The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-10-05
What Brought
Her Home
By ETHEL HOLMES

John Cook had been married tel
years, during which time, except the
first few months after the wedding, he
had never been away from his wife fol
more than a few days at a time. But
after ten years Lying together there
came brief separation. They had not
been able to go to the country during
the summers, for Johns income would
not admit Of an outing. But all Of a
sudden his business sprang up, and
when August came around 1t was de-
cidsd that Mrs. Cook and the children
had better spend few weeks In some
rural district where there was pure air.
John could not leave his business,
which was increasing every day, so he
packed them off without him.
Mrs. Cook had exacted promise
from her husband that he would write
every day. The first day after her de-
parture he kept his promise. He wrote
the following brief letter:
Dear Ellen-I hope you and the children
arrived safely. It's very hot here, but
presume you are rejoicing In cool breezes.
dined in a hurry last night at a restau-
rant and went back to the office, where
I remained till II o'clock. 1 am obliged
to work nights in order to keep up with
the rush, so you see that I haven't much
time to spend writing any letters that
don't pertain to business. Ia ia. Kiss
Tommy and Nellie for their
AFFECTIONATE FATHER.
THAT" said Mrs. Cook, "looks as If
he were very busy and that the chill
dren are the only ones who can draw
from him any expression Of affection"
The next day Mrs. Cook looked for
another letter from her husband. hop
ing that 1t would be signed "your af-
fectiQnate husband" instead Of ''the
children's affectionate father" But to
her surprise ne letter came, nor did she
receive one the day following or the
next or the next. 1t was not till
week after the arrival Of the first let
ter that another came. This one was
as overlooking with affection as the
first was devoid Of 1t. Its beginning
was as fOllOWS:
Dearest Nell-It Ii three days since l
have seen your dear face or kissed your
sweet lips. 1t seems three years-no. not
years ages II ever I get back to you l
vow will never consent to be separated
from you again. Last night wrote you
twelve pages. which. presume. you have
by this time received and digested. Yours
written yesterday is here. and have read
1t a dozen times already. I woke up in
the middle of the night and got up to read
1t again.
Mrs. Cook had read thus far when
she stopped and shuddered. What did
this remarkable burst of affection
mean? The newspapers had noted that
the thermometer in the city had how
cred around % degrees and the humid.
1ty varied between 90 and 100 degrees.
There had been many cases of sun
stroke, and several persons had been
made insane by the heat. Could it be
that her husband has been thus affect
ed?
The letter trembled in her hands as
she read on. Swimming over lot
more of this 'incoherent nonsense" as
she called it, the letter closed:
With million kisses. your own true
love, JACK
What caused the greatest fear in
Mrs. Cooks breast was the fact that
there was not word about the chill |
1ren. In this epistle there was surely |
no reason to be jealous of them. But
II he had forgotten them his delirium |
must surely be terrible. What should
she do-telegraph him to ask if he had
been sunstruck? That, of course, |
would be absurd. She might inquire
If others, but when she came to think
over her husbands intimate friends
she remembered every one of them
was out Of town. Besides supposing
here was nothing the matter with |
Iohn or suppose-she wilted at the |
he had written another
woman while writing his wife and got |
he letters in the wrong envelope? No.
Whatever she did she must keep the
natter from the world. There was but
,ne thing for her to do-go home.
In an hour after this decision she
had left her children in care of the
and taken train. She ar
rived in the city before dark and drove
directly to her house. She found the
front door unattached and entered. The |
table was set for dinner for one In the
inning room. She ran upstairs and
saw her husband in his bedroom tying
his cravat before a mirror. He turned
ana looked at her in establishment.
Great heavens What brought you
homer Anything the matter with the
children?'
Mrs. Cook. by this time convinced
that the letter she had received had
been written to another woman than
herself, drew 1t from her bag and
handed 1t to her husband. He looked
at 1t, and singular, shamefaced ex-
preston appeared on his countenance.
who is the womanT cried Mrs.
John /
My dear, did this bring you homer
1T did"
THANK heavenw
what do you mean?"
why, was so crowded with bust
ness that l have no time to write. I
round In your desk bundle of nv old
lntfarS m t-nt, xx-ri.&1..