The midland journal., 1917-04-06
By MARY
ROBERTS
RINEHART

TO QlSIraCLlO0. AlLnOugl Sne was con-
vinced that he was seeing nothing of
the girl who had been with him the
night of the accident, she did not trust
him. Not that girl, perhaps, but there
were others. There would always be
others.
Into Christine's little parlor, then,
K. turned, one spring evening. She
was reading by the lamp, and the door
into the hall stood open. The little
room always cheered K. Its warmth
and light appealed to his esthetic
sense; after the baroness of his bed
room, it spelled luxury. And perhaps,
to be entirely frank, her evident pleas
ure in his society gratified him. Chris
tines small coQuetries were not lost on
him. The evenings with her did some
thing to reinstate him in his own self
esteem. 1t was subtle, psychological,
but also it was very human.
"Come and sit down." said Christine.
"Here's a chair, and here are ciga.
rettes and there are matches. Now !"
Behind him, Christine stood watch.
ing his head in the light of the desk
lamp. "What a strong, quiet face it
is," she thought. Why did she get the
impression of such a tremendous re-
serve power in this man who was a
clerk, and a clerk only? Behind him
she made quick, unconscious gesture
of appeal, both hands out for an in
slant. She dropped them guiltily as
X. turned to her.
II wonder if you know, H." she said,
what a lucky woman the woman will
be who marries you"
He laughed good-humoredly.
Il wonder how long could hypno.
tize her into thinking that"
"Tve had time to do a little think.
ing lately" she said, without bitter.
ness. palmer is away so much now.
I've been looking back, wondering if
ever thought that about him. I don't
believe ever did. wonder"
She checked herself abruptly and
sat down. After a moment: HAS ii
ever occurred to you how terribly
mixed up things are? Take this
anybody on it that-that things have
gone entirely right witn?"
"It's little world of its own, OF
course" said K, "and it has plenty
of contact points with life. But wher.
ever one finds people, many or few,
one finds all the elements that make
up. life-joy and sorrow, birth and
death, and even tragedy. That's rath.
er trite, isn't it?"
Christine was still pursuing hel
thoughts.
Men are different" she said. "Tc
a certain extent they make their OWL
fates. But when you think of the
women on the Street-Harriet Ken
nedy, Sidney Page, myself, even Mrs.
Rosenfeld back in the alley-Some
body else mOlds things for us, and all
we can do is to sit back and suffer
1 am beginning to think the world is
a terrible place, K. Why do people
so often marry the wrong people? Why
can't man care for one woman anG
only one all his life? Why-why is il
all so complicated?"
"There are men who care for only
one woman all their lives"
you're that sort, aren't your"
Il don't want to put myself on any
pinnacle. If cared enough for wom'
an to marry her, I'd hope to But
we are being very tragic, Christine"
II feel tragic. There's going to be
mig Il sfn
it,"
He tried to leaven the conversation
with little fun.
IF you're going to ask me to inter.
fere between Mrs. Mckee and the
deaf-and-dumb book and insurance
agent, I shall do nothing of the sort.
She can both speak and hear enough
for both of them."
II mean Sidney and Max Wilson
He's mad about her, X. and, because
she's the sort she is, he'll probably be
mad about her all his life, even if he
marries her. But he'll not be true to
her; l know the type now."
X. leaned back with a flicker Of
pain in his eyes.
what can do about it?"
Astute as he was, he did not suspect
that Christine was using this method
to fathom his feeling for Sidney. Per-
haps she hardly knew it herself.
"You might marry her yourself, K"
But he had himself in hand by this
time, and she learned nothing from eli.
ther his voice or his eyes.
"On twenty dollars week? And
without so much as asking her con-
sent?" He dropped his light tone. I'm
not in a position to marry anybody.
Even if Sidney cared for me, which |
she doesn't, of course"
"Then you don't intend to interferei
You're going to let the Street see an