The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1913-04-20
JOHN BRECKENRIDGE ELLIS

world so long that a. sort of nateria
odor clings to them.
| Jealous of-Miss Gracep exclaimed
Abbott reprovingly.
! Lets go back and take a running
jump right into the thick of it, Wher
MIR. Gregory came to Littleburg, {
complete stranger-and when he mar
| ried. she was a devoted church mem.
! ber-always went, and took great in
| terest in all his schemes to help folks
folks at a distance, you understand
She just devoured that religious
magazine he edits-yes, I'll admit, hi:
| religion shows up beautifully in print
! the pictures of it are good, too. OLD
| Mrs. Jefferson took pride in being
wheeled to church where she could see
! her son-in-law leading the music, and
| where she'd watch every gesture Of
| the minister and catch the sound of his
voice at the high places, where he cried
and, or nevertheless. Sometimes Mrs
Jefferson could get dozen ands and
| butts out of one discourse Then comes
| your Grace Noir"
Abbott listened with absorbed atten-
| ton. 1t was impossible not to be in
| fluenced by the voice that had grown
! to mean SO much to him.
Grace Noir is a person that's ST.
perhumanly good, but she's not happy
in her own goodness; it hurts her, all
the time, because other folks are moi
so good as She You can't live in the
| house with her without wishing she'd
make mistake to show herself human
but she never does, she's always right
When it's time to go to church, that
woman goes, | don't care if there's a
blizzard Shes so fixed on being a
martyr. that if nobody crosses her, she
Just makes herself martyr out of the
shortcomings of others"
'.As for instance"
LAS for instance, she suffered mar
tyrdom every time Mrs Gregory mes
tied in an arm chair beside the coy
hearth, when a ladies' aid or a rally
was beating its way through snow
drifts to the Walnut Street Church
Mr.. Gregory was like everybody else
about Grace-he took her at her own
value, and that gave the equation; to
him, religion meant Walnut Street
SUu1CIl Plus OTdCe NOlI- TOI d WIilic,
Mrs. Gregory chung to church-going
with grim determination, but it wasn't
any USE The Sunday school would
have button contests. or the ladies' aid
would give chicken pie dinners down
town. and Mrs. Gregory would be a
red button or a blue button, and she
would have her pie; but she was always
third-in her home, or at church. she
was the third. 1t was her husband
and his secretary that understood the
Lord Somehow she seemed to disturb
conditions. merely by being present"
Fran, you do not realize that your
words-they intimate"
'She disturbed conditions, Abbott
She was like a turned-up light at a
seance. A successful manifestation
calls for semi-gloom, and when those
two were alone, they could get the
current. Mr.. Gregory was appalled, be-
cause his wife quit attending church.
Grace sympathized in his sorrow 1t
made him feel toward Grace Noir-
but I'm up against stone wall, Abbott,
| haven't the word to describe his
feeling, maybe there isn't any. Sad, you
know, so sad, but awful sweet-the per-
dew, because Grace has straight nose
and big splendid eyes, and such form
she's the opposite of me in everything,
except that she isn't man-more's the
pityw
Fran Nonpareil! Such wisdom ter
rifles me such suspicious In
this moment of hesitancy between con-
viction and rejection. Abbott felt oddly
out of harmony with his little friend
She realized the effect she must neces-
sarily be producing, yet she must con-
tinue; she had counted the cost and
the danger If she did not convince
him, his thought of her could never be
the same
abbott, you may think am talking
from jealousy, and that | tried to get
rid of Grace Noir so | could better
my condition at her expense. | don't
know how to make you see that my
story is true 1t tells itself Oughtn't
that to prove it? Mrs Gregory has the
doves nature; she'd let the enemy have
She lets him take his choice-here is
she, yonder's the secretary. He isn't
worthy of her if ne choosese Grace
but his hesitation has proved him I'M
worthy, anyhow He'll never be to
Mrs. Gregory what he was-but if she
spoke out, there'd be the publicity-the
lawyers, the newspapers, the staring
in the streets = The old lady-her
mother-is a fighter; she'd have driven
out the secretary long ago. But Mrs.
Gregory's idea seems to be-'If he can
want her, after I've given him myself,
I'll not make a movement to inter-
fere."
Abbott played delicately with the
mere husk of this astonishing revela-
ton: Have YOU talked with old Mrs.
Jefferson about-about it?"
She's too proud-wouldn't admit it.
But I've slyly limited however, it's
not the sort of story YOU could pour
through the funnel of an ear-trumpet
without getting wheat mixed with chaff.
She'd misunderstanding neighbors
would get it hrst-anyway, she
wouldn't make move because her
daughter won't. It's you and |, Abb
bolt, against Grace and Mr.. Gregory"
He murnured, looking away, You
take me for granted, Fran"
"Yes" Fran's reply was almost a
whisper A sudden terror of what he
might think of her, smote her heart
But she repeated bravely, YES"
a conhding trust that seemed to hedge
her soul about. "And you can always
take me for granted. Fran; and al
ways is long time"
MOT too long for you and me- said
-