South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-03-06
REVELATIONS OFA WEE
BY Adele Garrison

drop the blasted stuff. did yOu?'
demanded Dicky, and his voice held
a hint OF anger that L promptly
needed. At all costs 1 wanted 20
avoid any unpleasantness before the
coming Of our guests. The evening
promised 10 be enough of tria!
10 be without having my nerves
disturbed by any disagreement be-
forehand.
"Of course not, Dicky.'' / sOothed,
and as long as the mischief IS done
We might as well finish them here.
I'll get another nut cracker and the
folding sewing table from my room"
You get the nut cracker and I'll
produce the table" said Dicky
grandly. and in a few minutes We
were seated opposite each other
amicably cracking the nuts, while
Dicky talked OF everything and
nothing. and / half listened TO what
he was saying, and half wondered
what the evening might bring me in
the way Of experiences.
To me whose existence had been
the monotonous one of a school
teacher. life with Dicky was like
revolving with Kaleidoscope, every
day seemed 20 bring something un-
expected TO me
You're not half listening to what
am saying" Dicky said, accusing
hear this You'll have TO hear Il
some time. so YOU might as well be-
fore YOU meet her"
Meet whom p" / was curious "a
once.
"Bess Marsdeu." Dicky stopped
and flushed bit He appeared at
a loss for words Dicky. Of all peo-
plel
Well" ! tried to make my voice
encouraging.
Il never realized until recently"
I Dicky went on i'm am embarrassed
fashion. how differently you look
at things from the way my friends
and / do. We might have been
+ brought up on a different planet,
YOU and l. Now Bess is one of the
most brilliant women I knew. She
has written two or three novels
. that. besides selling we'll enough 70
give her a good income independent
+ of other work, have made the crit
+ les sit up and take notice. She is
/ leader in the feminist movement,
+ too. and some of her magazine ar
+ ticles upon the new place of women
I i'm the world. or whatever the rot IS
/ that the feminists spout, are con-
/ sidered classics in their line. But"
/ [ interrupted him breathlessly.
you don't mean Eliza beth Faux
ner Marsden ?"
The same" said Dicky. dramat-
/ icaIly you don't know herr"
NO. but I have read many things
she has written She is terribly eX-
IRENE. and I cannot agree with all
she saws. but her style is wonderful,
J and many of her arguments are
sound I shall be so glad 70 meet
/ her"
"Wiu YOU? ! wonder" muttered
Dicky. Then he spoke rapidly,
| boldly.
/ "Bess not only has terribly eX-
IRENE views. but she puts them into
/ practice. She believes that if a man
| and woman have married and find
/ that they no longer love each Other,
| laws cannot bind them. and they
Iare free TO form ties elsewhere
You mean?" / felt breathless.
as if I were running.
We'll. among people who do not
know her she observes the conven-
tons. But among us it is generally
understood that she and Paul At
wood are something dearer than
/ friends"
"Why don't they marry?" I felt
as if 7 knew. yet dreaded the an
swer.
because. unfortunately. Paul has
T a wife who will neither make life
/ bearable at home nor give him a
I divorce that ne may find happiness
elsewhere. The Atwoods have q
child TOO. which complicates mat
/ ters"
oh" All my repuguance 10 the
whole affair was contained in the
little exclamation.
Dicky looked at me a trine impa-
tiently
Look here. Madge." he said.
you have led a life almost clois-
tered i'm its real ignorance of the
world. 7 would not have told you
of this. only ! wanted to prepare
YOU. so that if YOU heard Of it else
where yo1 would not think I hal
purposeIy kept you in ignorance.
/ Just forget that YOU know anything
about il, that's the attitude the rest
of us take"
felt stifed. wanted 70 ne
alone. 7 got up blindly
..pIease uardOu me few min
utes. 7 said 81 will be right
back"
Ito be continued)