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Show , ' Copyright- bs, D.APPLETON AND COMPANY "GOOD GIF1LI" SYNOPSIS. General factotum In the house of her plater Ina, wife of Hochert Deacon, In the rnnall town of Warbleton, Lulu Jlatt load's a dull, cramped existence, with which Bhe la constantly at enmity, though apparently HaUaflud with her loL llohby I,arkln, recently Rraduated hlfrh-achool youth, ia secretly enamored en-amored of Dt-acon'a elder daughter, Diana. The family la excited over the news of an approaching visit frotn Iacon's bi-otlier Nlnlan, whom he had not seen for many years. Unexpectedly, Nlnlan ar- l rives. Thus he becomes acquainted with Lulu first and understands her position In the house. To Lulu, Nhilan la a much-traveled man of the world, and even the slight interest in-terest which he takos In her Is appreciated, because It la something new In her life. At an outing which the famUy takos. Ninian and Lulu become confidential. He expresses ex-presses his disapproval of her treatment as a sort of dependent In the Deacon home. Diana and ' Bobby, in the course of "soft nothings," noth-ings," diecusa the possibility of elopinff and "swprlsing the whole school." Lulu has awakened to pleasant possibilities concerr.lnff Nlnian's Intentions toward herself. Ninian takes tho family for a "Kood time" in the adjacent city. At supper, aftor the theater, as part of a joke Lulu repeats the words of the civil marriage ceremony, cere-mony, with Nlnlan. Herbert remembers re-members that a civil woddlng la binding In the atate, and inasmuch na he la a magistrate, Nlnlan and Milu are legally married. IV Continued. 8 Inn Inexplicably began touching away tears. "Oh," she said, "what will mamma sny?" Lulu hardly heard her. Mrs. Bett was Incalculably distant. "You sure?" Lulu said low to Kin Inn. ' For the first time, something In her exceeding Isolation really touched him. "Say," he said, "you eomo on with me. We'll have It done over again somewhere, It you say so." "Oh," said Lulu, "if I thought" He leaned and patted her hand. "Good girl," he said. ' They sat silent, Ninian padding on the cloth with the flat of his plump hands. Dwight returned. "It's a go all right," he said. He sat down, laughed weakly, rubbed at his face. "You two are tied as tight as the church could tie you." "Good enough," said Ninian. "Eh, Lulu?'" "it's lt-'s all right, I guess," Lulu f aid. "Well, I'll be dished." said Dwlght. "Sister!" said Ina. Ninian meditated, bis lips set tight and high. It Is Impossible to trace the processes of this man. Perhaps they wore all compact of the devil-uiay-Tire attitude engendered in any persistent traveler. Perhaps the Incomparable Incom-parable cookery of Lulu played its part. "I was going to make a trip south this month," he said, "on my way home from here. Suppose we get married again by somebody or other, and start right off. You'd like that, wouldn't you going south. "Yes," said Lulu only. "It's July," said Ina, with her sense of fitness, but no one heard. It was arranged that their trunks ehould follow them Ina would see to that, though she was scandalized that they wore not first to return to War-bleton War-bleton for the blessing of Mrs. Bett. "Mamma won't mind," said Lulu. "Mrtmma can't stand a fuss any more." They left the table. The men and women still sitting at the other tables saw nothing unusual about these four, Indifferently dressed. Indifferently conditioned. The hotel orchestra, playing ragtime In deafening concord, made Lulu's wedding march. It was si ill early next day a hot Sunday when Ina and Dwight reached home. lira. Bett was standing stand-ing on the porch. "Where's Lulie?" asked Mrs. Bett. They told. Mrs. Bett took II In, a bit at a time. Her pale eyes searched their faces, she shook her head, heard It attain, enispcd It. Her first question vas: "Who's going to do your worn?" 'mi had thought of that, and this was manifest. "Oh," she said, "yon and I'll have ,to manage." Sirs. Bett meditated, frowning. "I left the bacon for her to cook for our breakfasts," she aald. "I can't it-ook bacon lit to eat. Neither can you." "Wo've had our breakfasts," Ina escaped from this dilemma. "IJad It up In the city, on expense?" "Well, we didu't have inucli." In Mrs. Bett's eyes tears gathered, Itwit they were not for Lulu. "I should think," she said, "I should think Lulie might have had a littla more gratitude to her than this." On their way to church Ina and Dwight encountered Dl, who had left the house some time earlier, stepping step-ping sedately to church In company with Bobby Larkln. Dl wis In whLte, and her face was the face of an angel, so young, so questioning, so utterly devoid of her sophistication. "That child," said Ina, "must not see so much of that Larkin boy. She's Just a little, little girl." "Of course she mustn't," said Dwight sharply, "and If I was her mother " "Oh, stop that!" said Ina, sotto voce, at the church steps. To every one with whom they spoke in the aisle after church, Ina announced an-nounced their news: Had they heard? Lulu married Dwtght's brother Ninian 411 Pari To Every One With Whom They Spoke In the Aisle After Church Ina Announced Their News. In the city yesterday. Oh, sudden, yes I And romantic . . . spoken with that upward Inflection to which Ina was a prey. V August. Mrs. Bett had been having a "tan-trim," "tan-trim," brought on by nothing definable. Abruptly as she and Ina were getting supper, Mrs. Bett had fallen silent, had In fact refused to reply when addressed. ad-dressed. When all was ready and Dwight was entering, hah- wetly brushed, she had withdrawn from the room and closed her bedroom door until it echoed. "She's got one agaia," aald Ina, grieving. "Dwight, yon go." He went, showing no sign of annoyance, annoy-ance, and stood outside his mother-in-law's door and knocked, answer. "Mother, come and have some supper." sup-per." No answer. "Looks to me like your muffins was just about the best ever." No answer. "Come on I had something funny to tell you and Ina." He retreated, knowing nothing of the admirable control exercised by this woman for her own passionate satisfaction In sending