The Bismarck tribune., 1919-04-03
THE THOROUGHBRED"
By Henry >KitcheN Webster
&t Author of
THE Real Adventures" The Painted Scene Et,
Author of

While al night: lou don't ,htnk tW
= selfish beast, ,to yoGc"
He said. No Its all right, III
buck MP and enjoy SoUr party But
instead OF going out of the room, he
came into ii. came up close behind
her ana took her bare arms in his
hands. There's time enough To give
a chap kiss. isn't thereE'
She recognized his attempt 10 make
the request good-humored and ca>uais
as if what he asked for We're nothing
hul the affectionate symbol good man
pes'> entitled him TO. But even with
out the tell-taie evidence afforded hy
the edge in his voice and the look of
his eyes in the mirror. just on the
basis OF long experience with him.
she'd have known better. There seem
ed always TO be something very invit-
ing about her for him at just this
stage of her toilet: ii was the contrast.
perhaps. between what was So COM
plete.y finished and what was not Yer
begun, tha: added pi9uancy TO her
other charms between the highly pro
Te>SioMai do" or her chair-tit WAS
reddish brown. but needed strong
light to he made aware of the down.
right red there was in ii. Under !.
milder illumination its brown hooked
merely warm. She had 4 lot of it
and it was. perhaps. the chief item OF
her good looks though her features
were neatly chisled and regular enough
10 support the attention her hair and
the color Of her skin attracted and
tie tumbled reckleSSneSS of her kimono.
And then the background: over the foot
Of the bed the. rose-red dinner-gowls
which her silk stockings and satin
slippers matched, the SumptuouS. scent
ed array of toilet articles on the dress
ing-table. the easily. fluffy. feminine
things that hung out of the half-open
bureau drawers. Even through his
preoccupation as he stood in the door
way. she'd been aware-pieasantlv
aware. too-that he was takin. it all
i'll
But as he came up close and took
hold of her she leaned little forward
for Il little closer inspection of her
face in the mirror. and answered his
request for a kiss with the remark {:
You rode out in the smoker tonight.
didn't YOU? What unSpeakahle sort
of things do they smoke i'll places like
that"
His arms fell at his sides and he
stepped BAG Indeed the impact Of
Il good muscular push would have
been no more effective other purpose.
She added in a tone of fretful apology.
- Ers,l 1lI.
It's seven o'clock Do run along
She knew quite well that it was not
because he smelled smoky. mir because
there wasn't time for the embrace he
wanted. that she turned him out like
that. If she'd been More Indifferent
and less irI- love with him; she wouldn't
have minded. ,v
/ IT. was very old instinct i'll her,
Ias old as anything about herself that
she could remenber-ass old as the first
Starched frock Of her childhood. to
hate being rumpled. She knew that.
But she did not al all realize the first
class importance of it. Her whole
during more than Il score
of years had been profoundly modified
by it. 1t is interesting to speculate
whether the instinct worked from with
in out. or from without i'll. Was it.
to begin with. just sensuOus, tactile
delight In smooth surfaces of fine
texture that Kept her aloof. in her play.
from all that clasped tight. gripped
hard-and left marks and creases:
And had the thing gradually worked
ir to her soul? Or was the childish
impulse to keep everything at arms
length and fingers tip, the outer sign.
merely, Of something that lay. from
the beginning. at the very core of her:
IT matters very little The important
thing is that the two surfaces of her.
the outer and the inner, corresponded
whichever it was that had shaped