New-York tribune., 1912-01-21

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I mentioned this one day to Mrs. Cobb.
First she stared at me in perfectly Stupcted
way; then the color came up into her tacc
lust as it did the day she first saw Aunt
EIizabcth's card. She looked at me hard for
a moment with those funny, prominent eyes;
then she began talking about her son.
OH. my good Victor. How much knew
~ about YOU, before ever these eyes OF
mine were privileged to rest upon your per
fections What a sweet baby you were
twentv-four wears agO.-blOnd as the wheat,
and pretty as hart. What a wonderful
hov Won wcrc.-so brilliant that if you had
only appIicd Yourself YOU could have done
ANYTHING; but so sensitive, studying made
Won III, Tall. handsome, distinguished, set
ting fashions in WaStCOats, and breaking the
hearts OF all the girls, it appeared that you
were a boy to be proud Of. Your one mis-
fortune. indeed was the envy that your
supcrior qualifications excited all about you;
vour one defect, the ardent unsuspicious
soul that made you always the victim OF
designing persons fiat this point Mrs,
Cobb stopped short, smiled, ana relapScu
into silence.
\ moment later, when the ships telegraph
hov arrived with the wireless, she jumped
for him as though he had been the precious
baby himself. The message, however,
seemed to give her little satisfaction.
moment later it was crumplcd into ball
and flung out Of the window, while Mrs
Cobb was trailing up and down her little
salon like person in a perfect rage.
Suddenly she turned 10 me. What am
to do about Victor?" she asked.
Now. naturally, as / didn't know Victor
and wasn't a mother myself, | found 1t
rather hard TO know what 70 answer 50 l
said the first thing that came into my head.
wire him" | said.
"Ycs." she answered: but what:
To that. Of course, | couldn't make any
answer: SO sat quite still, like a little
mouse behind a trunk Mrs. Cobb sat there
with her eyes staring ticrccIy before her, and
her throat muscles swelling inside the tightly
wired collar Of her expensive, embroidered
dress. Her face had q strange expression, as
though her soul were uncOvcrlng ITSELF and
naturally she. of an age and race 50 tar away
from mine. and Of an experience 50 different,
She whose life mine had barely touched,
seemed for the moment quite near and real,
much nearer than any Of my own blood re-
lations at Brent, who never showed their
souls nor even Oprobablyl had any 10 un-
cover. except a little tag with ~Ladylikc
on it. II is true Mrs. Cobb's face reflected
no such tag: the expression Of it at this mo-
mcnt was harsh and rcsolutc almost to
cruelty Yet there was something in 1t that
was ptiiul too; for one could see that her
eyes were looking. no, inward on her own
affairs, but outward and beyond TO someone
dcarcr than herself.
And for the moment aS | looked At her |
realized that, in spite OF being young girl
and a philosopher, was a woman too and
for the moment within my soul a Shadowy
vista oucncd, Of mysterious depths that per-
haps some day might wake TO life and bring
10 my face, too. that look now saw on the
woman'S face before mc.--that look OF
wanting. icdHiiHg something SO terribly;
more than Aunt Elizabeth wanted money,
or Lii husband, Is that what it means to
be- woman, asked myself, to want some
thing more than one wants ones life, and
know that never, never one will be able 10
have il? Then my thoughts passed like
flash: for Mrs Cobb began 10 speak.
i've done everything for that boy, she
said violently. Lord knows he never had
toa,k me twice for anything he wanted; but
now
She gulped, ycnchcd her fists, then came
suddenly and sat down by me.
It's no use, she said I've got TO tell
s,rur,ur about II and Won my dear fhOuph