Evening star., 1926-03-21

believe me. YOU take this too serious
lv It's only
Celia drew her hand away.
Il will never ask it, she said. her
voice still almost inaudihle. but fun
nf determine ton. 4 will never ac-
cept it,
Her face averted from him, she went
swiftly from the room.
He made a movement to follow her.
then reconsidered it.
This was the queerneSs Of Celia
with a vengeance. What on earth
vas he to do? Had he simply spoiled
her life by trying to shelter 1t" Her
,hstfnacy. he knew from long expert
snce. was colossal. And popped into
his mind oddly enough. the memory
If her refusal on different occa sions
n tell him what person it was in
iction or history, that she wanted
IN he.
If he could only ind out who this
person was he felt sure he would have
tine main clue to Celia : inner being.
In any event she had given him "A
glimpse Of it herself that evening.
There was fire there and he had
thought her all frost.
O'Shea sprang before him.
Well. O'Brien was right lie had
fire, where all those other fools. him
self among them. had been deceived.
He disIiked OShea even more for
this but if she loved O'Shea she would
marry him. He would set her free III
spite of her generous qualms. lie
was glad to find out that she WAS
even finer than he himself had
guessed.
He almost thought that If he had
met her when he WAS NounG-bnt
here he laughed, picturins "a tuddlins
t-elia led hy him To the altar.
Your cars waiting. sir. said
discreet voice I've taken out your
bags"
Thanks. I'll come at once.
All! the way to the station he pie
tured Celia from her childhood up as
MS real daughter. How pleasant 1t
would have been. and how ii would
have simplified everything. Then no
hateful memories of "a father, brutal
end drunken, would have tormented
her. Il could hear him in
ny own voice" How piteous
tlat had been. Yes. She
should have her freedom and her
rightful happiness. willynilly. He
her.
the door mechanically and then stood
rear IT. pressing her hands to her
eyes and throat. which :tched Milh the
tears she wished To shed. but could
rot.
The last time that she had wept had
l,een when her father Killed ii puppy
that some ncie ehburs had given her
'''he little creature. confident Of kind
ness in all beings. had anlbled into
Gibbs studio and begun IL play With
the lace of his shoe. \ violent kick
had sent it against corner of the
throne" breaking its back.
Celia $ eyes aud throat 9tched more
than ever as She recalled its glazing
stare. and feeble effort to lick her
hand. il died. It's furry body and
comma like tail had looked piteous
~ limp. and Its pointed teeth. pinkened
with blood, for the kick had been on
.ts head. showed in such painful lit
je grin.
She had taken the small corpse to
he'd with her and cried over it all
night. Since then She had never cried
over anything. When She felt size
lorged TO, no tears would come, only
that needlelike stabbing IN her eyes
and the CONSTRUCTED pain in her throat.
As this memory OF her father came
back to her she shivered again.
II hope that he is suffering very
much somewhere" she said softly
ronforted a little by hearing her ar
dent wish uttered in words.
Celia would certainly not have made
. good Christian.
She was dreadfully hurt that Hilary
Rhould have thought her fgnuble and
hngrateful enough to de:aand such a
sacrif1ce of both his dignity and pro-
bity for her sake.
1t was only that day that she had
learned how most modern American
Eiyorces are obtained. She had always
thought that in marriage such as
hers and Hilary's, divorce would be "A
simple matter. the dissolving by mu-
. fual consent of contract which had
no reality. She had never heard the
hIenacing term 'collusion.'
That day during a visit, In a mo-
fnent Of idle curiosity. after hearing
that Lilly Parkins had actually worn
an engagement ring from the man
who became her second husba nd before
she was divorced from her first" she
had asked old Mrs. Hinton:
How do they get their divorces so
aaslyf"
Mrs. Hintcn glanced at her a little
4,