The Glenwood post., 1920-01-10

B0nns
over the handkerchief which she now
applied to her reddened nose. .God
knows am sorry for you. George"
she murmured. II wanted to say 20,
but It's only old Fanny, % whatever
she says-even when It's sympathy-
Pick On her for II" She sobbed. "It's
only poor old lonely Fannyw
you look here!" George said harsh
~. when spoke to my Uncle
George after that rotten thing I heard
Aunt Amelia say about my mother, he
said II there was any gossip It was
about you'll He said people might be
laughing about the way you ran after
Morgan. but that was ALL" .aea
Fanny lifted her hands, clenched
them and struck them upon her knees.
'Yes; it's always Fanny" she sobbed.
Ridiculous old Fanny-always, Al
waysI"
"You llstenl" George said. "After
I'd talked to Uncle George I saw you;
and you said I had mean little mind
for thinking there might be truth in
what Aunt Amelia said about people
talking. You denied it. And that
wasn't the only time; you'd attacked
me before then, because intimated
that Morgan might be coming here too
often. You made me believe that
mother let him come entirely on your
account, and now you say"
II think he did," Fanny interrupted
desolately. II think he did come as
much to see me as anything-for
while it looked like it. He did act q
good deal that way-and If Wilbur
hadn't died"
"You told me there wasn't any
talk"
Il didn't think there was much,
then" Fanny protested. II didn't
know how much there was."
"Whatm
"PeOple don't come and tell such
things to persons family. you know.
You don't suppose anybody was going
to say to George Anderson that his
sister was getting herself talked about.
do you? Or that they were going to
say much to me?"
you told me-" said George, hercely,
''that mother never saw him except
when she was chaperoning you"
'They weren't much alone together,
then" Fanny returned. Hardly ever.
before Wilbur died. Everybody knew
that he'd been engaged to her"
"What's thatf' George cried.
Everybody knows it. Don't you re-
member your grandfather speaking Of
1t at the Sunday dinner one nightT'
"He didn't say they were engaged
Or"
swell, they were Everybody knows
1t; and she broke 1t of on account Of
that serenade when Eugene didn't
know what he was doing. He drank
when he was young man, and she
wouldn't stand for 1t, but everybody
in this town knows that Isabel has
never really cared for any other man
in her life! Poor Wilburi He was
the only soul alive that didn't know
itW
Nightmare had descended upon the
unfortunate George; he leaned back
against the footboard Of his bed, gaz-
ing wildly at his aunt. II believe I'm
going crazy" he said. "You mean
when you told me there Wu1Qx any
talk. you told me a falsehoodf
"Now Fanny gasped.
"You did" -.,. -
II tell you didn't know how much
talk there was, and 1t wouldn't have
amounted to much II Wilbur had
lived" And Fanny completed this
with fatal admission: Il didn't want
you to interfere" r.- rTf.tla t.
George overlooked the admission |:
his mind was not now occupied with
analysis. what do you mean." he
asked, when you say that II father
had lived, the talk wouldn't have
amounted to anythingf'
Things might have been-thsy
might have been different"
''You mean Morgan might have mar
ried your
Fanny gulped. mo. Because I
don't know that I'd have accepted
him." She had ceased to weep, and
now she sat up stihiy. II certainly
didn't care enough about him to mar
~ him; I wouldn't have let myself
care that much until he showed that
he wished to marry me. I'm not that
sort Of personi" The poor lady paid
her vanity this piteous little tribute.
"What mean is, II Wilbur hadn't died
people wouldn't have had 1t proved
before their very eyes that what
they'd been talking about was truei"
you say-you say that people be-
lieve-" George shuddered, then
forced himself to continue, In a sick
voice: "They believe my mother Is
Is in love with that manr"
"Of course"
"And because he comes here-and
they see her with him driving-and all
that-they think they were right when
they said she was in-in love with him