Arizona republican., 1922-01-05
CHAPTER IL.

CHAPTER Ii
John perfected an electrical device
that summer. He had been working
upon it in a desultory way for some
time; in fact ever since he had mar
..fco Marcia When one of the firm
asked why lie had not spoken of it,
had not asked for time to devote to
it. he mumbled his reply. Not for
worlds would he have given the real
reason. Marcia had accused him OF
selfishness when he once said that
if she would live more cheaply ne
might perfect this very device. Now,
while it was Of some little use,
another man had given the company
a device almost equally good, which
they had accepted.
What use was any little talent in
this direction / might haveY" he
asked himself. "It was all going TO
waste" He felt himself tangled in
The snare of his marriage, helplessly
tangled. Yes, once a man is married
he is snared--in the net he himself
has woven about his life.
This was keener disappointment
than he quite realized at the time,
this "Too late, Aldrich,' of his en-
ployers. 1t would have meant so
much to him and to-Marcia. He
spent that evening with Muriel. With
her usual sweet sympathy she de-
tected something had gone wrong
and, responding, he told her.
"The very effort you made to per-
feet it has done you good" she said
when he had finished his story. He
said nothing to Muriel of Marcia, her
demands SO insistent that he had no
time to devote to his ideas If he were
to satisfy her. He would be cad to
discuss his wife with any one. even
with Muriel. In this he was surely
right The home relation, the rela-
ton of husband and wife, is the last
matter one should talk of to any one.
But Muriel knew. She knew OF his
late hours. She saw his tired eyes.
She had been with him when his
nerves were raw from overwork. He
was not extravagant in any way.
Why. then, did he have to work so
hard?
Two and two make four.
Often John spent much time letting
his mind wander toward that most
human of mental processes, that of
convincing himself of what he
wanted to believe, convincing himself
that he loved Marcia much as he
ever did. He distorted facts, ig
nored them, but always he knew that
he did not love her, that she herself
had in some unaccountable way by
her demands upon him. the taking of
her pound OF flesh, killed that love.
And it was not at all because of her
monetary demands. 1t was that she
kept his spirit so down on its knees
that it could not rise because it had
been so long abased.
While she was away he felt his
spirit stand erect once more. Life,
instead of a hurrying force driving
him constantly, was a beautiful gift
to be enjoyed as well as used. Work
became the pleasure 1t always is
when it Is congenial. His nerves be-
came relaxed. He was happy.
John Aldrich did not delve too
deeply into this happiness. He ac-
cepted it for the nonce and refused
to let his thoughts dwell upon the
future. He did not appreciate how
happy he was, how content he had
been these few weeks of his "free-
DOM" as he called it, until he re-
ceived a letter from Marcia telling
him the boat and time she would sail
for home. She also asked for another
remittance.
4 am afraid shall run short and
you wouldn't want me to have to
borrow Of Claire Sanders. SO please
try and be little generous. ! have
some bills here to settle, and it will
take all I have" Then: "ShaIl you
be glad to see your little wifey?
know you will, and that you must
have put in perfectly horrid sum-
mer. But we will make up for II
when l get home. Wen have the
gsyest winter imaginable. Claire i!
planning all sorts OF parties, so yol
will forget you have been lonesome.
Have those people out and Della
there when reach home. Their time
is up a week before my boat arrives