South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-09-15
Stella MariS By William J. Locke
Condensation By Miss T. R. Osborn

stella Aarls star of the sea-
the fantastic name had become so
much a part Of her personality that
the people of her little world. and
she herself. almost forgot that she
was only Stella Bl0unt. a lit.Ie in
valid girl who lived with her aunt
and uncle In q pleasant house by the
sea shore, and believed her really
an eie child OF the clouds and sea-
spray, fairy princess into whose
enchanted palace only good and
beautiful and happy things could
ever come
For. because she could never see
the real world. bat must always lie
rigdly still on her bed in "a pleasant
room that looked out Only on the
sea and sky they had helped her
build a magic world Of her own. a
fragile rainbow world woven out OF
beautiful pictures and books. and
beautiful fairy stories about life. and
her own dreams of the sea and sky.
Most important az the fairy court
she held were John Bisca. her aunt
cousin and his friend Walter HerOld.
who ever since she was "a very little
girl had come 10 forget the weari-
ness OF London IN StelIa's fairyland
Heroid had something OF her own
quality OF the elemental sprite. To-
gether they talked dreams and Wis
ions. star shine. and moonshine.
'Tike couple OF elves squatting on
adjacent toadst0ols" He danced
tightly on 1ife. and the gods. who 90
not like 70 be taken TOO seriously. re-
warded him with wealth. and charm.
end brilliant success on the London
stage. Only he had never married,
for az he explained 20 Stella Maris-
lone cannot marry a dream"
John Risca did not dance on life.
He charged through 81 blindly. horns
down Ike an angry bull. Only i'm
Steila's sea chamber could be forget
the red aEs 20 waved at him. and
since he could not take her wander
ing through the clouds as Herold
did. he had built a marvellous earth
IS palace for her delight Here, he
told her. he lived amid gold and
marble and precious stones, and
pam pered Persian cats. and slaves OF
Circassian beauty. AT fifteen stella
still believed IN the palace. and Ar
achne the slave girl, and Lilias and
NephetOs, the cats, believed I'm them
as solid facts OF an actual, geOgraph-
zeal world so carefully had they
shut her I'm her dream kingdom, and
fenced Il round with the co5web wall
Of lies.
A bare enough life 1t was that
John forgot In his mythical golden
palace. the life Of a struggling jour
Lyalist in the himsy little house in
Kilburn where he lived with his
ward. pooG ugly. little Unity Blake,
end his maiden aunt. Miss Llndon a
lady with a passion for pets and
muslin and ribbon. IF she had
owned a dromedary. she would have
fitted IL out in muslin and pink rib
bon" She swathed the house at
Eilburn In fIills. believing that thus
she made 10 homelike and comfort
q BILE for John. and she vainly strove
10 make Of Unity a young lady, who
should hutter the hearts Of curates
al the mild tea parties she loved.
And across this homogeneous, comic
opera OF a household there fell al
ways the evil shadow OF tight
Tipped black clad woman, the wOm-
an John Risca had married as he
first charged bhndly az life, the
woman who had made his name the
Fhrfeking horror OF the yellow press,
the woman who had tortured her
little orphan maid servant, Unity. till
she callous world shuddered with