The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1917-06-08

she sat down on the arm of the chair.
slid strong arm around the fragile
figure, and Rugged 1t up against her
self. III suppose" she observed con-
tritely, shat / ought to have broken
1t more gradually. But / never think
of things like that"
AS well as she could, her mother
resisted the embrace. ~ can't be.
lieve," she said, gripping the edge of
her desk with both hands, "that you
would jest about solemn subject like
that, Rose, and yet It's incredible f. ~
The mother freed herself from the
girls embrace, rose, and walked away
to another chair. "If you'll talk
nationally and seriously, my dear" she
said, 1--WE can continue the conversa-
ton. But this flippant, rather-vulgar
tone you're taking, pains me very
much"
The girl flushed to the hair. 81
didn't know I was being flippant and
vulgar" she said. ~ didn't mean to
be. l was just trying to tell you-all
about it."
you've told me-" said her mother,
"that Mr.. Aldrich has asked you to
marry him and that you've consented.
1t seems to me you have done so
hastily and thoughtlessly. He's told
you he loves you, I've no doubt, but
don't see how it's possible for you
to feel sure on such short acquaint-
ance"
"Why, of course he's told me-" Rose
said little bewildered. she can't
help telling me all the time, any more
than 1 can help telling him. We're
rather mad about each other, really.
1 think he's the most wonderful per-
son in the world, and"-she smiled
little uncertainly-"he thinks l am.
But we've tried to be sensible about
it, and think it out reasonably. He
said he couldn't guarantee that we'd
be happy; that no pair of people could
be sure of that till they'd tried. But,
he said, 1t looked to him like the most
wonderful magnificent adventure in
the world, and asked If it looked to
me like that, and 1 said 1t did. Be
cause it's true. It's the only thing
In the world that seems worth-bother-
ing about. And we both think
though of course we can't be sure
we're thinking straight = that we've
got good chance to make 1t CO."
Even her mothers bewildered ears
couldn't distrust the sincerity with
which the girl had spoken. But this
only increased the bewilderment. She
had listened with a sort of incredu-
lous distaste she couldn't keep her
face from showing. and at last she had
to wipe away her tears.
At that Rose came over to her,
dropped on the floor at her knees, and
embraced her. Il guess perhaps I I'M
derstand, mother" she said. ~ didn't
realize - you've always been so in
tellectual and advanced It that you'd
feel that way about it-be shocked be-
cause hadn't pretended not to care
for him, and been shy and coy" - in
spite of herself, her voice got an edge
of humor in it-"and startled fawn,
you know, running away, but just not
fast enough so that he wouldn't come
running after and think he'd made
wonderful conquest by catching me at
last. But man like Rodney Aldrich
wouldn't plead and protest, mother.
lie wouldn't want me unless wanted
him just as much"
1t was long time before her mother
spoke, and when she did, she spoke
humbly-resignedly, as If admitting
that the situation was beyond her
powers.
Its the one need Of woman's
life, Rose, DEAR" she said, "the corner
stone of all her happiness, that her
husband, as you say, wants her.
Doubt of 1t is the one thing that will
have the power to make her bitterly
unhappy. That's why it seems to me
so terribly necessary that she be sure
about 1t before it's too late"
"Yes, of course" said Rose. "But
that's true of the man, too, isn't 1t?
Otherwise, where's the equalityT
Her mother couldn't answer that e1-
cept with long sigh.
Ever since babyhood, Rose had been
devoted, by all her mothers plans and
hopes, to the furtherance Of the cause
of women, whose ardent champion she
herself had always been. For Rose
not Portia, was the devoted one.
The elder daughter had been born
at a time when her own activities
were at their height. As Portia her
self had said, when she and her two
brothers were little, their mother had
been too busy to-luxuriate In them
very much; and, during those early,
and possibly suggestible years, Portia
had been suffered to grow up, as 1t
were, by herself.
She expected Rose to marry, of
course. But in her day-dreams 1t was
to be one of Roses converts to the
cause. Certainly Rodney Aldrich, who,
as Rose outrageously had boosted,
rollad hor In tho dtct ond trompad oll