Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-10-20

! some of my furniture, MIR. Laking,
but it is not for sale" she said. blushing.
Indeed / would" he cried heartily.
"The next thing TO seeing the circus is
! looking over the fence, you know"
Althea didn't know, for she had
never been to a circus performance,
! but she held the door wide open, and
John Lakirg entered, not knowing
that his coming broke the outer film
! of reserve which had infolded the
sweet woman for many years
, The man turned and looked wonder
inely at the mirror lined walls. When
he saw the multiplied reflections Of
his own form beside that Of his host
ess he smiled with perfect understand
! ing of their purpose.
/ "It doesn't seem quite so lonely, you
/ know" Althea found herself explain
ing, with slight nod toward the
thronging reflections.
| Then followed several delightful
/ hours, during which Mr.. Laking purred
over Hepplewhite and Sheraton and
| pure colonial highboys and cowboys,
/ folding card tables and work stands,
/ sofas, four posters. mirrors, pewter and,
! lastly, IA goody hoard Of china. He
! withdrew his gaze reluctantly from
! precious bit of copper luster to find
! Althea lowering near with a tray
/ containing bottle and glass and plate
! OF fruit cake.
"You must feel the need of refresh
/ ment," she said tlmidly.
/ He smiled gratefully and thanked
/ her. hiding his surprise at the label
| on the bottle. He poured a glass for
/ her and filed his own, and then, stand
/ ing in the dining room with the mirror
/ lined drawing room stretching beyond
/ with its throng Of women and gray
/ clothed men gathered as II waiting
/ for his action, he lifted his glass and
/ bowed toward Miss Althea.
ITO all Of u.s." he said with grave
courtesy, and as Miss Althea drank
/ the toast there came into her breast
strange little thTill-a quiyering ex-
pectancy that she had not known in
/ years.
When John Lalling had gone, leav-
/ ing her quite alone. Aithea sank into
/ one of the great blue brocadcd chairs
in the drawing room and thought over
the events Of the morning. Hours
passed as she sat and dreamed until
the lengthening shadows warned her
that she had not lunched nor had she
prepared to dine.
/ Vexed at this departure from her
usual routine of decorum, Althea shook
Off the glamour of the unusual day
much as she might have discarded n
gay opera cloak that chance had flung
about her wOrkaday shoulders and
! prepared her evening meal
From that day Althea's life under
went change. Things happened with
astonishing frequency, and 1t was sur
prising how quickly Althea Wayne
/ ada pied herself to new conditions. The
day following John Laking's visit he
sent Althea a huge box of candy,
gay, foolish box tied up with pale blue
| ribbons and filled to the brim with
delicious Confections such as she had
I never seen. Another day there came
iowers-all the blossoms that she low
ed. and yet she had never told him OF
her favorites. Then there was book
on old furniture that he brought him
self. and another one on old china, and
they spent hours reading them and
tracing the genealogy Of Aithea's treas
ures.
Once there came a brilliant motor
car, painting breathlessly at the gate
till Althea ventured forth for her first
ride in its luxurious depths. The rec
tor and his wife went along. too, and
they rode down 10 Squaw Point, where
| Laking's beautiful colonial house front
ed the sea. Into this bachelor abode
Althea went with delightful sense Of
! expectancy. 1t was all Ike the owner
| clean cut and polished and comfort
able and homelille and appealing.
| Back in the Wayne house Althea
! felt the desOlatcness OF her former life
| and turned the old place inside out to
obtain new effects. She found herself
puzzling over the intricacies of mod
! ern fashions. and she marveled at the
! growing beauty and elegance Of the
! creatures that filed her rooms. They
were no longer pale and lifclcss au-
| donations They bloomed as Althea
did, as the roses did. in the sun OF
awakening love.
| At last Laking wrote his first love
! letter to Althea. telling her that he
1 could not live without her and that he
would come to her that night for his
| answer.
| In the soft light OF the candies she
| stood alone. Her color was blue. and
the pale folds of her gown swept to
the rich Turkey carpet. She was all
! alone at last
Laking paused in the doorway and
! looked at the bare walls where the
| mirrors had hung.
where re the pale ladlcs?" he
| asked with an attempt at lightncss IN
| his tone.
Gone" said Althea. n little regret
fully. "They were ghosts. and I was
the leading spirit OF them all"
"And-yeu-Altheaf z" he asked. COM
ing toward her with outstretched
| hands.
"Why, Tim alive now" faltered
Althea. bending toward him.