Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1911-07-27
His Work

worth more than all the cmouments of ambition
And then the majesty of his great painting swept
him again. He must achieve II die. He was
bound it. by contract with the commissioners, by
contract with his Maker and aot least of ALL by need
of the money for the eternal bills.
lie decided that he would accustom his bride grad
uallv to the necessities his trade would paint
other portions of his fresco, the clothed figures, the
nude tie animals the landscapes. In time she
would pnrtanc of his zeal. and understand Entranced
sy this vista, he fell asleep at last.
That morning he began on one Of the from
real life, old man and child May appeased
by her victory as proof of his love, and she spent
hours at the studio to cheer him along But il was
thing wish to paint and another to paint He
could not be inspired to her order. And his mind
always to those beautiful figures of Hours
For weeks he went from panel to another. re-
arranging sketchng in, and swabbing out dismissing
models petulantly cursing his paints, altering his
sketches losing all impetus.
Every now and then he took up the subject again
with May. 1t was always the signal for and
storms of anger; Fortified by long success May
firm She positively refused permission
Meanwhile that thousand dollars gurgling out
of the bank with the doleful sough of the last
in bathub. For cash sake. Keith accented some
commissions from the art editors who had found that
young women liked the illustrations marked X r."
the popular He and She pictures in which both lie
and She we'll built and 40 faultessly tailored
One morning, as he ided nodeess in his studio
trying to paint something in and painting everything
Of the Hours. The unfinished figures seemed to vrhe
pleading to be horn The pysmies implorod him to
give them the life the growth. the Immortality of
which they were the implanted seed.
lie shook his head in despair, and was moved to
think aloud:
IF I'd known that you could change So May, It'd
never have married YOU.
She followed the look of his eyes, and understood
at once
"Oh! you married because you thought
would tamey submit to any indecency you wanted to
put canvaS?'
ried you because loved YOU And loved you because
I thought you understood me-
"Oh 1 understand you never fear"
NO, you don't, honey. You think you do. but you
I.
fdence You give foolish false meaning the rues
things in life. Just look this plan for the fresco
See how big it is-how many things it Includes
He spread the whole the floor and the words
poured from him in tunultuous plea:
See the women only a small part of the whole
idea. There are men, too and children. animals.
buildings, clouds, stars flowers, and waves,
and-a little of everything ! them all alike
clothes make difference If they're there
through them. I feel the wonderful outlines under
them. see all life with the same eyes. l needed
line there-a light coored mass-so put in a womans
figure. Hand, foot eye shoulder knee-they're
all details all equal, all equally pure
IL paint things fearleSsly. lovingly don't
know why. only know that it is what want to do,
what I've worked to de- what I've got to do or die.
These wompn--these models When I'm painting
them. I'm usually only cursing them for being of
drawng-for having coarse hides instead of luminous
flesh for having arms that don't match their eyes for
tOrSos that stunted. Or else I'm curSing
myself fer not being able to paint what see. to paint
in what don't see but ought to see, and to leave ont
what doesn't belong. In Heavens name don't be
jealous Of those models, honey They're nothing to
bur sketches, values tones, textures. Don't deny
so T 'E me "''A' 0'" '''0'"V' me- 0' S"S lily very
lie had poured out his heart in vesuvian lava, and
She chilled it with word:
you shall not live with me and paint-hussles'"
He stared Mt her in mute stupor. He had turned
his soul inside ont like pocket to show her all its
contents how clean they We're and he might as we'll
have unbosomed himself to doll. He looked at her
with horror. Then he dropped down on his models
throne and sprawled nane, disgusted, done for,
The hymn of his life had been called ribald tune
And he went into fit of masculine Mysteries, She
ran 70 him and put her hand on his forehead.
"Kcith,' she cried. you're i'll. You have high
fever, must call the doctor"
The doctor DR.. Lathrop, husband of Mrs,
Iathrop He looked as if he had been tn" husband Of
Mrs. Iathrop long while but had got used to it.
Something in the despairing look of the patient led
him to send Mrs Knowles errand to the drug
store for a bottle of perfectly harmless tablets BY
Skilfu cross-eXamination he drew tho whole pitabc
story from the painter Then he said:
Il thought Young man, you're suffering from
acute inflammation of wfely jealousy. | prescribe
long voyage for her.
ION, May is all right" the husband pleaded I'm
the that's blame You see I'm in the wrong
business, l ought not to have been an artist, but {!
tradcsnan, mechanic, sodier-anything but a fool
painter. a painter must have models and you can't
blame his wife for being jealous"
DR. Lathrop shook his head. II don't blame Il per
son being Jealous, any than l blame anybody
for being blond" brunette for catching cold, or
inhcritng bad temper. But my boy don't You
dclude yourself with the folly that mans trade has
ANYTHING to do with his wifes hatred of it, If she
loves him, she dislikcs anything that takes his mind
body out of her reach.
The whole world, Mr.. Knowles IS one vast PIANO
rama of jealousy one eternal warfare between mans
home and his career. The wives of business are
jealous of the Stenographprs the husbands have have
in their offices: the clerks wives jealous of the
customers their husbands knee the grocerS wives
jealous of the women that discuss the price OF
eggs the soldiers and sailors wives frantic every
time IA man is called away by his country; the mai
carriers wives remhc at the thought of the faces
trat welcome their husbands; the brakcman's wife
the srcet-cAr conductors wife the papcrhangcrs wife
they're all Jealous. my boy"
After the TRADE the DOCTORS gentler self glowcc
through:
ITS cruel the poor things can't help IT. But hcyr
suffer still more If their men hung round the hous
and made no money to buy them pretty things ant
foot and lodging.
"Ihat'S the best thing about women They may fire
lot mans devotion to his hut they re
ward the with their love and they reward
. the weakneS with their contempt
A. length the doctor succeeded ia wringinG solemn
promise the young husband that he would hrcal
, his Wfe's heart for her own good and begin work OF
@ the March of the Hours forthwith.
When May came anxicusly back with the futile tab
lets in her hand the doctor gone and her HUSBAND
Mt his desk Just finishing letter.
lie kissed her with unusual gaiety.
whats happened she said.
'I'm well that's ALL lie nuurShed the enVeOn