Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1919-02-14
SCI. The
nftsSgl2 J AUSf.4. U1f<4 ~ Ss-
rom OteF'S
Wife
ft,.'
By JANE PHELPS.
NEIL TAKES BLANCHE 0RT0N'S
ADVICE TO EXERCISE.
CHAPTER XVII.
By JANE PHELPS.
Copyright, George Mathew Adams)
CHAPTER XVII.

| was almost ashamed of loving him
so much. Then, when she seemed in
animate when with me as often
happened. Men are said to be selfish.
had heard women talk as If sell
| fshness were bred in men, and in
eradicable; therefore it must be &C
oepted by women.
Neil was a composite Selfish be-
You'd anyone / ever had known in
some ways; nusellsh to a definite
degree in others. And as his unset
fish actions were invariably accom-
panied by passionate love-making and
generosity toward me, would forget
nature-for long periods at a time.
We had moved into the new apart
ment. I felt almost lost in the i'm
mense rooms. / had cared for the
smaller one with sort of joyous de-
votion and energy, because as I told
Neil it was "my little house. my first
home with him"
j .All through my life at home with
} father and mother, there had been
aside from the necessary plainness
of people in our circumstances, note
of simplicity. But Neil loved luxury.
He often said, laughingly:
Il like the sensation of sinking
} down in things" So we had divans
with big, fat cushions, and easy chairs
that, once you were settled in them,
you felt that never could you get out
Of them without assistance.
Our new home was exquisite in many
ways. Yet to me it lacked the "homei-
ness" of the first little home A fash
ionable and igh-priced decorator had
, hung the walls with tapestries, or
sofa pushes. The furniture had been
selected for the place it was intended
to fill with the greatest care. But
once put where it belonged it had to
remain there. 1t was absolutely in
congruous anywhere else
Neil still looked worn and tired. He
was always laboring under a sort of
excitement, was restless. and strung
up as father would have expressed it.
/ felt anxious about him, but when |
spoke of what l called his nervous
ness he only laughed at me.
One day he came home in great
glee. He and another man had decided
10 take boxing lessons. He explained
his reasons.
Everyone says look tired. think
it is because l get no exercise. I'm
sitting in an Office three-quarters Of
, the time, One does get stale and soft
The softer one gets. the less he is in
clined to make the effort required if
he would harden his muscles. / met
Blanche Orton today. and she accused
{ me of getting old. So made arrange
J ments to box twice a week"
He had done it because of Blanche
! Orton's criticism / had been telling
: him for weeks that he looked badly,
, and ne had simply laughed and dis
missed it with shrug. But the mo-
/ ment she spoke to him he had been
, awake to the necessity for action.
! think that jealousy of Blanche Or
nxxyaE w.
other mans wife, could influence my
husband where l could not. never
had heard anything tangible in any
way against Mrs. orion; she was re-
ceived everywhere. Yet had seer
a slight lifting of eyebrows, on oc-
casion, when she was more than usual
ly frank in her actions. She was con.
summately clever. Very Ingenious
Always she knew how to turn every.
thing to her own advantage; to gloss
over a too-pronounced speech anG
action so that it bore the look of in
nocence or Ignorance.
That she was beautiful l could M
more deny than l could repudiate hea
Vaccinations. But had thought moth
ing of her beauty as it might affec
me- less of her destinations, until Mel
so frankly told me she had influenced
him to take boxing lessons SO that he
would recover his looks.
We had a butler now as we'll as
maids and the cook. Neil was plan
ming to entertain extensively that win.
ter When / asked him whom he de-
sired to invite, he said:
Business people mostly. 1t is nee
essary nowadays, if one is to get on. >
Tomorrow-Bab Is Anxious Because