him away tin-satisfied. tin-satisfied. He showed nothing but anxious anx-ious concern, touched with regret, at his failure. Ina. too, returned from that door discomfited. Dwight made a gallant effort to retrieve the fallen fortunes of their evening meal, and turned upon Dl, who had just entered, and with exceeding facetlousness Inquired In-quired how Bobby was. Dl looked hunted. She could never tell whether her parents were going to tease her about Bobby, or rebuke her for being seen with him. It depended de-pended on mood, and this mood DJ had not the experience to gauge. She now groped ifor some neutral fact, and mentioned that be was going to take her and Jenny for Ice cream that night. Ina's Irritation found Just expression expres-sion In her office of motherhood. "I won't hare you downtown In the evening," she said. "But yon let n.e go last night." "All the better reason why yon should not go tonight." "I tell you," cried Dwight. "Why not all walk down? Why not all have Ice cream . . ." He was all gentleness gentle-ness and propitiation, the reconciling element In his home. "Me, too?" Monona's ardent hope, her terrible fear were In her eyebrows, eye-brows, her parted lips. "You, too. certainly." Dwight could aot do enough for every one. Monona clapped her hands. "Goody 1 goody I Last time yon wouldn't let me go." That's why papa's going to take you this time," Ina said. Those ethical balances having been nicely struck, Ina proposed another: "But," she said, "but, you must eat more supper or you cannot go." "I don't want any more." Monona's look was honest and piteous. "Hakes no difference. You must eat or you'll get sick." "No I" "Very well, then. No Ice cream soda for such a little girl." Monona began to cry ouletly. But she passed her plate. She ate, chewing chew-ing high, and slowly. "See? She can eat If she will eat," Ina said to Dwight, "The only trouble Is, she will not take the time." "She don't put her mind on her meals," Dwight Herbert dlngnosed It. "Oh, bigger bites than that I" he encouraged en-couraged his little daughter. IH's mind had been proceeding along its own paths. "Are you going to take Jenny and Bobby too?" she Inquired. "Certainly. The whole party." "Bohby'Il want to pay for Jenny and I." "Me, darling," said Ina patiently, punctiliously and less punctiliously added: "Nonsense. This Is going to be papa's little party." "But we had the engagement with Bobby. It was an engagement." "Well," said Ina, "I think we'll Just set that aside that Important engagement. en-gagement. I think we Just will." "Papa I Boby'll want to be the one to pay for Jenny and I " "Dl I" Ina's voice dominated all. "Will you be more careful of your grammar or shall I speak to you again?" "Well, I'd rather use bad grammar than than than " she looked resentfully re-sentfully at her mother, her father. Their moral defection was evident to her, but it was indefinable. They told her that she ought to be ashamed when papa wanted to give them all a treat. She sat silent, frowning, put-upon. put-upon. "Look, mamma I" cried Monona, swallowing a third of an egg at one Impulse. Ina saw only the empty plate. "Mamma's nice little glrll" cried she, shining upon her child. The rules of the ordinary sports of the playground, scrupulously applied, would have clarified the ethical atmosphere at-mosphere of this little family. But there was no one to apply them. When Dl and Monona had been excused. ex-cused. Dwight asked: "Nothing ' new from the bride and groom?" "No. And, Dwight, it's been a week since the last." "See where are they then?" He knew perfectly well that they were In Savannah, Georgia, but Ina played his game, told him, and retold bits that the letter had said. "I don't understand," she added, "why they should go straight to Oregon Ore-gon without coming here first." Dwight hazarded that Nln probably had to get back, and shone pleasantly In the reflected Importance of a brother filled with affairs. "I don't know what to make of Lulu's Lu-lu's letters," Ina proceeded. "They're so so " "You haven't had but two, have you?" "That's all well, of course It's only been a month. But both letters have been so " Ina was never really articulate. Whatever corner of her brain had the blood In it at the moment seemed to be operative, and she let the matter go at that. "I don't think It's fair to mamma going off that way. Leaving hex own mother. Why, she may never see mamma again " Ina's breath caught Into her face came something of the lovely tenderness with which she sometimes looked at Monona and Dl. She sprang up. She had forgotten to put some supper to warm for mamma. The lovely light was still In her face as she bustled about against the time of mamma's recovery from her tantrlm. Dwight's face was like this when he spoke of his foster-mother. foster-mother. In both these beings there was something which functioned as pure love. Mamma had recovered and was eating eat-ing cold scrambled eggs on the corner of the kitchen table when the Ice cream soda party was ready to set out. Dwight threw her a casual "Better "Bet-ter come, too, Mother Bett," but she shook her head. She wished to go, wished It with violence, but she contrived con-trived to give to her arbitrary refusal a quality of contempt. When Jenny arrived with Bobby, she had brought a sheaf of gladioli for Mrs. Bett, and took them to her in the kitchen, and as she laid the flowers beside her, the young girl stopped and kissed her. "You little darling!" cried Mrs. Bett, and clung to her, her lifted eyes lit by something Intense and living. But when the Ice cream party had set oil at last, Mrs. Bett left her supper, gathered gath-ered up the flowers, and crossed the lawn to the old cripple, Grandma Gates. "Inie sha'n't have 'em," the old woman thought. And then It was quite beautiful te watch her wlta Grandma Gates, whom she tended and petted, to whose complainings she listened, and to whom she tried to tell the small events of her day. When her neighbor neigh-bor had gone. Grandma Gates sale! that It was as good as a dose of med cine to have her come In. "You see," said Lulu, "he had i another wife." fro BE OONTINIIED.l |