"Mrs Lorrimer's Folly."

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 9 May 1913, Page 2

"Mrs Lorrimer's Folly."

(OURShRiAL

By Charlotte M. Sianity. Author of "Edna's Vn-,v," "His Country Cousin," "How an Oath Was Kept," "A Wo man Wronged."

CHAPTER I .--Coutinued

MR AND MRS LOfUUMER. At any other time Kr<d might have asked: "What., s.vrnr'' and coaxed her to tell, but now In■ wns too anxious and too troubled. Th« gay dress and 'his wife x s e\ id.'iit eve.d -spirits jarred painfully upon hi- -n-iod and upon tho subject; in his ihocighrs. He thought Lillian frivol,n-.. v hen lie might easily have guessed tho pood child had some good roasui for her gayety. "What are you doing v. ith that thing?" he ask or! disdainfully. "Whose trash is that " Then she became angry. It had been provoking enough to have her secret surprised without Fred's being rude about it. She threw up her head, and her soft, brown eyes flashed angrily; she. was aggrieved, she thought. "Whose should is. bo''" vie demanded saucilv. "1 didn't intend you to see it, though, till 1 h:vd finished ; t and put it on. What should you say if T went to a .gNjiiid hall with one of our girls in the score to-night,?" What he said, at tho mere suggestion was something so violent aiid , unpleasant thai their quarrel speedily waxed warm. On;' bitter word succeeded another: wounds wore dealt; strokes of tho tongue that cut the heart and left forever, and at last Lillian, tearing off her bonnet and dashing across the room, gave passionate utterance to tho-.o false, foolish words: "T wish I had never seen your face!"

CHAPTER 11. I THE QUARREL. "You are an unreasonable, heartless, selfish .man!" Mrs Lorrimer went on, pursuing tho quarrel with unabated' vigour and uncnnled temper, as soon, as she had soothed the ch'-d. "I am not yet eighteen, and my life is dull enough, goodness, knows! One would think you would seek to give me a little pleasure, instead of begrudging it! I was a fool to tie 'myself down like this. 1 wish that I had never seen your face!" This wish, however, was by no means so energetically expressed the second time a,s it had been the first. Baby's interference, you see, however unwelcome at the moment, had vaguely reminded Minmma tJiat to have missed making the acquaintance of papa would have involved the massing of baby's acquaintance also; and she certainly didn't wish that. All, no! V.'.ie clasped the infant closer to her breast. It was a very warm and loving heart that Faster Baby lay against, and though! that she would not be without her darling boy—no, nor without his father, either —for th« wealth of the whole wide world and all the stupid pleasures she cohld buy with it. Glancing swiftly at her young husband, as he sat with pale face and moody looks glarincr do"-"' from the window into tho street, her regret for his evident unharnriness and her own 'hasty sooedi impelled her to speak out of her real, true heart, and toll him w>. If she had e.h ! if slio only had .so spoken ! Well, if she had, her folly and their quarrel would have found a happy ending then and there, and wo should have had no story to write about the consequences. "T grudge you no pleasure that I am able to procure for you, or thn-t it is proper for you to enjoy," he said coldly. "I don't find fault with your wish to go to this ball, which is natural enough, but with tho impropriety that \ could contemplate going without me, and with no better escort than a poor working girl—" She interrupted him there: "T was a poor working girl myself!" said she hot]v. "I a.m a working girl!" "That ha,s nothing to do with it. You are. my wife, and the mother of my child, and you must behave as becomes a wife and mother. f complain of this, and of the deceit which you mu&t have employed to procure •that dress"—his eyes rested with strong disfavour upon the lovely ball dress spread over the foot of the bed —"without my knowledge. "Wo are poor"—lris face grew darker as he mused. "Where—how could you obtain the money to purchase it?"

That question, and, still more, the manner of it, offended her. She drew herself up proudly as she looked at him, and her fair face flushed an angry red. Small prospect of submission or conciliation now! "T called you unreasonable just now," she s.aid scornfully; "now I call you stupid and insulting! I did no f " —very shortly and sharply—"l did not buy the dress." "Tndeed!" He gavo lier a halfcredulous stare. "We have been married a year and a half, and T think T know the resources of your wardrobe; it comprised no such dress as tins." Perhaps a bitter and most unpleasant expression disfigured his handsome face, and its clouds gre.w blacker. "'Perhaps, since you did not buy it, it was a gift—from the person who expects to accompany you in my stead, when you wear it." Her anger blazed up in earnest at that, and her eyes flashed scorn imon him. Only for a minute, though ; for, after all, there is something sweet Iv flattering to a woman in the quick jealousy of the .-.nan she loves. Mi's LorrLmer first frowned, then pouted, then laughed at her jealous and indignant husband. "What a ridiculous gooso you are!" she said, with a pout that invited him (if he chose to see it) to advance and make up their quarrel. "Can't you make a better guess than that? How if the dress isn't mine at all? How if I—'borrowed it —for a reason

■ —from Rose Clare?'' j Slio was explaining the way to an • explanation, poor child —an expla.na- ! tion which, she knew, would involve a, reconciliation also, and in which she wanted to he met half-way. Her own, fierce, short-lived .storm of temper was over now, and s-lie wanted to kiss and he friends again, and to -. make Fred ashamed of his unjust an- , ger and doubts by tolling hi in the j truth, about the bull dress. Hut she i wouldn't do that all at once and by ; a. few plain words; no. womauike, she "nusL tease him and punish him a little. Certainly, when one knew the truth, he ban deserved it. ; In pursuance of this plan—she put the baby—which had fallen sweetly asleep again—into the bed, and taking from its resting place the robe whirli had caused their quarrel, spread it tantalisingly before him. I "Isn't it lovely?" she demanded, : smilingly shaking out the soft, lusj trous folds of rich-coloured silk, and ■ disposing them coquettishy against j her own graceful, girlish figure. I "And wouldn't I look lovely in it? Like a rose! Heighho! I said, when 1 saw it lying in poor .Rosa's dull room that 'morning—this, and another just as pretty, but white —that if she and I could manage to go to tins ball —" But the silly, teasing speech went no farther. Fred Lorrimer—to whose jealous, sullen temper all this nonsense appeared serious, insulting, earnest—-broke out, suddeny and fiercely. "Than you did borrow it'from Rose Clare? A poor girl who works in a shop for her living possesses dresses like that! She could not have come by them rightly or honestly. She is no fit companion of my wife! You are a thoughtless, giddy child," he went on sternly, "or yon would see this as I see it, and appreciate your own outrageous conduct in borrowing a dress from her! Is it possible you oould believe that T should allow you to wear it? You must bemad!" She threw him a glance of contempt and went and s at down with the dress on her lap and her little work basket' beside her. His ill temper, when she had shown a disposition to make peace—his harsh judgment of poor Rosa, which she knew was undeserved and felt to be ungenerous and unmanly—had repelled; and disgusted her. She felt as if she did not care to be friends with him now, and answered coldly and proudly: "1 never thought of asking your permission, believe me; I am not your slave, you know, not quite a fool, nor mad, and T am quite able to j judge for myself of what is proper. As for Rosa you wrong her most infamously ; you wrong both her and 1 me—and that is all I shall condescend ' to say to you"; and she commenced sewing most industi iously. Fred kept silent a little while, rather started by her look and tone. The quarrel had a&sumed really serious proportions by this time. Presenty he began to wonder at her occupation. .What on earth was | she sewing at that ball dross for? Could it bo possible that, in spite of all his plain speaking, she rcant to defy him and wear it? He asked her abruptly —more abruptly and roughly than he knew : "What are you doing to that I dresSs?" I (To be Continued.)