The Benson signal., 1917-12-08
suppers, Christmas bazaars. charity

Rose had met her a number of times
before the incident referred to hap
pened, but had always surveyed the
liOneSs from afar.
She hung about, within earshot
when it was possible, and watched,
leaving the active duties Of entertain
ment to heavily cultured illuminate
like the Howard Vests, or to clever
creatures like Hermione Woodruff and
Frederica, and Constance Crawford,
whose French was good enough to fill
in the intersticeS in Madame Greville'S
English.
She was standing about like that at
tea one afternoon, when she heard
the actress make the remark that
American women seemed to her to be
an exception to what she had always
supposed to be the geN oral law Of
sex attraction.
1t was taken, by the rather tense
little circle gathered around her, as
a compliment; exactly as, no doubt
Greville intended it to be taken. But
her look flashed out beyond the con-
| fines of the circle and encountered a
pair of big, luminous eyes, under
brows that had a perplexed pucker in
them. Whereupon she laughed straight
into Roses face and said, lifting her
head a little, but not her voice:
"COme here, my child, and tell me
who you are and why you were looking
at me like that"
Rose flushed, smiled that irresistible
wide smile Of hers, and came, not
| frightened bit, nor, exactly, en-
| barrassed; certainly not into pretend
ing she was not surprised, and little
breathlessly at loss what to say.
"I'm Rose Aldrich." She didn't, in
words, say, "Pm just Rose Aldrich." !"
1t was the little bend in her voice
that carried that impression. "And l
| suppose T was-looking that way, be-
cause I was wishing I knew exactly
what you meant by what you said"
GrevilJe's eyes, somehow, concen-
trated and intensified their gaze upon
the flushed young face-took a sort
of plunge so it seemed to Rose, to
the very depths of her own. 1t was
an electrifying thing to have happen
| to you.
"Mon Dieu!" she said. "J'ai grande
envie de vous lie dire" She hesitated
the fraction Of a moment, glanced at
tiny watch set in a ring upon the
middle finger of her right hand, took
Rose by the arm as if to keep her
from getting away, and turned to her
hostess.
"You must forgive me-" she said,
eff I make my farewells little soon.
T am under orders to have some air
each day before go to the theater
and if it is to be done at all today,
it must be now. I am sorry. have
had a very pleasant afternoon.
"Make your farewells also, my
child" she concluded, turning to her
prisoner, because you are going with
me-"
No sooner were they seated in the
actress car and headed north along
the drive, than, instead of answering
Roses question, the actress repeated
one of her own.
81 ask you who you are, and you say
your name-Rose something. But
that tells me nothing. Who are YOU
one of them?"
"No, not exactly" said Rose. "Only
by accident. The man married is
-Gos of them, in way. I mean, be-
cause of his family and all that. And
so they take me in"
$50 you are married." said the
Frenchwoman. "But not since long?'
"Six months" said Rose.
She said it so with the air of regard
ing it as a very considerable period
of time, that Greville laughed. "But
tell me about him, then, this husband
Of yours. 1 saw him perhaps at the
tea this afternoon?"
Rose laughed. "No, he draws the
line at teas" she said. "He says that
from seven o'clock on, until as late
as I like, he's-game, you know-will-
ing to do whatever I like. But until
seven, there are novel;, he says,
siren songs for him."
''Tell me-you will forgive the in
discretion of a stranger? ?-how has it
arrived that you married him? Was
it one of your American romances?"
''It didn't seem very romantic" said
Rose. "We just happened to get ac-
quainted, and we knew almost straight
off that we wanted to marry each
other, so we did, and-it came out
very we'll"
"It came out'?" questioned the
actress.
EYES," said Rose. ''Ended happily,
you know"
"Ended!" Madame Greville echoed.
Then she laughed.
Rose flushed and smiled at herself.
"Of course, I don't mean that" she
admitted, "and 1 suppose six months
isn't so very long. Still you could
find out quite a good deal-?"
"What is his affafr?" The actress