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Show I fJY HUSBAHD AHD I BY JANE PHELPSl! i i : a letter was from Muriel, and commence "Now don't be frightened, but Edith has a herd cold, and a little fever. 1 have called Dr. Hutehtns, you know he la splendid with children. Re aald not to tell you. that he thought aha would be quite all rlirht m a day or two; but I thought beet to write at once. Of rouree. If 1 had thought there waa any dancer I ahould have wired. I will do ao at onre unless ehe Improves." Oh. what ahould t dot If Clifford only would come. 1 walked up and down, bacit and forth; until finally 1 could endure passivity no longer and commenced to pack. Not a doubt entered my mind that ' we would return Immediately. "Where the meaning of all thle?" Tllf-fnrd Tllf-fnrd asked when he came In a little later. The bed and chalre were covered with our clothing, and I waa on my knees In front of the trunk packing. For reply! handed hlmMurtel'eletter. Tomorrow Clifford RefuaeaVo Return" Home. (Copyright by George Matthew Adams.) becoming. Healno nodded a earelees approval ap-proval of my other purchases, telling me laughingly that I would quite spoil Edith. I then timidly showed him the tiee I had bought for him. They were really lovely, I thought as I unwrapped them, and he aurely would he pleased. "Whatever noeseaaed you to buy ties for me?" he asked, scarcely glancing at them. "Why they were so pretty and Mrs. Turtle waa buying aome for Mr. Turtle and I thought you would be pleaaed," I stammered, j "Well, I am, not! I prefer to do my own shopping." he returned, and carelessly care-lessly tossed the ties on the. table, with-. I out even looking at them. I felt aura I waa going to cry. Nothing , he. had done for a. long time hurt me as did his nctlonT It WHS Hie very first Urn I had ever bnusht him snythjng to wear, and I had been so happv over It. Hut I gulped two or three times, then took up the ties, .rewrapped them, and sal down and addressed them to father. He would be delighted with Ihem Just he. cause I bought them. Then I put them where Clifford couldn't avoid seeing them. CLIFFORD ACCEPTS MRS. CURTIS' INVITATION. I waited until we were at dinner be-fore be-fore 1 told Clifford of Mrs Curtis' Invlla- tlon. I waa so hurt by hie reception of the tlea that I had not been able to trust myself to talk. I never would aHve him the chsnce to hurt me In thst wsy again. Never again would I buy him anything to wear. Finally I. ventured: "Mrs. Curtis Invited us to dinner tomorrow to-morrow night, verydnformally, she said " "You refused, didn't you? I have no time to be trotting around to dlnnera. I have to attend to business. We've been away about long enough." "Why no. I didn't refuse She waa so nice that accepted contingent, of course, on your having no other engagement engage-ment Mr. Mayeon Is to be there." "Why didn't you tell me that at first! Of course 1'U go, although I have another engagement. But It will give me another t'hll ea MHJNgOfT.1 " " "Haun t h atrrord yt to rto you want him to?" I asked, mora to hnva nnmelhinjr to than from any rtirlnatty. I knew abnoUitfUr nothing about buHfneitm, and never aaketf any quotation. That la, I hadn't for a long tlma. EDITH IS SICK. About 9 o'clock, aa 1 aat readlns. tha bellboy broujrht ma a sprtat delivery letter. let-ter. My handa jCrtMnbled ao I rould urarcely open It. I had Been the f.len-dale f.len-dale postmark, and Immediately mirnitaed aoniethlnir had hr.np"ed to Fdtth. The Continued from yewtarday. ) CHAPTER LXXXt. A Lonely Euppae, I waJted a moment, then aakad: "Aren't you going down with ma whlla 1 have aome dinner?" "No, I am not going down with you whlla you have aome dinner," ha repeated with a anaer. 'lf you want any dinner you'll either go down alone or have tt up hara. I am going to bed," and without another word ha went Into the bedroom and elammed tha door Waa It avar going to be poaalbla for me to pleaaa him ? 1 wondered, wag there another man who would be ao un-JuatT un-JuatT Then, too, I was a tut puaaled at hla attitude toward Burns May son. In eoli j aa. la t ka aWautV tail el ee nit hies a i VI W TlswT, saw ilBsQ 1UIU III vi ills I S3eV. sons for cultivating him. M Mayeon was, a vary entertaining, attractive man. I and Instead of ahowlng any Jeolouay at I hla vary evident Admiration for ma, Cllf- j ford wanted me to encourage It. I Father would not like It, 1 knew. But i ha waa old-fashioned, and of ours Cllf- , ford know he could trust me. At first I thought 1 wouldn't aat anything, any-thing, but 1 waa young and healthy, and soon felt hungry. 8o about 11 o'clock I called the waiter and ordered a broiled lobster and soma other things, and In spite of my loneliness, anu my disappointment disap-pointment over Cllf funis not remaining up with me. 1 enjoyed It Why ahould 1 punleh myself by going to bed hungry? Clifford never did such foollab thing. THOUGHT. ' Clifford waa snoring In the nait room, and I couldiv't help feeling that he had been r I icnt when he called me a "fool." I had dressed for him, snd had antlcl- pa ted our evening together. But so long as he did not cars to be with me, and hadn't even telephoned, I miKht have passed a pleasant evening with Bums Mayson, Instead of aittlnn all alone until Clifford came in and then been scolded bei-auae I had fulled to iio aa Yea, I de cided. I had been a fool. Htrangely I had alnumt gotten over my feeling of embarrassment with Mr. May-son. May-son. I hsd seen so much nf him, Clifford Clif-ford waa so anxious I ahould pleas him, that I had all but forrotten the episode of his attempt to become acquainted with me so unconventionally. And I found myself my-self thinking Ion Irmly of him and regret-ting regret-ting I had not accepted his Invitation. Then I thought of home, of Kdith. and late aa It waa 1 wrote her a tiny letter all for herself, and another to Muriel. Aa 1 ftnlahed her letter 1 rememt-ered what aha had said about Leonard Brooke, and added a postscript: "ttemeniber me to Mr. Brooke, and tell him 1 shall be ss anxious to resume our musical evenings aa he can poanibly be' Then thought, "lie is Interested In" meT too, why la It I cannot please or Interest my husband?" I SHOPPING WITH MRI. CURTIS. It wss a lovely afternoon when Mrs. Curtis called for me to lunch and shop with her. Clifford was most generous as (regarded money, and aftar a delightful luncheon we browsed among the shopa until almost dinner time. I bought a lovely new hat, aome gloves and slipper for myself, a few things to ! send tCdtth, and a remembrance for j Muriel. Then ss we passed a counter in Field's, where man's neckwear wss displayed. dis-played. 1 bounht Clifford two ties. It I waa the first time I had ever ventured to purchase anything for him, and I doubt I if 1 should have had the courage but for Mrs. Curtis. "Stop a minute, please," she said 'as we were passlnx the neckwear display. "1 alwaya buy Mr. Curtia' tlea. He get outrageous ones If I allow him to run abort," and she laughed sally. I had no such reason for buying Clifford Clif-ford snythln. hut I felt I would love to buy him somthlns, so selertt-d two rather quiet, rich-looking lies, and took them with me. I Mrs. Curtis lrt me shout S o'clock We had had a very enjtysble afternoon together, to-gether, and I had sj-omlsed to dine with them the following night If Clifford had no engagement. "Mr. Mason will be with us?" she told j me. ! ' CHAPTER LXXX1I. J When Clifford came in. I told him ot , my nice afternoon with Mrs. Curtis, and : brought wit the thing 1 had bought for , his Inspection. My hat had been dellv-' dellv-' ered. and he admired it Jho'ight it |