The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1915-12-23
CHAPTER XVII.
The Public la Aroused.

The Public la Aroused.
Clad in her filmy cream lace gown,
Gail walked slowly into her boudoir.
and closed the door. and sank upon
her divan. She did not stop tonight to
let down her hair and change to her
dainty negligee, nor to punctiliously
straighten the room, nor to turn on
the beautiful green light; Instead. with
all the electric bulbs blazing, she sat
with her chin in her hand, and, with
her body perfectly in repose. tried to
study the whirl Ut her mind.
She was shaken. she knew that,
shaken and stirred as she had never
been before. Something in the depths
Of her had leaped up into life, and
cried out In agony. and would not stop
crying until 1t was satisfied.
II need you to walk hand In hand
with me about the greatest work In
the world!" That was It; the greatest
work in the world! And what was
that work? To live and teach ritual
In place OF religion; to turn worship
into social observance; to use help
less belief as ladder Of ambition:
TO reduce faith to words, and hope to
recitation. and charity to an obliga-
ton; to make pomp and ceremony q
substitute for conscience, and to inter-
pose secretary between the human
heart and God!
For jus an instant Calls eyelids
dropped. her long brown lashes curved
upon her cheeks, while beneath them
her eyes glinted, and a smile touched
the corners of her lips; then she was
serious again. No. she had decided
wisely.
There was knock on the door. and
Gail smiled again as she said:
Come In"
Mrs. Helen Davies entered, tall and
stately In her boudoir frills and
rufies. She sat down In front of Gail
and prepared to enact the role of con-
scientious mother.
Doctor Boyd proposed to you to-
night" she charged, with affectionate
authority.
to pull pins out of her hair.
A worried expression crossed the
brow of Aunt Helen.
did you accept him?" and she fair
ly quivered with anxiety.
mo. Aunt Helen" Quite calmly,
piling more hairpins and still more
into the little tray by her side. and
shaking down her ripping waves of
hair.
Aunt Helen sighed deep sigh Of
relief, and smiled her approval.
Gail. dear. you have shown a de-
gree of carefulness which / am de-
lighted to find In you. II you handle
all your affairs so sensibly. you have
q brilliant future before YOU"
II must be an awful worry to you,
Aunt Helen" observed Gail, and walk
ing over, she slipped her arm around
Mrs. Davies neck and kissed her and
looked around for her chocolate box.
Calls maid came In. and Mrs. Da-
vies babe her sisters niece good
night most cordially, and retired with
o great load OF her mind: and half
an hour later the lights In Calls
pretty little suite went out
II she lay long hours looking out 1T
the pale stars: II. In. the midst OF her
calm logic. she suddenly buried her
face In her pillows and sobbed silent.
ly: II. toward morning, she awoke
with Q little cry to find her face and
her hands hot. all these things were
but normal and natural. II Ii enough
20 know that she came 10 her break
fast bright-eyed and rosy-cheekcd and
smiling with the pleasant greetings Of
ths day. and picked UP the papers
casually. and lit upon the newest SEN
sation Of the free and entirely m
curbed metropolitan pressi
The free and entirely uncurbed met
sopolitan press had found veddeS
court and had made Il the sudden
focus Of the public syA Those few
who were privileged 70 know init
mately the workings Of that a9roit
master OF the public welfare. Tim Cor.
man. could have recognised clearly
his fine hand in tho blaze Of notoriety
which obscure vedder court had SID
deniy received. After having on-
dured the contamination and conta,
zion Of the Market GQuass.e church to-