THE 8EMI-WEEKLY TRIBUNE, NORTH PLATTE, NEBRA8KA.
BECAUSE HER HUSBAND WILL NOT LET HER HELP TAKE
CARE OF THE TWINS, AND BECAUSE SHE HATES
IDLENESS, ROSE HAS A VERY SERIOUS
DISAGREEMENT WITH RODNEY
SYNOPSIS. Boso Stanton marries Rodney Aldrlch, n wealthy young
lawyer, after u brief courtship, anil Instantly la taken up by Chlca
go's excluslvo Boclnl wet nud made a part of the Ray whirl of the rich
folk. It Is nil new to tlio girl, and for tho first few months she Is
charmed with tho life. And then she comes to feel that she Is living
n useless existence, that she Is a social buttorlly, a mere ornament In
her husband's home, lloso longs to do something useful und to hnve
tho opportunity to employ her mind nnd utilize her talent nnd educa
tion. Rodney feels much tho saiuo way himself. Ho thinks ho ought
to potter around In society Just to please his wife, when In reality
he'd rather bo giving his ulghts to study or social servlco of some
sort. They try to reach an understanding following tho visit of two
Now York friends, who hnve worked out satisfactorily this same prob
lem. Then Rosa decides that her Job as mother is a big one, and she
looks eagerly forwnrd to the great event, but sho hus twins nnd Is
unnblo to enre for both tho babies nt once.
CHAPTER XIII.
Tho Dam Gives Way.
She began getting her strength back
very fast In tho next two or threo
days, but this queer kink In her emo
tions didn't straighten out. Sho cafuo
to sco that It was nbsurd monstrous
utmost, but that didn't help. Instead
of a baby, she had given birth to two.
They were hers, of course, as much
us one would have been. 'Only, her
aoul, which had been waiting so
ccstntlcally for its miracle for tho
child which, by muklng her a mother,
should supply what her Hfo needed
her soul wouldn't couldn't accept
tho substitution. Thoso two droll,
thln-volccd, squirming Ilttlo mites that
wero exhibited to her overy morning,
Were us foreign to her, as if thoy hud
bcou brought Into tho house In u
basket.
When Harriet camo In for tho first
.time to sco her, Robo knew. Har
riet was living hero now, running tho
house for Rodney, whflo Rose was
laid up. Doing It beautifully well,
too, ' through all tho coufuslou of
nurses nnd all. Harriet said:
"I think you'ro In great luck to
havo hud two at onco; get your duty
to posterity dono that much sooner.
And, of course, you couldn't possibly
bo expected to nurse two great crea
tures like that."
lloso acquiesced. Shot would have
(struggled, though, sho knew, but for
that queer trick fato had played her.
tier heart ached.
When sho found that struggling
with herself, denouncing herself for
brute, didn't Borvo to tyring; up tho
feelings toward tho twins that sho
know uny proper mother ought to
have, Bho burled tho dark fuct as
deep as sho could, und pretended. It
wus only beforo Rodnoy thut the pre
tenso was really necessary. And with
him, really, It was hardly n protenso
ut all. Ho wns such u child himself,
Id his gleeful delight over tho pos
session of a son und u daughter, thut
she felt for him, tenderly, mistily,
luminously, tho very omotlon sho was
trying to cupturo for them folt llko
cradling his head lu her weak arms,
kissing him, crying over him.
Sho wouldu't havo been allowed to
flo that to tho babies, nnywny. Thoy
lweo going to bo terribly well brought
tip, thoso twins; that wus apparent
pom tho beginning. They hud two
burses nil to themselves, quite npurt
ftrom Miss Harris, who looked utter
Rose Mrs. Ruston and Doris, tho
maid, who wero destined, It uppeared,
to bo us permanent ub tho babies. Rut
Rose had tho germ of an Idea of her
bwn about that.
