The Fayette falcon. (Somerville, Tenn.) 190?-current, 1919-05-09
CHAPTER xiii.

C1APIEH Xiii.
When the Chivvises hal gone Daph.
ne assailed the task of composing her
letter of resignation from Reben's EN-.
ploy. 1t was not easy to resign with
dignity and the necessary haste.
She sent 1t off by messenger. It was
none too prompt, for Reben had al.
ready dictated very polite request
for Daphne's head. When he received
her letter he recalled his stenographer
and dictated substitute for his first
letter. In this he expressed his regret
at learning Daphne's decision to re-
sign; the former understudy had come
back from the road, he said, and would
resume her work. He begged Daphne
to accept the lQclosed check for two
weeks salary In lieu of the usual no
tice, and hoped that she would believe
him faithfully hers.
Daphne felt a proud impulse to re-
turn the fifty dollars. She wrote a
letter to go with 1t. She looked again,
and saw 1t was the first money she had
ever earned. She hated to let 1t go.
She decided to frame 1t and keep 1t to
point to In after years as the begin
ming Of her great fortune.
Late In the afternoon, when the
western sky was turning into loom
for crimson tapestries almost as rich
as her own dreams, she went to her
brothers apartment.
There the New Girl found the Old
Woman in the throes of finance. Leila
had brought her check book and her
bank book to her husband. Her af-
fairs were In a knot.
He laughingly offered to help her.
She was hurt by his laughter, but not
ha;f so deeply as he was by his dis
covery of her monetary condition. He
had established her bank account In
a mood of alteration, precious sacri-
flee on theAaltar Of love. She had not
cherished It, but scattered it heed
lessly. And money was peculiarly
precious now In the final agonies of
the hard times, when only the fittest
of the f1ttest could survive the last
tests. Credit was the water cask, and
dollars were the hard biscuits Of q
boatload of survivors from a wreck.
Land might be reached II they held
out, but self-denlal was vital.
Bayard gazed at Leila with wonder
ing love and terror. She was both
divinity and devil in his eyes. He
groaned:
"Are you trying to wreck me? You
know how hard I'm working and how
much I need money in my business
and how much 1t means to your future,
but you won't stop buying and charg-
ing and burning my poor little earn
ings. We discharged a stenographer
yesterday because We wanted to save
her salary Of fifteen dollars--and
here's a check for a pair of shoes for
you that cost sixteen.
'But tell me one thing more before
I'm carted of to Bloomingdale In a
straitjacket. Why, In heavens name,
why-admitting you just had to have
that pitiful little pair OF shoes-why,
when you wrote the check, didn't you
subtract It from your balance instead
OF adding III ask you'll"
"0h. did I do thati" she asked, look
ing over his shoulder. $50 didr and
she put her cheek close to his and
giggled.
He shook his head In imbecile infat-
uation. and drew her around into his
arms.
That was what Daphne overheard
when the maid let her In. She found
Leila resting In Bayard's lap.
Bayard did not tell Daphne what ais
conference with Leila had been. he
simply closed the check book and the
bank book and said to Leila: I'll send
the bank my check for thirty-eight
cents and ask 'em to close their &C
count They'll be mighty glad to
do It"
"And 50 win l. said Leila. at was
awfully hard work keeping track Of
every little penny. I'd much rather
have q reguIac allowance In cash ey-
cry week"
-Ail rsghtI- said Bayard- wen try
that-next week"
Daphne was not told what ell this
talk was about, hut she made q fair
guess. though she pretended not to.