The Washington times., 1937-03-25

self by saying: This must bore
YOU. I suppose soon the stiffness
will go out of your arm, and you
will be able to enjoy painting
again"
Il suppose so. I don't paint
we'll, you know"
Nonsense! That portrait of
me is a fine thing"
Best I ever did, at that. But
It was the subject that made it
exceptional. An impulse came
to Keith abruptly. With a corner
of his mind he examined it a
moment, and let it have its way.
rs there anything left of the
steel-rail business which you think
l could take charge of?"
His father gasped: My original
business, from which the rest
came? You don't think I'd let
that go, in my life! But-you do
not mean what you just said"
why not! I've told Felicia I'll
Join her in England if she sends
for me. But after that, in the
autumn, say. when her divorce is
through, no reason shouldn't go
to work"
His fathers old face was too
much like that of a boy who had
received his hearts desire. People
were-pathetic. Well, better to be
a rather insignificant business
man than a totally unimportant
painter.
The hot sunny days went by, in
which his doctor came, and the
maSseur who was bringing back
circulation to his long unused arm
muscles. His arm began to i'm
prove steadily. The doctor men,
toned date week distant when
the sling would be no longer nee
eSSary. For the rest, time was
suspended. He and his father in
their high-ceilinged house were
isolated in kind of island of rel
ative GOODNESS in the Manhattan
heat. Because he had been very
Ill, Keith was grateful for the
interval of utter effortlessness, be-
fore it would be necessary to go
back to problems, decisions, COM
plicationS. He waited, until he
should hear from Felicia, and not
hearing quickly. decided that she
was probably returning to Amer
ica.
On an afternoon of late July,
his father was resting in his room,
and Keith was reading by the
French windows in the rear draw
1ng-roonn, which faced their small
Shaded city garden, where pc
tunias made pleasant SplaShes of
violet and rose against the gray
flags of the short path, and
miniature fountain tinkled.
The butler brought him a card.
He read: "Mr. Eustace Gardi-
ner Dayne." He said: Bring
him in here, please" And he
recognized, with a relief he had
not expected to feel, that his time
OF waiting for something to be
resolved, was finishe
When Eustace left Felicia in
front of her fathers house, on
that June day so like their wed
ding day, he started for New
Mexico the same evening, though
he had not told her that he
meant to do so.
He had no desire left in him
as clear as the desire to get as
far away from her as possible,
since she SO plainly did not want
him near. Nor ever had. nerl ans
He had pretended that she was
fond" of him. Probably he'd
always known better.
She was not to be blamed.
Even in his thoughts he insisted
on that. She had married him
not loving him, a he had
known it. He had so wanted the
girl she'd been, that he'd been
willing to risk it. This was the
way the risk had turned out.
She could not help not loving
him. If she'd deceived him in
the most shabby fashion possible
She probably meant to spare him
by that deceit.
Only-how could he! Every
time his thoughts reached that
point, he slid away from it. For
ne would not blame ,,er, and he
could not justify her.
He would have stayed with her
as long as she Fixed. But she
Snatched at the opportunity her
parents suggestion of ar English
visit offered. He would defy his
own family for her sake, and
never let them Push iIim into a
divorce. But now he vas sure
that whenever Felicia was ready,
she would ask for divorce her.
self. '-
He would have earned money
Tor her somehow, as long as she
needed it. But she would not
need l. long. Even now. sin pre-
terred spending her fathers
money (Which was Gilbert Win
oon's, of course) to taking his.
And she would have Keith Shell
dies money soon enough.
He could do nothing for her
any more. She would not let
him. So he judged she must de-
splSe him, must always have
counted him stupid and incon-
6equential.
In New Mexico he was offered
a job OF sorts. He suspected it
was given out of charity more or
less, but he had no choice in TAX.
ing it. To finish Felicia's hos.
pital bills, he'd sold not only his
beloved hunters, but even their
saddles and blankets! He hadn't
let Felicia know; and when Mich
ael Rendale offered to help, he'd
been able to say: Thanks; 1