El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-07-09

er's cbanpion. how can you speak in
that v-av-vou. who know for yourself
what the torture of such bereavement
pu+ tho widow did not reply i'm
medis+eIv and. during the silence that
followed Helen looked at her hostess
with gaze in when uncertainty ana
triumph were mingled. lI"druly Beat
rice was fighting against the impulse
to diIate further upon Maynard'S de-
Iin0uencies- However, artStcally and
consistently one may MAINTAIN a pose
or a sham the time IS pretty sure 10
come when she will suffer because of
II or rebel against 1t. Beatrice felt
now that she had reached this period,
for she could not explain TO her friend
her horror of drinking man, without
tactiIy admitting by her manner that
she had the unfortunate experience of
knowing such one intimately, thus
virtuaIIY acknowledging her own So
cial hypocrisy in posing as rom MIN
or's bereaved widow
60 not feeling it safe to talk on the
disD1ted subject she sat silent by the
window, watching the long tree shad-
ovvs cast across the park beneath her
nv the slowly sinking sun. And as
She watched and unused, her anger died
out gradually and her pulses beat
once more quietly. At last she trusted
herself to speak
Patching Up a Truce.
81 NAV have wrOnged Mr.. Maynard,
she added dispassionately No doubt
the memory of his dead wife is very
dear to him. Certainly'-with a flash
of sarcasm and a rUefUl laugh-'he
take of her enough to justify that
suposition-"
Helen Robbins drew her chair nearer.
Now nv dear" she said, SWeetly-
with the manner of one who conSratu-
lates herself on having kept her tenn
per throughout painful discussion
I'VE won't talk of Robert any more Just
now. Perhaps You are. little preju-
diced on that subject, and besides -
with a slight feline touch am mere
" his disinterested friend, and you
only a chance acquaintance of his, so
WIN should we squabble about the man
as if he were near and dear to Us
both?"
Reatrice's recently acquired Selt-con-
troll did not desert her, and her de-
meanor was so calm that her guest did
not suspect that the astute remark
had had any effect
u really came around this after
noon" Helen continued, TO speak to
You of pleasanter matters. Ny John IS
asking several friends TO dine with US
tomorrow evening. We're going away
to the country in two weeks from now,
and the place is all upset. 50 we can't
have anything but a plain family DIN
ner It's horribly incOnven1ent, OF
course, but a man never thinks OF that
kind of thing, and John says 1t VIII be
best to have these men now While he
thinks of it He has asked them often
to come. and had always forgotten TO
set a date. One Of them IS an artist
the other a physician Both were at
college with John, and he has neglect
ed them shamefully, for, as they are old
bachelors, and he has wife and home,
we ought to have had them at our
house long ago. Now, dear, won you
please help me out by coming tomOr-
row night to dinner with them? There
will be these two strange men, and L
have asked Cousin Hannah to make the
third wOman-but she will not be much
of a drawing card, and do want YOU
Accepts DiIsHer Invitation
If Beatrice felt a mOmentary i'm
pulse to refuse the urgent invitation
it was crushed before the declinatlon
reached her lips as she cOntraSted the
dinner with its possibilities Of cheer
and pleasure, with the stupid evening
meal she would probably have IN her
own lonely little apartment Perhaps.
too the phrase, two strange men,
may have tempted her to taVoraole
consideration of the idea, although
she did not admit this fact even to
her inner consciousness, But she was
a bit surprised TO feel how different
society and social functions appeared
to her within the past months Right
after her husbands death she felt that
men were unworthy a wOmanS con-
sideratiOn- Later, when she became
thought of men as selfish, egOtistical
beings, in whom she had no interest
But since she had tried the wings OF
that much-prized freedom. and had
fluttered out in the world and had
proved that she still had the ability
to charm mankind, she found herself
enjoying the company of the few men
she knew, and taking their cOmph-
ments and homage with an eager Zest
that had heretofore been foreign to
] her character
So she accepted gratefully Helen's
| invitation and became Immediately
more vivaciOus and vOluble in her
talk
1T is always delightful to dine at
your house" she said affably, and
really 1 have so many lonely evenings
] that it is a genuine kindness to me
when one of my friends invites ma
away from this quiet little home in
which the children are sound asleep
| by o'clock.
She - actually forgotten her hos
tile attitude of mind toward Helen
| for the time, at least
AT what hour do you dine, dear,
she asked as her guest rose to 20
I home.
"At our usual hour, o'clock" re-
piled Helen I am thoroughly glad
| that you can come"
and so am l." exclaimed Beatrice
| cfucare1v