Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1916-02-03

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Russian exile-the daughter of spy.
She was said to be German princess
deposed.
She was said to have come up from
the slums of the city where her flower
like loveliness was said to have flour
ished as a pond-lily fiourishes on the
! breast of a stagnant pond. What
ever her origin, she had developed in
to lovely woman, serene, perfectly
poised, accomplished.
She presented Gerry unconvention-
ally to the roomful of guests already
assembled, simply crying:
Everybody, Miss Rhodes-Miss
Rhodes, everybody"
And score or more of smiling
faces turned toward Gerry, and she
let ier eyes wander round the circle
curiously, interested. Many Of the
faces seemed vaguely familiar to her,
and yet she could place none of them.
She turned to Merrol.
"Who are these people? ?" she asked
softly.
an tell you afterward. l want
you to see the pictures first"
She followed him obediently into a
sort of alcove where the illustrations
stood upon huge easels under good
light. One represented the church
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crowds in the pews. Through the tall
stained-glass windows came splashes
of colored light. The groom was
turning to talk to some one behind
him. The bride was gazing straight
ahead, questioningly, uncertainty,
hopefully, wistfully, and little res
ignedly. Her face was the picture
the rest was the background.
"Elsie-the day of her wedding"
explained Merrol. "Does he get the
atmospheric"
"Wonderfully,' breathed Gerry.
For an instant longer she regarded
! it, then turned to the second picture.
1t was Elsie on the stairs looking
downward at her husband, who had
been absent overnight without noti-
flying her, and who was stumbling
home the following day at dusk, after
two days of debauchery and wild dis
sipation. 1t is Elsie's first contact
with him in his cups, the first init
nation of the taint in his blood.
In the picture the husband is not
seen-only part of the stairway and
Elsie looking down. Her attitude
tells that she is seeing something re-
voting. Her face is hidden; but the
painting of her outstretched arms, her
head, her back, revealed the story.
at is masterly!" replied Gerry.
"Masterly! But will they reproduce
like this?"
A hand appeared suddenly from be-
hind her with a glass in it-a glass
shaped like reading-glass, but fit
ted with condensing lens.
"Look!" said KraePs voice.
Glancing back at him, startled-for
she had been unaware of his presence
until then-she looked at the pictures
through the glass. They lost nothing
in condensing.
"You like them?" asked Krael.
"They are by far the most beauti-
full and effective illustrations | have
ever seen," she said simply.
"Your word-pictures were an in
spiration. They were situations to
paint-gorious situations beautifully
set. So you are deserving of the
credit"
He was flushed, obviously gratified.
Gerry smiled.
"You are too modest" she said,
with shake of the head. "You have
made something wonderful of the sit
uations. Think how | should feel if
my illustrations were like some | have
seen-out of drawing, out of atmos-
phere, unnatural. You have saved
me lot of wretchedness."
He laughed and bade Merrol find
her chair and bring to her for indi-
vidual presentation whoever she car
ed to meet.
But when he had found the right
chair, off in the corner quite apart
from the rest and out of sight, he sat
down near her and declared that there
was nobody out there nearly as in
teresting as he was himself-so he en-
tertained her.
She regarded him sadly, no wise un-
aware of his bigness and breadth and
of the handsome figure he cut in his
formal things.
"If you think you are going to get
me into corner and talk nonsense to
me you are mistaken" she said
~ promise to talk only sense" said
he grinning.
"Mind you do, then, for at the first
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