Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-12-16
Septinnt1s
By WILLIAM J.LOCkE
Copyright. 1908. BY the Phillips Publish
ing Company
CHAPTER XIII.

CHAPTER XIII.
Fora went straight back to her hotel
sitting room. There, without taking on
her hat or furs she wrote a swift. long
letter to Glenn Sypher. and summonine
the waiter. ordered him to post it at once
When he had gone she reflected for few
moments and sent off a telegram. After
a further brief period of reflection she
went downstairs and rang up Syrher s
Office on the telephone.
fhe mere man would have tried the
telephone first then sent the telegram
and after that the explanatory letter
Woman has her own way Of doing things.
for the day in about twenty minutes.
Then he would come to her on the near
est approach to wings London locomotion
provided.
ticular that want to see you about,
said Fora. "Good-bye.''
She rang Off and went upstairs again.
removed the traces of tears from her face
and changed her dress. For a few mo-
ments she regarded her outward SEM
unconscious of new coquetry. Then
she sat down before the sitting-room IRE
and looked at the inner Fora Middlemist.
There was never woman. since the
IL
high estate. Not a shred Of magnifi-
cence remained. She saw herself as the
most useless, vapOring and purblind OF
mortals. She had gone forth from the
desp1sed Nunsmere. where nothing ever
happened, to travel the world over in
search of realities. and had returned to
find that Nunsmere had all the time been
the center Of the realities that most deep
ly concerned her life. While she had
been talking others had been living. The
haiporS cIo ho1 Inn rod with
her royal and somewhat condescending
affection had all done great things. passed
through flames and issued thence purified
with love in their hearts. Emmy, Septi-
mus, Sypher. all in their respective ways.
had grappled with essentials. She alone
had done nothing-she the strong, the
sane. the capable, the magnificent. She
had been tinsel failure. So far out of
touch had she been with the real warm
things of life which mattered that she
dence. Had she done SO from her girl
hood up. the miserable tragedy might not
have happened. She had failed in a Sis
ter's elementary duty.
AS a six-week wife what had she done
save shiver with a splendid disgust? An
other woman would have fought and per-
haps have conquered. She had made no
attempt. and the poor wretch dead, she
had trumpeted abroad her crude opinion
Of the sex to which he belonged. At
many months she had known it to be
vain and false; and nature, who with all
her faults is at least not a liar, had
spoken over and over again. She had
raised fine storm Of argument. but ma
ture had laughed. So had the Literary
Man from London. She had a salutary
vision Of herself as the common geek and
gull OF the queerly assorted pair. She
recognized that in order to work out any
problem OF life one must accept LIES
YnEfYlIQ ~ nvin EfVrov1 hAp ontt },
from whose gentle lips she rarely expect
ed to hear wisdom, had said: Il don't
see how you're going to live dear. with
out man to take care OF you." Her
tenden was right. She. Fora Middlemist,
had been hopelessly wrong.
When Sypher arrived she welcomed him
with an lmaccustomed heartbeat The
masterful grip of his hands as they held
hers gave her new throb of pleasure.
She glanced into his eyes and saw there
the steady love of strong. clean soul.
She glanced away and hung her head,
feeling unworthy.
What's this most particular thing you
have to say to me-" he asked. with a
smile.
Il can't tell it to you like this. Let us
sit down. Draw up that chair to the
fire."
When they were seated she said:
Wdul III SL ~ dSh yOu qucStlOH vi
two. Do you know why Septimus mar
ried my sister? Be quite frank, for 1
know everything"
YES" he said. gravely, II knew. L
found 1t out in one or two odd ways.
Septimus hasn't the faintest idea
Fora picked up an illustrated weekly
from the floor and used it as a screen,
Ostensibly from the fire, really from Sy-
pher.
why did you refuse the Jebusa Jones
offer this morning?'
What would you have thought of me
if had accepted? But Septimus shouldn't
have told YOU"
He didn't. He told Emmy. who told
me. You did it for my sake?"
"Everything do is for your sake. You
know that well enough"
why did you send for Septimus?''
''Why are you putting me through this
interrogatory?' he laughed.
You will learn soon.' said Fora. II
want to get everything clear in my mind.
I've had a great shock. l feel as if l
had been beaten all over. For the first
time I recognize the truth of the proverb
about a woman. dog and walnut tree.
Why did you send for Septimus?'
Sypher leaned back in his chair. and as
the illustrated paper prevented him from
seeing Zoras face he looked reflectively
at the fire.
1--WE always told you that am super