The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1921-09-20

SLY {: J |! S TORY,
An Awakening
az WILL Z, AMEs

take II down. A whole literature
has been built upon this theory,
70 thousand songs have extolled It's
truth What the world knows less
we'll, or pretends not to know, Is
that fidelity to love secretly en-
shFined Is not the attribute OF
single sex. John Wade in twelve
years time had never been with.
out the consciousness Of Jessica
BrAndt.-and II eves there was al
average man John Wade was he.
John was edstng on toward
forty. He had played out the years
Of his youth and carly manhood
Z as one at whist lays down the
. cards OF hand which, as the
saying Is, plays itself. He had
I worked and been moderately re.
waTded. He had loafed, wholesome.
w and was sound in health. He
\ had made frIends-apd some had
! gone and some had stayed. He
had always ningled-and mingled
noW-with his fellow creatures:
and he had hts roseate moods and
I. his gray ones, his full. interesting
( days and his less satisfying ones
like everybody. Moreover he had,
felt his pulses quicken in the pres.
ence OF more than one lovely girl
4 or brilliant woman. And he had
never seen Jessica Brandt. in all
thpse dozen years. But she abode
III him and all the action IN his
Him Of life was superposed upon
the dim radiance OF her presence.
TSANa 80 "a aF1atffnA HIM.
salt 10 love would have been, he
y knew, spiritual sin against the
woman in the case, whoever she
might be. He had notions about
!, things, had John. The average
man Is honest.
Yet .Tessica Brandt was another
man wife. And had been fol
more than elsven of the twelve
years. Rich, too. and living in
Il world as different from his owp
asywell might be. Sometimes John
p laughed at himself. 3nd then.
once or twice, he had looked
across the table little wonder.
tngly at Ann. And arter he had
looked at Ann for moment he
would find himself hurrylng to
finish his meal and would excuse
himself to Aunt Elsie and her
stepdaughter and go away quickly.
fterward he would wonder why
s ne did that.
Ann Perdue is quite the love.
Hest creature anywhere" declared
pretty Mrs. Bascom generously.
st sn't only that she's n ravins
beauty, which there's no denying
It's herself, She's $3.50 big, SO
srlendidly charitable and broad
and SO clever and has such sense
I ot. humor. She's thirty.two, but
she locks twenty-five. believe all
the men on earth have gone
D4lnd!'
e0h, ro: far from It," Mrs.
4 f6olps possessed the quietly 0b
safy-inE type Of eyes. It's case
,eEt aelf.determination with Ann,
I'm sure! Writing women are
etten that way, you know .
Well she Is human and dear
and Il isn't natural" protested
Mrs Bascom.
Seven years ago. at the end Of
b postgraduate course. AHA Per
due had yielded To her step
n1otneT's !usistencr that she come
homo TO live. That Wau tn. firs.
tfInh she anu )oA. had real: r.c;
for he had oniy entered hig &,rni's
hnusehold at his mothers deaf"
They were excellent friends f"om
Tie start, and remained SO. Per
fsaps 4 year later it wa. tiat Ann
aid to Mrs Perdue: 'Mothe.'.
cant make John fit in with an!
Bachelors are usually one. or the
isn't stingy, he, isn't seli.depreca,
tory, he isn't welded to any fad.
isn't abnormally diffident-and
nl8chelorB are usually. one or the
other, Its INTEREST,". ="
seetag to make copy Of him.
laughed Mrs. PerdUe. II wouldn't
reRlIy. 1t wouldn't sell. It's just
that he was such a susceptible
hog that he expended himself IN
hie salad days and hasn't any at
feetions left to so. on: never
faw any one so terriflcally in love
as he WAS with Jessica Brandt.
fancy that finished him.
!Jesstca Brandt! OF Haredale.
9u.Hudson?"
fYes. She spent one summer
efa with relatives when John was
Fenty.six. They had a tremen
dons afEair-but 1t ended com
pIetely when she went away
She was in college with me-,
said Ann. reflectively, adding at
teFs! 4 little. "she was very beau
stIfIi--I think the most beautiful
girl I ever saw"
sFor while after that Ann
studied John with the clever ana
iytical faculty that was beginning
Is get her work noticed. When
she made up her mind about him
she ceased to study him-or to
think about him unduIy. She had
her work, and the power Of self
discipline. But they were famous
friends,
Johns word had to do with au'
tomobHes and took him to the
ST motor show in New York. That
8 NJ where Jessica Brandt lived
ma great house Just off Fifth
venue, IN the Seventies, John
Sad been in New York scores oil
times and had always been look
~ about, but he bad never seen
so, He had never hoped to more
h tlaRn seer. her, because It had been
a final farewell when the girl, IN
s.IS1S$n faRrs told him thare