Show hi his as eyes opened A A A J when natalie hall hail married clarke dexter the people who prophesied that she would not be happy were so very luef in the minority that no one one paid heed to them dexter s opinion of himself will win have to be whittled down several inches before he 11 make any woman s life what it ought to be one man had said but every one knew that the speaker would gladly hane stood in dexter s shoes so he did not count nevertheless not many months had passed before a vague uncertainty be gan to grow in the heart of natalie dexter which had the min minority known it would have caused them to exclaim complacently I 1 told you so As to dexter while still very much in love with his wife he frankly ad bitted to himself that a woman of more penetration in n other words 0 one ne more keenly alive to the rare intellect ual qualities of clarke dexter at torney at law might have proved a more congenial companion it was a warm day in early summer after a bard hard five hours n court dex ter ascended the steps of the pretty suburban villa which he called home somewhat before his usual time with the jangle of the day still stil on his nerves he dropped into a low chair on the piazza presently his own name reached him as through a haze dexter opened his eyes lazily realizing that tor for a mo me ment he had been blessedly ancon t surely dear you and clarke aar ry happy the repeated question coming through an open window where the air softly stirred some light draperies pricked him into complete wakeful ness an aunt of his wife who had been to her as a mother was was visiting them dexter recognized her voice he found himself listening intently for the reply it came gradually it you mean do we get air aunt grace I 1 suppose we do as well as nine tenths of the people we know perhaps but my dear that is d efferent from the married life I 1 had hoped tor for you it is different from the married life I 1 had hoped tor for myself dexter sat up too annoyed to realize that he was listening to a conversa tion not meant for his ears the fact Is natalie dexter paused what dear it seems abominable to say but you are the only mother I 1 haye have ever known there would be a greater chance of happiness for clarke and me it if if something om ething occurred to aisil lus ionize him a little with his big own at tain ments had clarke clarke dexter walked against a stone wall on a clear day he would not have so surprised as he was by these words in his wife s voice but dut my dear clarke has surely some right to feel complacent with his attainments not yet 30 and fast d k kil Z 4 found himself listen ng intensely for the reply climbing to the top of the tree in bis his profession dester dexter blessed mis hall in his heart don t I 1 know that auntie in the bours that I 1 have sat and thought it all out I 1 have come to this opinion that all his life long everything even his wife has come to clarke too easily it must have been so at school and college his grasp of a thing Is to dimmed ate and absolute that I 1 makes him intolerant with what he h considers the stupidity of others es specially pec lally ally with mine loura miss halls voice bristle bristled with indignation yes mire the one fact which clarke does not seem to have maste master td Is that a woman s mind may be b as keen as a man s and ya ye t remain feminine yesterday she went on he stood and watched me when I 1 took up thi this Z e NIP 1 the he improvement he e said slowly is the result of an unprofessional on embroidery it puzzled and almost ir rotated him that I 1 could be interested in what was to him so trivial when he turned away the very angle of his shoulders said as plainly as words that the mind which could find absorption in a bundle of colo ed silks and a d piece of fine linen must be a small affair A slow red mounted painfully to the clean shaven face of the man on the piazza do you know what it brought to my mind aunt grace no dear miss miss hall halls s voice was dull with distress one of your days at home houle in washington when most of the peo pie had gone judge doane dropped in for his usual cup of tea I 1 was finishing a tea cloth for your birthday and he came and stood beside me presently Present lv he said I 1 I 1 wonder if a woman s hands ever look so charming as when they are occupied with needlework and when you told him that I 1 had arr arranged angea the orchids on a table and copied them with my needle he exclaimed why child you are an artist T that hat Is lit eral needle painting clarke deeters s eyes which a few hours before had scintillated with the joy of laying skillfully fully concealed traps tor for the beet of an unwary witness stared before him in ill blank amazement judge doane only that morning he had held in reserve a decision of the great justice and played it as his rump trump card and this man had found ime time to admire his wife s hands and be interested in her calv work when she spoke again her tone was so hurt that dexter felt something clutch at his heart beart 1 I don t think clarke would believe that I 1 could originate anything even a design for fancy work and the wort of it is that I 1 am fast descend ing to the level of his opinion the unhappiness in her voice had been like a stream restrained at first but gaining uch force from the tribu tanes of thought that the weak bar ners of caution were swept away her next words revealed its tr true ue depth and current appallingly to the man who he had taken talen her young life in to 0 o his keeping he could have knelt in contrition and kissed the hem of her pretty gown I 1 shall not offer this cloth to the church after all she said firmly I 1 have so many bitter with life into it that it would be sacrilege there are places I 1 can not bear to look at for every thread was a protest against god what was that miss hall looked at a sound on the piazza natalie dexter went to the window and drew aside the curtain someone was disappearing around the comer of the house but her vision was too blurred to distinguish who it was it was almost a year later win seemed to have stepped back and taken the reluctant earth in a last ebbace before a blazing log fire in the it arary dexter and bis his wife bat sat ing in one of their many witty dl dis cushions cuss cus lons which were as the striking of flint and steel more than once he had risen and paced the floor with hands thrust dee daei into hia his pockets when his wife s keen wit and woman s instinct met and bat fled him come he said holding out one hand to her I 1 don dont t admit that I 1 ira m beaten by any means but I 1 know one thing I 1 in ravenous let lets s go and see it if we cant can t find something cold in the larder natalie dexter rose and laid her hands on her husband husbands s shoulders the eyes which looked into his were so caressing that he went toward her but she held him back clarke she said slowly there is 3 something so methin I 1 want to ask you a i you have grown so immensely in tha the past year there Is not a trace of the s the you will forgive me dear little touch of intolerance of egotism which i dexter took the glowing face bet tween hia his hands and paused to kiss the halting lips the improvement he said slowly is the result of an unprofessional opinion M louise cummins in boa dos ton globe |