The Red Cloud chief., 1919-04-17

now OIten 90 you go TO cnurcnf
he said, whimslcally.
"Why-never, I'm afraid" she
gasped in surprise.
"You were planning to be married
In church,"
"Such funny q%uestionsi Xes, Of
course"
i"Whyf"
"Oh, it wouldn't be nice not to-"
"You don't believe in divorce, thenf"
"Oh yes-yes, indeed-if people
don't ret along together. | think It's
wicked for people to live together II
they don't love each other"
ITS love. then. that makes mar
rage sacred?"
"Ycs. Yes. indeed! OF course"
rs 1t all right for two people who
are not Christians to live together ac-
cording to their creeds?"
"How do you meanT"
"Well, the people who lived before
there were any Ch~ristians-or people
who lever heard OF Christianity-was
it all right for them to marry?"
"Of course
"It's not any one formula, Their. that
makes marriage ali right2"
"Of course not, it's the-the--"
"The lover"
81 think so. It's hard to explain"
Everything is, isn't it?'
"Terribly."
There was more silence. He took
a cigar from his pocket. held 1t be-
fore her for permission. She said,
please" He struck Il match. She
glanced at his face in the little lime
light of the match. 1t was very hand
some. A pearl of drowsy luster
cleaned in the soft folds of his tie.
The hands sheltering the match were
splendid hands.
She watched the cigar fire glow and
fade and the little turbulent smoke
wells font into the air and die. One
Of them formed q wreath, a strange,
frail, writing circlet of blue flaments.
1t drifted past her and she put her fin
ger into it-her ring-fnger by some
womanly instinct.
"Now you're married to me-" said
Duane.
There was a sudden movement Of
his hands as II to seize upon her. She
recoiled a little; his hands did not
pursue her. They went back to the
steering wheel and chung to it fierce
ly. She turned from his eyes, but he
gazed at her cheek, and she could feel
the blood stirring there in n blush.
IF you loved me, would you marry
me?' he said.
Il love I'm going to marry
somebody else."
WhenT
"SOme day."
"If you're not happy with him, will
you leave hlmT
"Oh, but I'll be happy with him."
$50 many people have said that |!
You've see how seldom it worked.
If you ceased to love him, or ha you,
would you leave him?"
eff is a large order. Maybe"
"Wouldn't il De wiser If two people
who thought they loved could live to-
gcther for o while before they mar
riSd?"
She felt her muscles set as If she
would rise and run away from such
words. "Mr. Duane! l don't think it's
nice even to be talking of such things.
Besides, it's growing late"
"It's not so late as 1t would be If
you married a man and found that
your marriage was a CHASTITY mistake"
Hadn't we better start back?'
please don't leave me just yet
ThiS 10 yarp CnInnnn IN mo Two hnnu
studying you a long time, trying tC
get you out Of my mind, and only get
ting you deeper in my heart. l love
you"
81 don't believe It,"
81 know It,"
"Then you Oughtn't to tell me-"
"NOt tell a woma you love her
Not try to save her from wrecking hel
!, life and my ownF"
y "How wrecking my-her life?"
' 81 believe that If you marry Cha,
> Wimburn you'll be unhappy. He can
give you a home. He can't buy yor
clothes. He can't support you."
/, "That's not his fault, just now
with the hard times and the war
I Please let's 60 home"
: "To my homer"
That insolence was too appalling Il
answer. or even to gasp at, or protes
against. 1t stunned her. He took ad
vantage of her daze to explain, hur
riedly:
a you're not going to be n of thos'
q silly, old-fnshioned idiot girls that
o man can't talk to earnestly and frank
ly, are you now? OF course your
A not. You're not one of those poo
things whose virtue consists In bein'
insulted every time anyone appeals t
their intelligence, are you? No, your
a fine, brave soul, and you want t
, know the truth about truth, and so d
a /.
- I'm a decent enough fellow a
. heart. l want to do the right thin
and live squarely as well as the mex
- fellow. I've got n sense OF honor, toe
of a sort, and / take life pretty ser
= Ously.