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Show i LOW aid MARRIED LIFE! I ta the noted author . 'j Idah YfiMlone Q-ihson fl I A QUARREL WITH CHARLES As I covered dear littlo mother's thin, pain-drawn cheeks with kisses Charles stood behind her with his linger lin-ger on his Up to counsei silence, for lie saw my face how shocked I was by her appearance. Later he told me that he, too, felt that she should not have come, as he realized that she was steadily falling. "I can sec." ho said "that something vital is going steadily out of her frail body that each day brings the end nearer." "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked impetuously. "Don't you know I hat 1 would have gone to her immediately?" "Of course, m dear Katherine. But when I first fully realized her condi- Ition you had justbeen sent to the hospital hos-pital following the automobile accl- dent. To have told you then would f have been uuwjBe, since you could do nothing. Besides, L have not been and r am not now sure that it is best for you to be with your mother." ' Just Like a Man I "Just like a man," I said holly. "Wliy should you arrogate to yourseir Js the privilege of deciding what Is best Ifd for me or my mother. In a matter of Sf-" this importance it was for me to make I the decision." I; ' "Forgive me, my dear Katherine," t.- he said humbly. "You certainly must IV understand that you make all the deft de-ft cislons affecting your own life without ; Interference from me. But surely you I must give me a little consideration ! when you stop to think that the little m' woman you call your mother has also I- been, all her life, a mother to me. I 1' was thinking of her more than of you, B: "Since your father died I have given fif devoted attention to your mother; Surely you must know that had I ont m 'r wished to do so, no matter how much K : 1 cared for you or her, 1 would have I ' found some ex ucse to have declined ; the duty. As it Is, it has been my m ' greatest joy to mako her happy. Con-K, Con-K, sequently I believe I "am justified in m wanting to keep from her many things 1; she will see now that one Is here and IM. 1 II ! ill II II I I IMMHii 1 ,1 I.I ! tt t which will bring sorrow into her ebb-ling ebb-ling years." "Don't you think that I can keep on acting ray part as well as you act yours?" I asked. Really Acting a Part "No, my dear, because I am really acting a part, while you, you are portraying por-traying a dally reality a reality so soul-wrecking that you can not act anything outside of 1L" "Why should you think that I am unhappily married? I've never said anything to you about it, Charles, Have I.?" "That's just the reason. Had you been happy you would have bubbled' over with every expression of joy to your mother and me, I knew when you were at your father's funeral that your pride was hurt and your spirit crushed by the calloused selfishness ot your husband. Oh, Katherine, can't you sec that I would have made you a better husband than he?" "Stop, you must not talk this way to me. It isn't a question of who would bo the better husband; it Is the fact that John Is my husband that counts." "Of course, of course," he acquiesced. acquiesc-ed. "But you can see how hard it is for me to stand by while an unapprc-ciative unapprc-ciative man neglects and abuses you." No Right to Criticise "Charles, I will not have you talk to me this way. You have no right to criticise my husband." "No, but when a woman gets to the point where she tamely listens to criticism crit-icism of her husband from anybody she has reached a point where separation separa-tion will be easy, a point where she neither no longer loves nor respects him." "How do you know so much about husbands and wives and married life?" I asked. Tomorrow A Bit of Philosophy oo |