They got them named with very lit
Ue dltllculty. Tho boy wus Rodnoy,
of course, after his father und grand
father beforo him. Hose wns u little
alruld Rodney would want tho gl.-l
named after her, and wus relieved to
find he didn't Thero'd novcr In tho
world bo but ono Roso for him, ho
aid. So Roso named tho girl Portia.
Thoy kept Roso lu bed for threo
weeks; fiat on her back as much ns
possible, which was terribly Irksomo
to her, slnco her strength nnd vital
ity wero coming back so fust. Sho
might havo rebelled, had It not been
(or that gcrmlnunt Idea of hers. It
wouldn't dp, sho saw, In tho light of
that, to gtvo them uny excuso for cull
ing her unreasonable.
Ono Sunday morning, Rodney car
ried her upstairs to tho nursery to
bco her babies bathed. This wns n
hlg room ut the top of tho house
which Florence McCren laid ulwuys
vaguely Intended to mnko Into n
irtudlo. But, In tho paralysis of In
decision as to whnt sort of studio to
Make it, sho had left, tho tiling bare.
Rodnoy had given Hurrlct carto
fcluucho to go abend und fit it up be
fee ho and Roso camo back from tho
imakMs. mm! tXa layo waa a niona
ment to Harriet's practicality. Thero
had been n wild day of supplement
ing, of course, when It was discovered
that thero wero two babies Instead of
one.
Tho room, when they escorted Rose
Into It, was u terribly Impressive
place. Tho spirit of u barren, sterile
etllclcncy brooded everywhere. And
this appearance of bareness obtained
despite tho presenco of an enormous
number of articles -a pair of scales,
u perfect battery of electric heaters
of various sorts; rows of vacuum Jars
for keeping things cold or hot; a small
sterilizing oven; Instruments nnd np
pllanccs that Rose couldn't guess, the
uses or tho names of. Mrs. Ruston,
of course, was master of them all,
and Doris flew about to do her bid
ding, under a watchful eye.
Roso surveyed this scene, Just us
sho would havo surveyed a laboratory,
or a factory whero they make some
thing complicated, llko watches.
That's what It was, really. Thoso two
pink Httlo objects, In their two severe
ly sanitary baskets, wero factory prod
ucts. At precise and unnlterablo In
tervals, n highly scientific compound
of fats arid protelds wns put Into
them. They wero Inspected, weighed,
submitted to u routlno of other proc
esses. And In all tho routine, there
wns nothing that their mother, now
they wero fairly born, was wanted for.
Roso kept those Ideas to herself
and kept an eyo on young Doris, lis
tened to tho orders she got, nnd stud
ied nlertly what sho did lu tho execu
tion of them.
Rodney hud n lovely tlmo watching
tho twins bathed, Ho stood about in
everybody's wuy, mado what ho con-
Roso Surveyed This Scene.
eclved to bo alluring noises, and finally
turned suddonly to his wlfo and suld:
"Don't you want to hold them, Roso?"
A stab of pain wont through her
nnd tears camo up Into her eyes. "Yes,
glvo them to mo," sho Bturted to say.
Rut Mrs. Ruston spoko before sho
could framo the words. It wus tholr
feeding hour, n bad tlmo for them
to bo excited, and the bottles wero
heated oxactly right.
Ry that time Rose's lden had flow
ered Into resolution. Rut sho mustn't
Jeopardize tho success of her plan by
trying to put it into effect too soon.
Sho waited pntleutly, reasonably.
for another fortnight. Harriot, by that
tlmo,. hnd gono off to Washington on
a visit, tuklng Roduoy's heartfelt
thank with her. Roue cxprossod hern
JuBt ns wnrmiy, nnd felt nshumcd
that they wero so unreal. Sho simply
mustn't let hcrsolf got to resenting
Harriett At tho end of tho fort
night, the doctor made his final, visit.
Roso had ospeclally asked Rodney to
be on hnnd to hear his report when
tho examination was over.
"He says," Rose told her husband,
"that I'm perfectly well." Sho turned
to tho doctor for confirmation. "IJon't
you?"
