Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-02-23

"Here waiter bring another pint of claret
Helen confound it, why don't you drink? What
the devil does have wife for if she is going
to nope all the time!'
The couple sat alone at a small table in the
spacious hotel dnng-room. Mortimer Payne,
man of forty, little below the medium height,
with short thick neck and prematurely bald mead
industrously carved his chop while the waiter
sure of liberal tip, hurried to execute his order
Jneasy the woman the table from him
tapped the edge of her plate with one tine OF
her fork The refined sensitive outlines OF her
features presented marked contrast to the Doat-
ed blase appearance of her husband An express
sion of restless regret haunted her deep blue eyes
A second glance at the two would sufic to con
vince a careful observer that Helen Payne had
Quaffed the matrimonial cup and mad 1ound IL d
bitter nauseating dose.
AS she lifted the wine glass to her lips, her
glance arrested by pair OF Keen DARK eyes
at an adjoining table. With start that sent a
crimson deuge the cloth, she placed the glass
on the table and hurriedly left the room. Her
husband looked after her angrily. "What IN
thunder has struck her this tme? he muttereu
as his third bottle of claret appeared when ne
had finished his dinner and returned to is room'
he found her sitting in istless heap and staring
into vacancy. Selling her roughly by the shoulder
he exclaimed
whats the matter with you? l never saw you
have it quite as bad as you seem to have 1T to-
night I wish to the Lord you had little sense.
Drawing herself slowly away from his obnox-
ious touch, his wife said SOFTLY
Mort, I wish you would take me 10 near fauSt
tonight. I'd rather not stay here at the motel.
"Well not tonight. Got better sport on hand
than that" with coarse laugh. Informal al
fair, you know. Nice men and nicer women. ia
like to take you with me and show you really
good time for once in your life; but I'm afraid
your delicate sensbilties would be damaged be-
yond repair Can't you telephone for some OF your
old friends to take you to the opera? You surely
have a few of them left in the city. People don't
forget you in year. At least the boys seem to
have remembered me. My but I'll feel like
bachelor again"
Making his toilet with unusual care, he de-
scended to the lobby where he was joined by three
men.
"Paynie old boy it is good for sore eyes to see
Won among us again." one of them calculated as he
slapped the fat shoulder of his erstwhile confed,
crate "But what have you done with your wife?
| hope we are not depriving her OF your society
[ mean to say hope you have provided substi-
tute How do you like matrimony anyway"
about as we'll as Bob here predicted, Morti-
mer returned. 81 left Mrs. Payne in her room
where such women belong. The only time she is
in really high class company is when she is alone
81 told you when you first fell in love with that
girl that she would be no sort of wife for you,
Robert Alton remarked he led the way to the
carriage. "Have they told you, Mort, that your
black eyed Fatma Is to be there?
"Fatima Harlow! Say boys, don't joke with me
on that subject" the man said excitedly, his rudy
cheek growing suddenly pale. II tell you I'm
afraid of that woman. I never could resist her
would have married her three years ago If she
hadn't been a trife off color. And she swore she
would get even with me when she heard of my
marriage. I don't know what she'll lead me into
now"
Soon after the carriage drove away, Helen Payne
left her apartment and descended to the drawing
room In fancy she had gone back two years to
the time of her happy girlhood. Again she found
herself board an Atlantic liner, the center OF
circle of admirers, the most ardent one OF whom
was Curtis Deane, brilliant New York journalist
in midst