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Show I; ILOVE and MARRIED 1IFE1 I j tx the noted author 1 : i Idah MGlone Gibson f E- : !l II HENRIETTE'S PROPOSAL. m I must- have fallen asle'-p from sheet m exnauMion, after John went down to his picked up dinner, for 1 was ywak-V ywak-V eneii by Henrlette's apologies for be-K be-K ing so late with my food, v "Madam Gordon knew that had 'X tol-i Mr. John I would bring you your dinner, and so sho kept me until now,' M she said, with the angry liberty which I an old servant sometimes takes. 1 "Never mind. HeurieUe, I have been I asleep, and I think I'm really hungry I nov Your supper Jooks most appe-I appe-I tizing. Has Mr. Gordon retired?" w "So, he left right after he finished I eating, in response to a telephone f "'He left no word for mo?" "No, Mrs. Gordon." said Henriette as she wont to answer the telephone. "Mrs. Sinclair wishes to know if you arc able to see her tonight." "Tell her that I am going to bed Immediately, Im-mediately, and lhat if she will, I wish ' sh would come tomorrow morning, in-j in-j ; stead. Say to her that I am quite anx ! ' ious to see her. and find just when she is coming, please." Henriette carried my message to the telephone and returned saying: i ! "Mrs. Sinclair wishes mc to tell you; :- i 'that everyone at the club was delight-' ! 1 ed ?.t your recovery, and they are very : anxious, as soon as you are well ? enough, to give you a "Welcome to our : , city" dinner. She will be over by 10 ! o'clock tomorrow morning, and hopes ! Hi it your visit and drivo did not over-: over-: do you this afternoon." Aided by Henriette. R Henriette, with kindness and of fi-, h' ciency, helped me to prepare for bed, While doing so, she said: I "Mrs. Gordon, don't you think that it would be nice or rather wouldn't if bo a help to you, if I should have my young niece come to help you until you are stronger? I am very' anxious to aft teach her the duties of a lady's maid, Vk and she will be glad to come for her. S board and ropm." 'vM I didn't know what there was-about d this proposal of Henriette's lhat qnrag-. rU e(' m0, but 1 fclt myslf so hoc and -lil colfl for although 1 knew Henrietro 5k was making the offer in a spirit of H helpfulness, I realized that she had Km seen enough of the workings of the lift household to know lhat John would lift- object to paying for any servant, jcl.at I I6K might hire without consulting hJra. pffl. I was also vain enough not to "want MM to e.xplain to Henriette thai I would ifa have to consult Mr. Gordon before tuk- fm. Ing any one into my service, and I, fi- fum nal1-' s:i"' Inoro'to Snin ,imc tn'lin ov' 'ym any other reason: ! "Don't you think Madam Gordon, will Um Wect to another maid in the house?" IS '1 can't tell that," she answered, gak 'but she unually doeB as Mr. Gordon xVm wishes her to, even when it is against' NlS her own Judgment." ! X Ah, there it is: If I would do cx- EK aclly what John Gordon wishes me to I do and alow him to do exactly he vishes in regard to himself, with no consideration of my feelings in cither matter, John, at least, would bo perfectly per-fectly happy. Perhaps this course of action is my duty, because now neither I of uso is happy, and yet if I should lhave said that I could not stand this any longer, and that night I felt that 1 could not, I am quite sure that all tho little world which knew John and me would have nothnig but censure for me. - And yet my life was becoming more and more intolerable every day, or was I it because I was physically weak that these things looked like bugbears.' Would Like to Go Home. "Oh, well, Jienriette," I said, "I am going to try and get away for a short jtim-? Perhaps I can make It possible Jto take your niece with me for a little i while. I would like to go home to my ! mother's and I have been worrying about putting any extra work upon" her one maid, but if I can make it possible to lake what Is her name. Henriette?" Henri-ette?" . "Anna." t ' " Anna with me, it would simpli- I fy matters." ; By this time I was ready for bed. jbut my nerves were all a-tingle and I picked up a magazine to see if I could settle them by reading. Six of the eight stories in that magazine were stories of unhappy married life. In four of them the wife was In much the same position that I was. In two of them, because of tho constant little annoyances an-noyances and hurts, women 'look their lives -into their own hands, a$ had Ifc'in, and went away with the man avIij seemed at the moment to love them. As I read these two stories my thoughts went back to Helen, and 1 thought to myself that I would ask Alice Al-ice about my interference with Helen's problem as well as about my own. ' I- am going home to work it out," 1 .said to myself, and then came thp awful thought: "Where shall I get the money to go home"?" (To Be Continued) oo |