The Washington herald., 1918-12-29

her both truly and srdently and for
herself alone
As in the majority Of cases. this hs4
been the result OF a conbinstion q
circumstances
Perchance. had Rebecca been poor.
Il would never have come about be-
cause there would not then have ex.
listed the attraction Of the besutffnAx
and stately old home. which had be<us
constructed 30 msnifestly for boz
pitality. That ~ was an attraction.
who can dispute? For what weary
{, pedestrian. upon a hot, dusty summer
afternoon, could tramp by its broad
vine-shaded verandas. It's comfortable
deep-seated chairs and swinging
/ couches, the wide. velvety lawns sur
rounding IT, and not yesrn towards
the rest and comfort which u offereAf
Tom and Bige had made their long
I promised call at The Elms. while Re-
becc8 and Martin sat side by side upon
the great rock in the woods. and Mrs
Vanderpool. pleased as well as fiat
{ tered, by her daughters sudden rise
into popularity, had expended for her
guests benefit her most practiced arts
I as hostess. giving them a morning
which they long remembered. She had
taken them over the grounds, showing
them her own old-fashioned garden
and Rebecca's rose-garden. and the
/ beginning Of the fOrget-me-not brook
as well as her fancy white poultry
which was famous for miles around
/ She had ended their tour Of inspection
by inviting them within the cool "
brary. where she served them with
crushed raspberries in tall sherbert
IL q. -
whipped cream. --iE
Another Tennis Invithtion.
After that she had accepted. on Re-
I becca's behalf, their invitation 10 her,
to play tennis the next afternoon on
Tomts court. provided she had no other
engagement. and then, not contented
with her efforts, she had sent them
Z back to their respective homes in the
big, double-seated, csnopled carriage
along with Roger. who had an errasd-
; TO town. r.r.
IL was not half bad. the departing
guests had agreed, to drive rather than
walk at high noon OF an August dsy.J
Ordinarily they would have come In
/ the physicians buggy. but old Peggy,
I his horse, had chosen that morniRS
upon which TO 90 lame. ga
So much for the house. But even n
might have failed, had not Rebeccs
shown. along with her charming bos-
| pitality. an equally charming indirer-
ence, the more effective in that Il
was sincere. ...-.
Who shall undertake TO describe the
/ emotions OF an attractive and hitherto
7 much-sought-after young man upon
meeting for the first time a woman
who appears totally unaware that he is
! younger, more entertaining and alto
| Gether more desirable than, say the
| rector. who can lay claim to years no
less than fifty in number, and who is
on the whole a bit anaemic. both
! physically and mentally this last In
I spite Of the array Of university de-
grees which he is privileged to attach
I 10 his name2
Tom set himself to prove that such
was even the case.
But over and above the part PLAYED
In the matter by the hospitality which
! The Eims extended. and the lure Of
Rebeccs's indifference, there was the
blind man. who served as a constant
source Of uneasy inquiry. Concerning
him niether Tom nor Bige was ablF
to form any conclusions whatever.
Miss NanderpoOl was his devoted
slave. so much was evident. but
whether II was a matter OF business
or OF love. no one knew. Il was neces-
sary that some one should be his de-
voted slave, because OF his blindness
and why not Miss W
The situation admitted Of no solu-
tion.
All the other women Of Toms se.
qUaintRnce began gradually 90 suffer
in comparison with Rebecca. as he
conversed with her and with Martin
In the little porch psrlor, the topics
Neering lightly fr1m flowers and birds
and tennis to Whistler and Goethe and
the music Of Wagner In every opiH-
ion which Rebecca expressed she
showed solid education and trained
perceptions. Moreover. she was thor
oUEhly cOnversant with German and
/. French Of which languages Tom
possessed but the bsuest working
knowledge
She was exaCth the kind Of a woman
! FOR professors wife. and full
nedged professor Tom hoped to be-
come in the not-too- far-distant future
. She shared his tastes for out-of-door
; sports. too. And The Elms would not
. be such bad place in which to spend
such vacations as we're not PASSED
. abroad. He had visions OF Egypt and
} Australia and Japan. His own STAY
in England and on the Continent
seemed meaEer in contrast with what
= the future might hold in store for
him.
But IL Is only fair TO Tom 10 re-
iterate that IN spite Of such hopefuI
and pleasant anticipstions. ne really
! loved Rebecca. They had at first ex-
erted an undOubted influence. but that
influence was no longer needed. He
would have remained unshaken in his
loyalty and devotion had her wealth
been suddenly swept from her.
Had Merry Eyes.
As for her appearance. It was doubt
ful whether he had given IL a sericp-
thought for weeks. He would have
found II difficult to describe her. bY,
what he remembered. with any deSr~e
OF accuracy-that is. so far as her
actual features were concerned What
ne carried in his heart was that she
mad merry eyes which were capable
OF great Kindness and sympathy when
fellow unburdened his mind Of hts
troubles. and a mouth that showed
good temper. one whose corners turned
up easily.
He might have added that tber.
was about her an aura OF health and
strength. and something frank ana
companionable, which might almost hs
termed hoylsh In summing un he
might have designated her as
wholesome. whole-souled woman. ON.
who would make the man OF be-
choice a capable and devoted wfre.