The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-11-13

ward. OvertukInH tho girl who had accom-
ccdins night and who had rnystcriousiy dis
! appeared she Is moved 10 befriend her. and.
alter hearing the bare outline ~ the girls
story Of her ucqunintanc. with tho dead
| man. offers her II home. Wrundairs funeral
| takes place.
Better than circus said a man
who held his little daughter above
the heads az the crowd So that
she might see the fino lady In n
wild-beast fur. SWEETEST funeral New
York ever had remarked another, cx-
ceptInv one way back when he WAS
II kid.
At the corner below stood two patrol
wagons. also waiting.
Inside the house sat the carefully
selected guests, hushed and stif and
gratincd tNot because they were at
| tending funeral. but because the oc-
casion served TO separate them from
the chan-they were the clcct) IT
would be going too far TO intimate
that they were proud OF themselves.
but IL * not stretching Il very much 10
I say that they counted noses with con
II siderable satisfaction and were glad
that they had not been left out. The
real, high water mark in New York
society was established at this memo
rable function. II was quito plain 10
every ono that Mrs. Wrandall--tho
Mrs Wrandall-had made out the Hist
OF her son II was blue stocking nj
fair. You couldn't imagine anything
more so. Afterwards. the two hun
drcd who were there looked with ut
most pity and not y little Ecorn on the
other two hundred who failed To get
in, Notwithstanding there was ample
room I'm the spacious house for all OF
/ them. There wasn't questionable
! guest in the house. unless ono werc 10
question the right II the dead mans
/ widow TO bc thcrc-tnd. after all, she
! was upstairs with the family. Even
So she was n Wrandall-remotcly, Of
! course but recognizable.
/ Yes they counted noses so 10 say
! Az one after the other arrived and was
/ ushcrcd into the huge dra wing room.
he or She was accorded !. congrituls-
tory look from those already assembled.
/ a tribute returned with equal amiabil-
! ity Each one noted who else was
4 there, and each one said TO himself that
ut last they really had something all
I 10 themselves. II was truly pleas
/ urc. relief. TO be able 10 10 something
\ without being pushed about hy poo
I plc who didn't belong but thought they
did They sat back-stifrly, OF course
aud in utter stiffness confessed that
I there could be such y thing IS the sur
/ vival Of tho fttcst. Yes, there wasn't
a nose thcro that couldn't lie counted
with perfect serenity. II was "A nota-
Il BILE occasion.
Mrs Wrandall. the elder, had made
/; out the list, She did not consult her
/ dauEhter-in-la law In tie matter. It l.
true that Sara forestallcd her in "A way
/ by sending word. through Leslie that
she would be pleased IL Mrs. Wraudali
/ would issue Invitations u Ms many Of
/ Challiss friends IS she deemed advl-
: sable. As for herself. she had no wish
In the matter she would be satisfied
with whatever y .,nsemcnts the fam
ily cared TO make.
/ u - not TO he supposed, from The
! foregoing, that Airs. Wrandail, tho cl-
I der vas not stricken to the heart by
4 tho lnmentablc death of her idol lie
was her idol He was her first born,
no was her lovo-born. lie came 10 her
IN the days when she loved her hus-
! band without much thought Of respect
ing HIM She Was beginning to regard
him as something more than n lover
when Leslie came. il was different.
When their daughter Vivian. was
born she was plainly annoyed but
no longer the lover: he was her lord
and master. The head Of the house
Of Wrandall was a person 10 be look
ed up to, to be respected and admired
/ by her, for hc was very great man.
F, but he was dear TO her only because
he was the father OF Challis. the FIRST
/ born.
| In the order OF her nature, Challis.
! therefore. was her most dearly beloved.
( Vivian the least desired and last in her
/ affections as well as in sequence
strangely enough tho three Of them
perfected a curiously significant roe.
ord OF conjugal cfdowmunts. ChaIlie
had always been the wild. wayward.
unrostraincd one. and by far the most
I loNable; Leslie. almost rs good look
ing but with scarcely Il noticeable trace
OF tho charm that made his brother at
/ tractivc; Vivian, handsome, selfish and
as chcerlcss ns the wind that blows
across the icebcrss in the North. Chal-
| lis had been born with Il widely en-
Nclopine heart and elastic con-
I science. Leslie with a brain ana a soul
ana not much OF a heart, as things go;
| Vivian with soul alone. which be-
| iongcd to God, after all. and not to her
/ OF course she had a heart, but II was
only for the purpose Of pumping blood
to remote eXtrcmitics. and had moth
ing whatever 10 do with anything so
nnuttcrlblv cXtraneous as love, char
lily or self-sacrifcc
As for Mr.. Redmond Wrandall he was
very proper and digniiied gentleman,
and old for his years.
secretly. Vivian was his favorite.
4 Moreover. possessing the usual con-
trariness OF man, and having been ut
one time or other q hot-bloodcd lover
he professionalism in secret--:l certain
admiration for the beautiful, warm
!. hearted wife of his eldest son. He
looked upon her from n mans point
iof view. lie couldn't help that Not
| once. but many times. had hc said to
himself that perhaps Challa was lucky
to have got her instead OF one OF the
girls his mother had chosen for him
out Of the minute elect.
| 1t may be seen, or rather surmiscd
| tiat ii tho house of Wrandall had not
| been so admirably centred under it's
own vine and fig tree. ii might have
become divided against itself without
much OF IN effort.
Mrs. Redmond Wrandall was tho vine
bnd fig tree.
I And now they had brought her dear
ly beloved son home to her murdered
and--disgraccd. If it had been either
OF the others she could have said:
/ Gods will be done" Instead, she
cried out that God had turned against
her
/ Leslie had had the bad tasto-or per
haps 1t was misfortune--to blurt out
an aEonizcd II told you so" mt n time
when the family was sitting numb and
hushed under the blight OF tho nrst