The Sauk Centre herald., 1913-10-09
The
Husbands OF
Edith
By GfOR6f BARR MCUTCHtON
Copyright BY Dodd. Mead 4 Co.
Con tinued from last week

ndnueu once OF MfS- MeQcrO1t a1ter
Tooties had brought tears to his eyes
with a potent attack upon his nose.
She caught the light Of danger in his
. gray eyes and hastily snatched the Of
Tending TOotles from his arms.
Miss Fowler kept him constantly at
work with bis eyeglass and his Eng
lish. neither Of which he was manag-
ing we'll enough to please her critical
estimate In fact. he labored all day
with the persistence. If not the sullen-
,, ness. Of u hard driven slave. He did
not have time to become tired There
was always something new to be done
or learned or unlearned; his day was
full to overfowing He was a man Of
family.
The wife Of his bosom was tranquil
lity itself. She was enjoying herself.
When not amusing herself by watch
ing Brooks misfortunes she was nap
ping or reading or sending out for cool
drinks. With all the selfishness Of
-duttful wife she was content to shift
responsibilities upon that ever conven-
lent and useful creature-a detached
sister.
Brock sent telegram ms for her from
cities along the way-Ulm, Munich.
Salzburg and others-all meant for the
real ROxbury in London, but sent to
fictitious being In Great Russell
street. the same having been agreed
upon by at least two Of the conspira
tors 1t mattered little that she re-
peated herself mOnOtonously in regard
to the state of health of herself and
Tootles. Roxbury would doubtless en-
Joy the protracted happiness brought
on by these dispatches. even though
they got him out Of bed or missed him
altogether until they reached him in
bunch the next day. He may also
have been gratitied to hear from Mu-
mich that Roxbury was perfectly love
ly. She said In the course Of her
longest dispatch that she was so glad
that the baby was getting to like her
father more and more as the day
wore on.
At one station Brock narrowly escap-
ed missing the train. He swung him
self aboard as the cars were rolling out
Of the sheds. As ne sank. hot and ex-
hausted. into the seat opposite his wife
and her sister the former looked up
from her book, yawnings ever SO faint
lyy and asked:
"Are you enjoying your honeymoon.
RoxburyT
"Immenselyw he exclaimed. but not
until he had searched for and caught
Comics truant gaze. "Aren't we?"
he asked of Miss Fowler, his eyes
dancing. She smiled encouragingly
II think you are such nice man to
have about" commented Mrs. Med
croft this time yawning freely and
stretching her fine young arms in the
luxucy Of home contentment.
Brock went to bed early In Vienna
that night. tired but happy. caring not
what the morrow brought forth so
long as 1t continued to provide him
with a sister-in-law and wife who
was devoted-to another man.
CHAPTER v.
The Distant Cousins.
"HE end of the week found
Brock quite thoroughly domes-
tirated-to use an expression
supplied by his new sister-in-
law. True. he had gone through some
trying Ordeals and had lost not little
Of his sense of locality, but he was
rapidly recovering it as the pathway
became easier and less obscure. At
first be was irritatingly remiss In an
swering to the name of Medcroft: but.
to justify the stupidity. it is only nee
essary to say that he had fallen into
a condition which scarcely permitted
him to know his own name, much less
that Of another. He was under the
all what name he went by. He would
have answered as readily to one as the
other
He blandly ignored kilograms and
letters addressed to Roxbury Medcroft.
and once he sat like d lump. with ev-
cry one staring at him. when the chair
man of the architects convention ask
ed if Mr.. Medcroft had anything to
say on the subject under discussion.
He was forced. in some confusion, to
attribute his heedlessness to lifelong
defect in hearing. Thereafter it was
his punishment to have his name and
fragments Of conversation hurled about
in tones so stentorian that he blushed
for very shame. In the Bristol, in the
Karntner- Ring, in the Lichtenstein gal
lery. in the gardens--no matter where
he went-if he were to be accosted by
any Of the genial architects 1t was al
ways In voice that attracted atten-
ton. He could have heard them II
a