The circle banner. [volume] (Circle, Mont.) 1914-1939, 1917-04-06
By MARY
ROBERTS
RINEHART

| stayed at home with her, he was so
| discontinued that he drove her almost
to distraction. Although she was con-
WINGED that he was seeing nothing Of
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,
X. 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 7"
Behind him, Christine stood watch
ing his head in the light of the desk
lamp. "What 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 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.
81 wonder if you know, H." she said,
what lucky woman the woman will
be who marries you?"
He laughed good-humoredly.
Il wonder how long 1 could hypno-
tie her into thinking that"
/ 1--we 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. 1 don't
believe ever did. 1 wonder"
She checked herself abruptly and
sat down. After a moment: "Has it
ever occurred to you how terribly
mixed up things are? Take this
Street, for instance. Can you think Of
anybody on it that-that things have
gone entirely right with?"
''It's little world of it's own, of
course" said K, land 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-
err trite, isn't it?"
Christine was still pursuing her
thoughts.
Men are different" she said. ''To
certain extent they make their own
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.
am beginning to think the world is
a terrible place, X. Why do people
so often marry the wrong people? Why
Noh q lloh NdlC lOI OaC NOludh anu
only one all his life? Why-why is it
all so ccmplicated%
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"
81 feel tragic. There's going to be
another mistake, K, unless you stop !
it."
He tried to leaven the conversation
with a little fun.
IF you're going to ask me to inter-
fere between Mrs. Mckee and the
leaf-and-dumb book and insurance
agent, I shall do nothing of the sort.
She can both speak and hear enough
or both of them"
81 mean Sidney and Max Wilson.
Hes mad about her, K; and, because
hes the sort she is, he'll probably be
mad about her all ais life, even if he
narries her. But he'll not be true to
Ter; / know the type now"
X. leaned back with a flicker of
ain in his eyes.
"What can do about it?"
Astute as he was, he did not suspect
hat Christine was using this method
D fathom his feeling for Sidney. Per
APPS she hardly knew it herself.
''You might marry her yourself, K"
But he had himself in hand by this
me, and she learned nothing from Ell
ler his voice or his eyes.
ION twenty dollars a week? And
'ithout so much as asking her con-
ent?" He dropped his light tone. I'm
OF In position to marry anybody.
ven if Sidney cared for me, which
he doesn't, of course"
'Then you don't intend to interfere?
ou're going to let the Street see an
her failure?''