The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-03-18
ANDREW AND IM0GENE
By ROE FULKERsoN

Andrew" said Imogene, impa- patiently you are a selfish brute. You have sat there fo. aan hour and have not said a word to me. You pore over those old batting averages or errors or whatever it is and pay no attention to me- You did not use to be so inatten- tive. Why don't you talk? What is wrong that you never try to amuse ms?"
 My dear young woman,' said An drew gravely, T am simply afraid to talk. The tears and smiles are step ing on each others toes in their efforts to gain exit from my teeming brain. I hesitate now, even after your invita- tion, to say what is on my mind. but it will have to come out sooner or later.
 You know Woodward Kindling says that the coloners lady and Rosie O'Grady will both be dead in couple of hundred years if they don't stop eating so much strawberry ice cream.
 Now. life in general. my dear. and married life in particular, is just one thing after another, or else one thing before another in exactly the contrary case, the opposite always proved true, for I have watched it carefully for years and particularly have I kept my eye on it since we were married.
 Now. it is these things and things so nearly correlated as to be inseparable which have made me hesitate to speak to you as am speaking now.
 NO matter what result this conver- sation may h1ve on our future lives, want to always remember that it was you who dragged this matter out into the light of day.
 T want you to member that whether this results in our hopes reaching frui- tion or whether they and our aspira- tions go down together in the mental chaos which may result from what I have said or what I am about to say, that the calamity is your fault.
 q personally would have preferred it otherwise. I was content to draw myself within myself and allow this matter. like worm in the bud. to feed upon my melanconly or to feed like the fox held by the Spartan boy in hts victuals while Nero fiddled and Rome burned
 .such would have been my wish but "Andrew." broke in Imogene, what
 Hear me out" he said waving his hand to silence her. Ut was you Who brought this matter up- No one cal. matter of this kind before the family council. You know I had rather suffer in silence although my bread IS buttered on the wrong side and falls wrong-sida down. It is my nature.
 "As a prisoner sits in his lonely ccil and watches shadow creep slowly over the floor. passing crevice after crevicf in the stone pavement, so have watche1 this shadow creep slowly but surely ath- wart our lives and yet have not spoken till now.
 There was time when my every wish was your law. There was time when you did as wished and did also now ask you has that time gone? And there no more ruby red asphodels in the one meadow of our married lives?
 twill you do this thing for me or will you not? No. don't answer me yet. don't want you to speak hastily, don want you to gay things now which yor will some day be glad or sorry according to the circumstances. simply want yo. to answer me yes or 'no' when asI you if you will promise me. Will you?' But Apdrew
 NO, no! Answer me. Yes or nor
 "Yes.' said Imogine, frightened. Promise me that you will not Inter rupt me again when I don't want ts talk, he said.
 The dictionary missed him only an inc' because he was looking for 1t ant ducked as aAA threw.