Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-08-02
James, shall l go?" she asked amia-

James, shall l go?" she asked amia-
bly,.
Nonsense" Jim said, pulling him
self together as best he could. Look
here, Aunt Selma, you know she can't
go out, and what's more, don't want
her to 60"
"You-what?" Aunt Selma screech-
ed, taking a step forward. You have
the audacity to say such a thing to
mel"
Bella leaned over and gave the fire
log a punch.
Il was just saying that he shouldn't
say such things to me, either" she re-
marked pleasantly. I'm afraid you'll
take cold, Miss Caruthers. Wouldn't
you like a hot sherry flip"
Aunt Selma gasped. Then she sat
down heavily on one of the carved
teakwood chairs.
He said he loved you: heard him."
she said weakly. "He-he was going
to put his arm around you!"
Habit" Jim put in, trying to smile.
You see, Aunt Selma, it's-well, it's a
my arm does it without my thinking
about it,"
Habit" Aunt Selma repeated, her
voice thick with passion. Then she
turned to me. GO to your room at
once!" she said in her most awful tone.
| Go to your room and leave this-this
shocking affair to me-
But if she reached her limit, so had
| I. If Jim chose to ruin himself, it was
not my fault. Any one with common
sense would have known at least to
close the door before he went down
on his knees, no matter to whom. So
| when Aunt Selma turned on me and
pointed in the direction of the stair
case, l did not move.
Il am perfectly wide awake" l said
coldly. Il shall go to bed when l am
| entirely ready, and not before. And as
for Jim's conduct, | do not know much
about the conventions i'm such cases,
but if he wishes to embrace Miss
| N
situation is interesting, but hardly
novel"
| Aunt Selma rose slowly and drew the
| folds of her dressing gown around her,
away from the contamination of my
touch.
| do you know what you are say
ing?" she demanded hOarsely.
| II do" was quite white and stiff
from my knees up, but below l was
wavery. l glanced at Jim for moral
support. but he was looking idolatrously
at Bella. AS for her, quite suddenly
she had dropped her mask of indiffer-
ence: her face was strained and anX-
| ious, and there were deep circles | had
not seen before, under her eyes. And
it was Bella who finally threw herself
into the breach-the family breach.
1T is all my fault Miss Caruthcrs,"
she said, stepping between Aunt Selma
and myself. Il have been a blind and
wicked woman, and | have almost
wrecked two lives"
Two. What of mine?
You see" she struggled on, against
the CLINT i'm Aunt Selina's eyes. II
| did not realize how much | cared. un-
| ill il was too late. ! did so many
things that were cruel and wrong-Oh,
| Jim, JIM"
She turned and buried her head on
his shoulder and cried: real tears. !
could hardly believe that it was Bella.
And Jim put both his arms around her
and almost cried. too. and looked nau-
scatingly happy with the eye he turned
to Bella, and scared tu death out of the
one he kept on Aunt Selma.
She turned on me, as Of course |
knew she would.
That" she said, pointing at Jim and
Bella. that shameful picture is due to
your own Indifference | am not blind:
| have seen how ynu rejected all his
loving advances" Bella drew away
from Jim, but he jrrkcd her back. "lf
anything i'm the world would reconcile
me to divorce. ii is this unbelievable
| situation. James. are YOU shameless"