The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-11-05

~ HE glibly made use of me-
~ devial terms that startled him
and he suspected she rather
enjoyed their effect. He was
rather pleased at the thought of a
baby; a child would bring quality
of dignity to them both; it would
make them appear settled, increase
peoples respect. He earnestly
hoped it would be girl; if it was,
Leila proposed to name the child
after his sister, but in the event of
q boy, she wanted him called
"Felix," after her father.
A Crushed Woman
While Leila preened herself on
the prospect of becoming a mother,
Lucy quailed at the thought of
facing her friends and society as
an abandoned wife. She was
crushed by Wilbur's desertion,
wounded, Inundated. Like an i'm
prisoned bird, beating it's wings in
wild terror against the bars of
cage, she flew to Beckie Meri-
weather and begged her to go
away with her. No matter how
carefully guarded, inevitably the
truth was sure to leak out. Beckie
consented to make another trip
with her to Honolulu. They could
spend the winter there, and by
late spring everybody would have
long ago heard that Wilbur Lans-
ing had run off with Mrs. Gerald
Prentiss. and would have grown
tired discussing the scandal.
Before she sailed, acting on
Beckie's and Leila's combined ad.
vice, Lucy filed a petition for di-
vorce. Since Wilbur had gone
and was never coming back, there
was no reason, her friends agreed,
why she should remain legally
bound to him.
body's sympathy" Leila urged:
"nobody'n think of criticizing you.
You simply have got to get a
divorce. You can't go on being
Wilbur's wife, when he's run off
with somebody else's. It's abso-
lutely the only course open to
you, now Besides, you may
meet some millionaire down in the
Islands you'll like very much :"
"o-ooor' shuddered Lucy. mo
more husbands for me -"
Nonsense" snapped Beckie.
They sailed early in December.
Philip settled down grimly to
managing the affairs of Baldwin &
Lansing. For nearly four years
he had allowed Wilbur 10
run the business as he pleased.
There was always money
plenty of it, pouring in, and he
was satisfied his partner knew
more about the real estate bust
mes than he did. After the earth
quake and fire, adjusting insurance
losses had occupied his entire time;
Wilbur had managed the other
part Of the business. Philip knew
that his partner enjoyed hav-
ing a, free hand, though they had
never reached the point of dis
cussing it. In his easy-going
way he had made no effort to
resume his old active interest,
and Wilbur, always anxious to
astonish him with his shrewd-
ness and ability, had fallen more
and more into the habit of con-
fiding little to Philip about his
operations in order not to spoil
the effect when they We're sue
cessfully consummated.
But left, now. to run the bust
ness by himself, Philip was stag
gered to discover it's proportions,
and to learn of the appalling
Obligations in which his partner
had involved them.
The Bragg-Forsythe Company,
a new and enterprising real estate
concern, had obtained an option
on the P. G.. Douglar estate near
Ingleside on the outskirts of
San Francisco. The tract con-
sisted of twelve square city
blocks, and the work of grading,
paving, and curbing the streets,
laying sidewalks and digging
sewers, had been going on for
several months. The land was to
be divided up into one hundred