The Elk Mountain pilot., 1920-06-03

great bruising. So dinner was late
and the confusion still was discern
ible when Robert arrived.
There were intermittent walls from
the nursery. slamming Of Dishes in
the kitchen and glimpses Of the rather
flush-faced, distracted Vera as she pur-
sued the older children through the liv-
ing room in her effort to pack them off
to bed. But Mrs. Laurence was not
one to be much ruffled by such mild
domestic confusion, and eventually she
managed to sit beside Mr.. Ludwell
alone before the fireplace and make
the first probing.
She discovered one thing. He had
a horror of boarding houses. He
disliked boarding house coffee. He
likewise had horror of any sort Of
confusion. He intimated when Mrs.
Laurence asked him point-blank why
he had never married that possibly it
was because he was a recluse by ma
ture. He had to have quiet for his
writing.
So Mrs. Laurence decided to invite
Mr.. Ludwell to leave his boarding
house and spend month at the Lau-
renee establishment. There he would
have no more boarding house coffee,
there would be no more confusion, she
was sure.
She was surprised when he ac-
cepted her and the doctors invita-.
tion. She hadn't expected he would
come so willingly. And the doctor
was even more surprised.
"He says he wants to be away from
confusion?' gasped the doctor.
II am sure you don't think there
is ever any confusion here" said Mrs.
Laurence. land the coffee is certainly
better than the kind one gets in a
boarding house." Mrs. Laurence was
planning now for her system of psy-
chopathic treatment on Mr.. Ludwell.
II she succeeded with him, she might
take the work up as career-she
might become quite a specialist.
Meantime Doctor Laurence had been
making observations, and he had OBJ
served pair Of pretty blue eyes which
ne had come to regard with something
akin to fatherly affection. He noticed
that at times those eyes turned a very
soft limpid blue and then dropped in
confusion. And then he would glance
across the room. only to find pair
OF supposedly melancholy dark eyes
suddenly delve deep In book or news
paper.
At times Mrs. Laurence was profuse
in her apologies to Mr.. Ludwell. At
xf fo CT ch hn
slept. 81 hope you didn't hear the
twins" she would say. "They were
up earlier than usual, and Richard fell
out Of bed. You may have heard him
screaming in the night; not hurt. mere
ly frightened" And you might have
discerned her confusion which was
deep-seated because 1t had been part
of her plan to have the Laurence
household breathe that calm and quiet
which would be the proper antidote for
the boarding house fear image.
Then one evening you might. had
you been hidden somewhere beside
the side veranda of the Laurence
have heard the following
conversation. 1t was an evening when
Doctor and Mrs. Laurence were attend
ing some board meeting or other and
Vera was at home to look after things,
as usual. Mr.. Ludwell. in spite Of a
previous engagement, had remained
home also:
did you get any sleep last night
at ALP" asked Vera wearily.
"Some." commented Ludwell; "what
was the row in the nursery?"
"Well, Richard woke up at eleven
and decided It was good time to bite
his sister Bells big toe. He has been
waiting for chance to get even. That
woke the twins, and SO 1t went on, and,