Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-02-10
"VIRTUOUS. WIVES"
Owen JOhnson's Sparkling Society Novel,
which iS making such hit in the movies.
TlJsR Col-


wrist and made him sit beside her on
the sofa, saying: Now ,Tody, I'm
not going to take you seriously. We
have been good friends, and | won't
allow you to talk nonsense"
What do you mean?"
You know perfectly wei" she
said quietly. Now listen to mel At
first, simply made up my mind to
drop you"
ooh, l say-not thatl" he cried,
Mortified at the cruelty of her tone
as much as at her words-a tone
which set before him all the alb
surdity of his pretensions and the
distance between them.
For / won't hide from you that
you've hure me terribly" She re-
peated firmly, "Terribly-for you
see, Tody, | trusted you. That's the
worst of it. l let you come here as
one of the family. / felt you UNDER
stood that we were the best of
friends, real comrades, that | could
call you up at any hour, go with you
anywhere, and that I was under
your protection. There are only
four or five boys that / admit to my
intimacy in the same way, never
men whom | meet casually. For !
won't be talked about. Particularly
as my husband is forced to be away
most of the time, ! intend to be
overcareful. That's why. when you
spoke as you did about that
wretched article, / was so touched"
"And l meant it'll swear l meant
every word" he began.
$50 | believed, and yet the very
same day" She stopped, frowned
Nov that we are talking frankly
as we must-I'll tell you that | did
believe you were devoted to me"
She hesitated moment over the
choice of a word. "Devoted-yes,
in chivalrous way, as a boy can
be to a woman of the world without
doing him any harm. Perhaps
was wrong, but l felt / was a good
influence for you, that I really
helped you-perhaps that was my
mistake" she said all at once, stop
ping and questioning him with her
glance.
"No, no." he said, and his ,eyes
were periously close to tears: "You
were rights meant everything
to me. By George, you are an angel
If all women were like your He
was walking back and forth, speak
ing in broken phrases that he
seemed hardly able to utter. | see
it all What cad I've beenl But
it won't happen again. I'm not go
ing to say what isn't so. You do
mean the world to me. Oh, I'm
not asking anything-only to forget
Ito go back-give me another trial
Amyp
very we'll; we'll forget" she said,
after a pause. "But-wouldn't it be
better if you didn't see too much of
meAfor a while?"
ooh, Lord, that's what I was
afraid Off he said, with groan.
"Yet wouldn't it be wiser?" she
said doubtfully, and perhaps
wouldn't it be better if we didn't
dance together in the minuet?"
He could not answer. He walked
to the door and then back to the
window, struggling for seif-control.
He had been only lightly enamoured
when he had entered, but now, be-
fore her sweetness and charity, he
felt madly, hopelessly, head over
heels in love. No woman had ever
existed like her, so kind, so fine, so
unselhsh, so big-hearted.
Listen, Amy" he said, at last
able to face her: Don't do that
don't! | beg it of you. If you
really forgive me, if you're going to
give me another chance, you won't
insist on that. And besides, if we
gave it up now, every one would
know-suspect-don't you see"
Eyes; that's the trouble" she said
pensively. She studied him with a
last hesitation. "Tody, can l really
trust your"
Trust me? Good heavens, Amy,
after the way you've been with me?
Don't you know what it means to a
man to know woman like your"
Very we'll; I won't punish you
any further. Well dance it to-
gether."
He seized her hand Che would
have liked to have fallen on his
knees before herr and raised it re-
spectfully to his lips. Then he went
out hurriedly, not trusting himself
to say another word.
She felt the same moral saisfac-
ton which she had felt after her
explanation with the Comte de Eau
couleur. She knew that he would |
never offend again. AS for his feel
ing toward her
ut won't do him any harm to be
little in love with me-" she said !
with a smile, better that he should j
be devoted to me than to some |
dangerous vulgar woman. can be
good influence in his life, the very |
best"
AS Tody Dawson went down the |
great stairway, his head swimming, |
his heart swollen, dimness before
his eyes. the doors below swung |
open. He looked down and rec
ognized Andrew Forester.
Continued Tomorrow
Ne