The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-01-15
MARRIED LIFE.
Helen is Forced to Supterfuge to
Conceal a Lie Told Long Ago.
BY MebeI Herbert Urner.

| opened.
"oh, I'm SO sorry l woke you! l
should have known"
'I'm glad you did," laughed Mrs.
| Stevens, cordially. 'I always take
little nap after luncheon, but |
never want TO sleep long. 1t only
makes me stupid for the rest of the
down to the beach,
! Helen sank on couch and looked
up at Mrs. Stevens with troubled
eyes. "It's something l want to ask
you-something | want you to help
me in-and yet with an uncertain
| little laugh, as she pulled nervously
at the tassel of her parasol-"it
seems so foolish hardly know
how to tell YOU"
Mrs. Stevens instantly interested,
surmising some domestic trouble,
drew up chair beside her.
"Why, you know, DEAR" encourage
| ingly. "if there's anything l can do ~
"But this is so foolish. It's about
that horseback ride Sunday. You
know your husband asked If / could
ride and Warren answered, ooh, yes,
Helen's quite a horsewoman.' Don't
you remember"
Mrs. Stevens nodded
She Was Terrified.
"Well, I'm-Im not! I'm! I've
never been on horse in my life
but once-anf then | was terrified
But long ago before we were mar
ried | gave Warren to understand
that l could ride-and I've had to
keep up that pretense ever since. Of
course, it must seem absurd that 1
haven't told him the truth. but the
way it all happened-somehow |
never could-He used to be so siren
uously athletic. He skated and rowed
and was an expert tennis and golf
player-and 1 could do none of those
! things. Oh, | used to feel so hu-
inflated"
Helen hesitated a moment and then
went on, her eyes on the figures in
the rug she was tracing with her
parasol.
And one day, he said half teas
fngly, half in earnest: What a little
house kitten you are! There's not
single outdoor thing you can do
happened to be turning the leaves OF
a magazine-and there was pic
| ture of woman on horseback. Oh,
L don't know what possessed me but
| said: ooh, yes, L can ride. | used
to ride great deal and l really can
ride very we'll And he answered.:
Good! That's fine! There's no bet
ter exercised Of course, that was
tefore we were even engaged. We
mentioned it several times after
wards, but l never had the courage
| to tell him the truth"
Helen stopped over to pick up the
parasol that had slipped from her
nervous fingers, and went on hur-
iedly:
We've never been where they've
had saddle horses, SO it really hasn't
faattered until last night-when you
suggested that we hire horses from
the stable and go riding Sunday
morning. ! tried to get out of it by
saving L had no habit, and you said
you had two and would drive in to-
morrow and bring down both. And 1
protested 1t that, you said all l would
neeG was skirt, and they had those
at the stables. So | couldn't get out
of it. And Warren is so eager to
go. He says he hasn't ridden for
years, and it will do him more good
can make a reasonable arrangement
by the week, We'll both ride every
morning before he goes into town.
Now what shall | do? 1t seems to
me ! can't tell him after all these
years.
Mrs. Stevens laughed comfortingly
''Why, my dear, that's very simple.
This is only Wednesday. They've
riding instructors out here, and all
you've got to do is to take as many
lessons as you can before Sunday.
''But | couldn't learn in that
timer
"Of course you can. I've never
had lesson in my life"
70 do 1G - 80
back in the saddle, and don't saw on
the reins."
She Is Reassured.
3Oh, but I've always been afraid
of horses. | love them-love to pet
them-but the fnoagnt of riding one
terrifies me-
1t won't after you've ridden a few
times. Wait until | get dressed and |
We'll go right over to the stable now
and you'll take you first lesson. They
have an enclosure there back of the
stables and no one came see you
An hour later Helen was mounted
on sedate, gentle horse with a
riding master beside her.
Fright shoulder back-elbows I'M
Hold the reins little lower please. |
There, that's better No, not so |
tight, on the curb" were the bewil- |
dering instructions Helen tried des-
r&Eately to follow.
AS she was slight and supple. she |
should have looked well on horse, |
but her very eagerness TO learn /
quickly and her nervous fear made |
it more difficult.
The first lesson was only on the |
reins and the position in the saddle. |
But the reins were painfully confus- |
ing. Helen could not remember the
difference between the shuttle and /
the curb nor the Ringers between |
which to hold them. And when she |
went back to the hotel she tied some |
tape to the hedpost in imitation of |