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Show That Episode of J. Gordon's By IDA M. SHEPLER locuteJ Liuitif !'.) know, alway squawka If anybody come In the house. See? It' her tafeguard agninat burglar. Poor thing, If 1 were ao afraid of burglar I'd marry a well, a great, big brave man." Her laugh wa catching, ber mll Irresistible, and J. Gordon found hlmaelf hlm-aelf planning little trick with her that gooae, to the vexation of It owner. own-er. Over half the time they held It for ransom, which ransom the poor woman would tend by her maid, and which money Mr. Mumford would end back. And how ah tang and how well ah played the piano! Each night J. Cordon Cor-don went to tleep to tweet tone fitting fitt-ing tn at bit open window, and each morning awakened to the tame. He had not known Mr Mumford rould alng. Twice J. Gordon, how. he never rould tell w aa tolled over to the Mumford Mum-ford veranda, and each time came away wondering If It were possible for a man of hi regulated mind to fall in love with another man' wife. A few m re tlaya of thla merry uh-urban uh-urban friendship and lie pulled blmtelf together to flee the apot, for ha realized real-ized Just the power the wa exercising exercis-ing over him. It waa not pretense at love on hla part, now. It waa a genuine genu-ine raise to be fought out a ho would fight It. He would go away Next morning, after thla resolve, he taw Mr. Mumfoid ou hi veranda. He was homo again Out In the bushes Mra. Mumford was slltntly trimming aome tmall throbs. Mra. Mumfoid, her drcs of subdued color, her manner retiring. She raised her eyes to him, theu nod (led demuiciy lie spoke to get a look Into her eyes. They had surprised him. He had thought tl.em blue, but they wcro a dark hazel now "Mr. Mumford It lack." Hho glanced up and he had an excellent glance Into the changed . even. In lact tho charge thnt had come Into her tare was actually startling start-ling He was glad of It. I'.etter rould he forget her now tut why tha charge?" "Yes," she replied, "we came back Inst night. He went two days before I did. Some business took him a llitle out of the way. We had a delightful vacation Pell tays you helped her pass aome of the lonely hours; 1 thank you. She kept bouse for me." "Hell!" Light was breaking "Your twin sister?" "Oh, no, I never had a twin plater. Pell la my cousin. They do say wa look very much alike." And to they dIJ, larking the viva-city, viva-city, the bluencsa of eye, tho pink of cheek and Hp on the part of Mrs. Mumford. These were the cousin's charm. And Pell was not married. With elation J Gordon g noshed It, and guessed right She was romlng alorg the path humming Catching tight of him, an called: "The woman with the gooe as body guard wasn't an old maid She was a charming young widow Yesterday she was married, and this morning she sends me the goose with her compliment. compli-ment. What am I to do with It? Will you help us eat It, If i roast It?" "Come here, very close," he called across the fence. When he came. Ignoring the gooce question, he asked: "Why did you allow al-low me to call you Mrs Mumford? I came pretty close to falling In love with another man' wile." "Ah. no, you didn't No danger of that. You sltrply fell In love with me. and" he paused, her eyes alluring allur-ing "Is It all right thnt I dirt?" And now, arms the fence bin right hand was reaching out to her She nodded, I jes. (Coirtihl, tun. bf Aii HI name, In full, was Jay Gordon Stanford, but his Intimate friend seldom sel-dom got farther with tho name than J. Gordon. J. Gordon hnd terlously contemplated contem-plated matrimony at tbe age of 17. Shortly after he waa brought rudely out of such contemplation by being toi'tly Informed by the recipient of hi adolescent affection that her heart was In the keeping of one much hit teulor, one to whom th had been betrothed be-trothed these many year. Many year? Why how old wa th really? He afterward learned, tome 12 more than hlnipclf. Perhaps It helped him forget her At 25 J. Gordon wat actually en-fnged. en-fnged. The girt, thla time, wa hla own age. She wa energetic. She went In for woman's suffrage, for reform re-form of many kinds and J. Gordon nulled Indulgently, although after the close Intimacy of engagement dayt tct In, he did begin to tit up and notice thai she had faults worse than wanting want-ing to vote. When It came to using oue't handkerchief for a whole week, tnd wearing tolled shirt waists out In company, he did hint a few wee hints sf surprise He also found he had a temper when, after a little lecture from hi in upon wrarlng white sllppert on mud-ly mud-ly tranipt, she flung hit ring lo his lace. The relief he felt at this action upon her part frightened him. Had he been tool enough to promise love to a woman wom-an he hud not loved? It made him cautious. ' At 30 J. Gordon wa still unmnr rled, and hhd taken a suburban ret-l-jence to himself, (ity noises disturbed disturb-ed his rest, ho told him friends, and He loved to look at growing vcgi-tubles. fruit and the like "It Is simply one of the signs of lnclpie.it bachelorhood." tbey told Dim And now he really began to be troubled. Wat It a fact thnt he would not love the right sort of a woman? 1 tun T-n,- . Gazing Upon th Damage. Tbe men of bit family usually carried early In life. Wa be born to live tin loved? At long a the villa on each tide of bim held the kind of children tbey did, J. Gordon was not tute but that bachelorhood had Its iidvaiitsges. for these were spoiled children. But when th children moved and on one side uioved In an elderly gentleman, grouchy and snuffy, and In the other a loving young couple took up abode, bis uneailneia -eturned. Tt.e first disgusted dis-gusted him with picture of what he might yet be; the other there were evening when they made blm feel lonely. But he would forget all thl next day'througb office hour. The young wi.e on the one side of him was rather pn-t'y in a soft, demure de-mure way And she loved floer and green things as well as did J Gordon, and thus ihey somet line came tiosa. each across the t!iv;Jiig fence from tbe other. She was very modcnt He learned only that the was Mr Mu:u ford, and It was torn In l.cr lo lotv country quiet, or as near as she could get, and digging In the ground One morning be saw ber. from her top veranda step, itoop and kics ber . husband good by Tbu husband at the ; ilu.e was veil ballasted with a b'g va line In each hand. Business railed J ; Gordon from hi villa during the two lays after I pon Lla return, gating with some concern upon the damage done some of bis growing things by a great goose, be wa startled by a cherry laugh from lite other aide of the fence, and looked look-ed up to behold Mra. Mumford, merry ed. milling radiant, tn pink and white. Never bad be teen ber so beautiful a now, and to friendly and merry. What s change the departure of ber husband bd brought about In ber nature. Then tbe began: "That goose ba eaten all our late trawberrie. tbe hired gtrl tell m lin t It awful? We found out why tbe woman don the avenue keeps It She' an old maid, and o afraid of burglars, but more afraid of dog tays i hey all have hydrophobia, but ?-efe ner do Can't lnoru!ie the.n l!b t in tatiy way And a g-ose. you |