Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-07-26
THE BIG JOLT
BY A. M. CRAWFORD.

ava NAASS ACASAA AC AAdA AANCA az
his club and had stayed away from
every place where he was likely to
encounter his wife. He had ended the
last argument about taking his young
~Stenographer to lunch, to dinner and
to places of amusement by telling his
wife that he wanted an excuse to get
q divorce.
They were wholly unsuited to each
other so why be millstones around
each others necks? She was young,
pretty, too, and he would see to it that
she drew sufficient alimony to insure
her every luxury. AS for himself-he
was a man of the world and could not,
would not tolerate bonds that made
him accountable to any m for
what he did.
If he chose to take a pretty girl to
lunch, there was nc harm in it. He
had always been true to his marriage
vows, he had told his wife stifiy.
He had deposited money in the bank
regularly for her s~ustenance. Now he
had arrived at his lawyers Office to in
quire about the divorce proceedings.
The attorney informed him that his
wife had not drawn a penny from the
bank.
SLOW did she live, them" David
brought himself up with a jerk.
"She has been Dan Goldman's Sec
rotary ever since the day after you
left her"
"And the boyT' His voice was low
with suppressed emotion.
sold Sue, the only servant she
could afford to keep, is taking care
of him. They are living in two
rooms, far out where the rent is cheap
and the boy has a chance to get out
in the sunshine every day. See here"
said Steele, leaning forward, "there
was another woman, wasn't there?
Well, what's become of herr"
From somewhere down below came
the excited voices of children play
ing in the sunny streets. The balmy
breath of an awakened earth stole
in like a quiet, soothing incense.
"There never was any other
woman" said David Bryson slowly.
81 took my stenographer out a few
times, d bad taste, but lots Of
men do those things-and Kate heard
of it and asked me not to do 1t
again. 1 said that no woman could
dictate terms to me-we nev quar-
relied. Kate was too fine for that sort
of thing-so 1 left in a fit of passion,
as you know"
Tie turned to look the lawyer in the
face. 81 let that ~stenographer go
on the first excuse I could find and l
hope that I never see her face again!
Kate working in old Dan Goldman's
Office! Why didn't somebody tell me
b~efore?"
"Why," demanded John Steele sharp
ly, edo men want to make fools OF
themselves for a bit of flattery? A
man likes to think that he is a regu-
lar devil with women and always he
has a Jolt coming to him like you are
getting right now. If I were In your
place, I would give Kate a chance
to be free, to be courted, to be loved
as she so richly deserves"
David Bryson stood up suddenly and
like a drunken man, stumbled into a
little writing room. He dropped heav-
lily into a chair and seized paper and
pen in his shaking hands. His wife's
face seemed to smile at him from
the white paper. 1t was no time for
idle fancies. He shook himself and
rubbed his eyes. What would he
say to her, to Kate? She would love
him always, always. He was sure OF
that. Then he began to wonder. She
had refused his help. She had never
lifted a hand to call him back to her.
Most women would have found out
that he had been bluffing about his
stenographer and would have sent for
him on some fimsy pretext. What
would he do? He leaned his head on
his hands. Then a ghost of long ago
spread a magic tapestry before his
tired eyes.
He was once more in that little blue
room at home and it was quite dark
save for the single night lamp that
burned on a low table beside the bee.
Again the agony of young father
hood laid his gripping hand upon his
heart and his eyelids burned with
tears, manfuIly restrained. His mind
CROPPED for words to tell the sweet
young girl wife how much he loved
her as she lay there, white and spent
from the birth pangs of his tiny son.
81 love you," was all that he could
say. "Oh, my dear, I love o so"
"And our son." she had added weakly.
He knelt down by the bed and laid
his head lightly against her full
breast. He felt her soft fingers stray
ing over his hair. "And I love you,"
she had whispered, "oh, my dear, you
know now, how very, very much"
Something warm like rain fell on
his cheeks. He put up his hand alb