The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1914-05-08
A SMOKING
CASE
Story of a Woman's
Exchange
By EDITH v. ROSS

j. -. III. 81 Sss3sss.Ss'
After Chester Barnes turned his thir-
tieth birthday, having tired Of society,
when he came to his room from bust
ness in the evening he found it irk-
some to get into evening dress. So
he dined in business clothes, thinking
he would dress after dinner for any
function to which he might have been
invited-for the theater, opera or what
ever entertainment was in store for
him. But after dinner he found it more
difficult to exert himself than before
and, sitting down to his evening paper
or book, failed to arise till 10 or II
o'clock, to get into his pajamas and go
to bed. After having done this quite
continuously for a few months, one
evening he unused thus:
There's no use denying the fact any
longer that I've outgrown social, or,
rather, society, life, which is hollow,
selfish and altogether improbable. I'm
getting out of it very fast and will new
er go back to it. can't marry because
the girls I associate with are all
brought up to spend money, and am
not earning enough to supply my own
wants. AS for marrying a helpmate,
1 can't do that because / don't know
any girls of that kind. Being forced
to live In bachelor quarters alone, I'll
procure books from the libraries and
read. But first l must get the bare
ness out Of this room and make it as
homelike as possible"
Mr.. Barnes consulted with an elder
ly lady friend as to how he might get
the baroness" out of his room and
was advised to buy few attractive
pictures to cover the walls and knick-
knacks to adorn his furniture He
bought the pictures, and as for the
knicknacks he found profusion of ar
ticles that no man would ever have
thought of at a womans exchange
One thing he purchased there which
only woman would have dreamed of.
though it was useful to the sterner
sex, was case for smokers articles
made of wooden fabric bound with
silk and decorated with a number of
beautiful bowknots.
Barnes laughed at this when he saw
1T, but bought it because it was so dis
tnctly feminine. When he got it to
his room he hung 1t on the wall, string
ing his pipes along the chain Of loops.
expecting to keep them there till the
smoking case became odoriferous. He
also dropped q rubber tobacco pouch
in pocket probably intended for 1t
by the fair smoker, then sat down in
his easy chair to admire his decora-
tons.
They all looked attractive and were
great improvement to the room. But
there was still something wanting.
Barnes knew very well what it was.
He had got rid of the baroness, but
not the loneliness. Going to his smok-
ing case, he selected pipe and took his
tobacco pouch from its pocket. With
1t out came bit of paper which
foated down to the floor. He picked it
up and read in a feminine hand as
follows:
Lonely Bacheor-If this work of my
hands falls to such. l sympathize with
you in your loneliness. Perhaps when
you read this you will be passing an
evening by yourself in your room. II so
think of the girl who is doing the same
after teaching all day, making things like
this smoking case to help to keep herself
alive BY the bye, don't you think struck
a bright idea when i thought of max
ing it?
Ned thought she struck a brighter
idea when she put this missive in it.
though at first he was disposed to con-
slider her doing so a trife-well, trifle
irregular, but it occurred to him that
girl stupid enough to make a smok-
ing case out Of wool and silk, adorned
with bOwknots, might suppose she
could put out such a message without
her identity being discovered. How
ever, there is something attractive to
men in woman's misconception Of
mans requirements, and vice versa.
At any rate, Ned was very much inter
ested in his find.
He was more than interested. He
was sensibly, or, rather, sentimentally,
affected by the sympathy of this poor
girl, who was like himself yearning for
something which nature intended for
her, but which she was denied. He
lighted his pipe and began putting
clouds Of smoke. through which he
formed conceptions Of her. Was she
dark? Was she fair? Was she dis
posed to be merry? How would she
look sitting on the other side of the
table doing some bit of needlework,
not to sell to strangers, but for some
one she loved?
This simple picture grew into others,
yet all Of the same kind. The room
became one Of a number. There was
faint cry. She arose and went to an
adjoining room, from which 1t had is
sued. There was a lullaby. which In
few minutes ceased. The dreamer
arose and looked into the room where
the woman and child were and saw
the baby sleeping, the mother bending
over 1t.
Leaving the child, they walked back.
hand in hand. and, drawing a sofa be-
fore the fireplace. sat together and,
whispering. laid plans. in which the
little sleeper was the central figure.
The dream changed. He came home
after business to meet her at the door.
and she gave him kiss mechanically.