OF man
will do the trick for that sort Of
woman; and any one would have
looked we'll opposite Statham, even
l."
He paused. and began dropping
leo - int ~
ed at the little clusters of bubbles
that resulted, and separated them
with the extreme point OF his tea
spoon. His friend looked at him
with the suspicion Of n grin. You
were pretty hard hit. old chap" he
said. "Oh. I don't say" the other
answered. Anyway. saw the ira
gedy Of her position. Waring either
aid or didn't see. I don't know:
Statham certainly did not. I don't
believe he ever spoke to his wife,
except 70 tell her what DR.. Fergu-
son had said in the morning. and
DR.. Thwaite at lunch time. and both
in consultation with Sir Saul Sam
nelson on the morning OF the day
when he had felt such palpitations.
Il don't know what put the screw
Cn-in Warnings affair. mean
Things reached a head In one way or
another. and they decided to knock
the head OF In the approved way.
You know how these things come
about; or. perhaps you don't. 1t
probably upset little Waring when
It came; he too, had a sort OF fear Of
the noticeable. Anyhow he got
his bags packed and deposited at
Charing Cross. and the tickets taken
(told me that HIMSELF. and put on
bowler hat and long coat for
travelling In. Then he trotted to
their house to take her for trip
outside the radius.