Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1916-06-23
why Don't You Ask Me?"

paused refectively, continuing,
'Edith's interested in that Lamhorn
boy; he's good-looking and not stupid,
herself with CHEEKY cutlery: "Oh,
I mustn't be calling him names! If
he's trying to make Edith like him I
ought to respect him as colleague"
81 don't understand a thing you're
talking about" Mrs. Vertrees COM
planned.
AL the better! Well, he's a bad lot,
that Lamhorn boy; everybody's always
known that, but the Sheridans don't
know the everybodies that know. He
sat between Edith and Mrs. Roscoe
Sheridan. She's like those people you
wondered about at the theater the last
time we went-dressed in ballgowns;
bound to show their clothes and jewels
somewhere! She fatters the father,
and so did I, for that matter-but not
that way. I treated him outrageouslyw
''Mary!'
That's what fattered him. After
dinner he made the whole regiment Of
us 1OllOW u11u oil ONCl Lie AOuSC1 w uAAO
he lectured like a guide on the Pala-
tine. He gave dimensions and costs,
and the whole b'ilin' of 'em listened as
if they thought lie intended to make
them a present of the house. What he
was ploudest of was the plumbing and
that Bay of Naples panorama in the
hall He made us look at all the
plumbing and everywhere
else-and then he made us look at the
Bay of Naples. He said it was hum
dred and eleven feet long, but think
it's more And he led us all into the
ready made library to see poem
Edith had taken prize with at school.
They'd had it printed in gold letters
and framed in mother Of-pearl. But
the poem itself was rather simple and
Wistful and niche read it to us,
though Edith tried to stop him. She
was modest about 1t, and said she'd
never written anything else. And then,
after a while Mrs. Roscoe Sheridan
asked me to come across the street to
her house with them-her husband and
Edith and Mr.. Lamhorn and Jim Sheri-
dan"
Mrs. Vertrees was shocked. "Jim!'
she exclaimed. MARY, please"
"Of course said Mary. "I'll make
it as easy for you as can, mamma.
Mr.. James Sheridan, Jr. We went over
there, and Mrs. Roscoe explained that
the men were dying for drink
though 1 noticed that Mr. Lamhorn
was the only one near deaths door on
that account Edith and Mrs. Roscoe
said they knew I'd been bored at the
dinner. They were EXCEPTIONALLY apollo
getic about it, and they seemed to
think now we were going to have
good time to make up for It. But l
hadn't been bored at the dinner, I'd
been amused; and the good time at
Mrs. Roscoe's was horribly, horribly
stupid"
"But, Mary her mother began, lis
is And she seemed unable to
complete the question.
s'Never mind, mamma, I'll say it. Is
Mr.. James Sheridan, Jr., stupid? I'm
sure he's not at all stupid about bust
ness. Otherwise oh, what right
have to be calling people Stupid be-
cause they're not exactly my kind ?
On the big dinner table they had enor-
nous icing models Of the Sheridan
building"
"Oh nor Mrs. vertrees cried. "Sure-
~ not!''
eyes, and two other things Of that
kind-I don't know what. But, after
all. I wondered if they were so bad.
Well, then, mamma, managed not to
feel superior to Mr.. James Sheridan,
Jr.. because he didn't see anything out
of place in the Sheridan building in
sugar"
Mrs. vertrees' expression had lost
none of it's anxiety and she shook her
head gravely. "My dear, dear child"