The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1932-12-30
Winter
By KAY WARREN
Q By Mcclure Newspaper syndicate.
WNU Service

| lust what got into william Blodgett
- TraynOr after he married Victoria
none of his friends seemed able to
decide. He was thirty years older
than shea hale and vigorous fifty to
her fragile twenty. He was good look
ness. he had social background and
great personal magnetism
Victoria was beautiful. she was
| young, she was well bred In the best
sense of the term. Though her family
| had no money she had been well edu-
Gated and had travelled little and
met the right kind of people so that
she was perfectly able to take her
place as head of Traynor's big house.
That wasn't where the trouble lay
He had kept the house open for two
or three years alone since his moth
| er's death-she had been one OF the
social leaders Of her day. Victoria
stepped into his mothers shoes, so Tar
as social graces went Everybody
talked about the reign Of the new Mrs
Traynor as foregone fact
Victoria really loved TraynOr. He
knew it. He, of course. adored her-
Everybody knew that And they
seemed ideally, beautifully happy
The gracious old house glOwed with
hospitality of the best sort. Victoria's
young friends and his older ones min
gled in charming groups.
That may have been where the trou-
BILE started. One of her friends was
Jack circuit. He was an artist Poor
| Not more than twenty-three.
One night William Traylor and VIC
toria were alone in their big library.
He gathered her. unresisting, into MS
| arms. And as he held her he was sud-
denly painfully conscious Of her YOUTH
of his greater age.
If-one of those ifs that change des-
tinies-if Victoria had lain there quiet
| ly for a moment in her husbands
arms, life would have smoothed out
| for them In a few moments. William
| Traynor's mood of bitter resentment,
so ready to turn into raging Jealousy,
would have passed as suddenly as IL
had come, leaving no memory be-
hind it.
But Victoria, unmeaningly, did just
the wrong thing. She loved her hus-
band. She put soft, creamy hand
up to her husbands face
william" she said, I've been
thinking. We have so much. I've
Werything."
He droxu hor foalouSlv closer
"Tve been wondering II you'd do
something-rather big-to make me
happy"
She went on: "You know Jack Or
| cult. He's-well, he's a genius L
know it. But he needs year in Paris
And he's-well, he can't manage It
You know he has an invalid sister to
look after. He's portrait painter,
and somehow or other he ought TO
be given his chance. See what I'm
getting at, dear?"
81 think So" said Traynor In hard,
low voice. But Victoria didn't notice
his voice. She went on with her plea
for Jack.
well, I've been thinking about him.
And l wondered If you couldn't per-
| haps do something to give him his
year abroad. We've got so much
! and he has so little. / thought maybe
we could look after his sister, mean
| find place where she could stay in
exchange for tutoring-some place I'm
the country. She's a lovely girl and
awfully bright. And then you could
commission him to paint portrait of
me-next summer, when we go TO
Paris. But you could tell him he must
have training there before he does 1t,
| and you could pay him in advance
more than it's worth. And that would
fix things up" She stopped, flushed
and delighted with her plan. Getting
no reply from Traynor. she asked him:
'Wouldnt you like portrait of me
done by Jack Orcutt?"
Traynor rose, pushing her roughly
away from him. He stood his back
to the fireplace, his hands on her
shoulders. He laughed harshly.
"a picture of you-for me-done by
Jack circuit? A beautiful idea. A
lovely thing, of course. sort of con-
ISOLATION prize given by Spring to Win
ter. He'll go to Paris, on my money,
and be waiting there for you when we
go over next summer? That's a pref
ty idea. He'll do your portrait for me.
You'll keep your old husband and his
money-and have your young"
Traynor said no more. Victoria, her
face whittier than her dress. stood fac
ing him. She stiffened under his hands
and he took them away. She said
nothing, as she turned and left the
room.
In fact, she never spoke to Traynor
again. Arrangements were made
through others. She left the house
that night, and In the course of time
a divorce was managed.
Victoria really loved Traynor. A
couple of years later she married
Jack circuit. OF course nobody got
the story exactly right People said
Victoria had tired of Traynor-it was
another case where youth sought
youth, and age was left with nothing
but memories. She had got most of
the blame, though. After struggling
along doing illustrating In New York,
circuit and Victoria went to Paris.
They managed II somehow.
Traynor keeps the big house-but it
is lonely and unused Sometimes
when he sits musing before the IL
brary fire, he seems to see a soft,
white little figure come pleading up
to his side, explaining and explaining.