The doctor smiled, "As for as my
diagnostic resources go, Mrs. Aldrlch,
yoii arc perfectly well."
uiuiu mum. 11111 tj uuiikihiiii, mie
said to tho doctor. "Thanks very
much."
But after ho had gone she found
Mrs. Ruston In tho nursery und hnd
n tnlk with that lady, which was des
tined to produce seismic upheavals.
"I've decided to make a little
change In our arrangements, Mrs. Rus
ton," she snld. "But I don't think
It's ono thnt will disturb you very
much. I'm going to let Doris go
I'll get her another place, of course
and do her wock myself."
Mrs. Ruston compressed her lips,
nnd went on for a minute with what
sho was doing to ono of tho twins,
as If sho hadn't heard. "Doris Is
quite satisfactory, madam," she said
nt last. "I'd not advise making n
change. She's a dependablo young
woman, as such go. Of course I wntch
her very close."
"I think I can promise to bo de
pendable," Rose said. "I don't know
much about babies, but I think I can
learn ns well ns Doris. Anyhow, I
can wheel them about and wash their
clothes nnd boll their bottles nnd
things us well ns she does. And you
can tell me whnt to do Just as you tell
her."
To this last observation It became
ovldent that Mrs. Ruston mount to
make no reply nt nil. She gave Roso
some statistical Information about the
twins Instead, In which Rose showed
herself politely Interested, and present
ly withdrew.
Rodney wore n queer expression
all through dinner, nnd when ho got
Rose alono In tho library afterward,
ho explained It. Mrs. Ruston had
given lil tn notice, contingently. Rose
hnd informed her of her Intention to
dispense with the service of the nurse
maid. If Roso adhered to this Inten
tion, Mrs. Ruston must leuve.
It was somo sort of absurd misun
derstanding, of course, Rodney con
cluded, and wunted to know w'hut It
wus all about.
"I did say I meant to let Doris go,"
Roso explained, "but I told her I meant
to take Doris' Job myself. I said I
thought I could bo Just as good a
nursemaid ns sho was. And I meant
It."
He wns prowling nbout tho room In
n worried sort of way, beforo she got
ns fnr as thnt. "I don't see, child,"
ho exclaimed, "why you couldn't leuve
well enough alone I If It's thut old
economy bug of yours again, It's non
sense. You, to spend nil your time
doing menlul work to snvo mo ten
dollars u weekl"
"It Isn't menlnl work," Roso Insist
ed. "It's npprentlco work. 'After I'vo
been nt It six months, learning us fust
as-1 can, I'll bo able to let Mrs. Ruston
go nnd take her Job I'll bo really
competent to tnke enro of my own
children. I don't pretend I am now."
Ho stared at her In perfectly honest
bewilderment. "You'ro talking rather
wild I think, Roso," ho suld very quiet
ly. "I'm talking what I've learned from
you," she said. "Oh, Rodnoy, please
try to forget that I'm your wife nnd
ai nmi.ii l..tl..t....l t, a.
I thut you'ro In love with me. Can't
you Just say : 'Here's A, or B, or X, n
perfectly healthy woman, twenty-two
years old, und u Httlo reul work would
bo good for her?"
She won, with much pleading, a sort
ef troubled half-ussent from him. Tho
mntter could bo taken up again with
Mrs. Rustou.
Given a fair field, Roso might havo
won n vietorv lri Hut. nn PnrHn
had raid once, tho pattern wns cut dif
ferently. There was u sudden alarm
ono night, when her Httlo namesake
was found strangling with tho croup.
Thero wero seven terrlfylug hours al
most unendurable hours, while tho
young life swung und balanced over
the ultimate abyss. The heroine of
thoso hours wns Mrs. Ruston. That
tlu child lived was clearly crcdltnblo
to her.
Roso mado another effort even nfter
that, though sho knew shu was beaten
In advance. Sho waited until the old
calm routlno wns ro-cstabllshed. Then,
once more, she asked for her chance.
But Rodnoy exploded beforo Bho got
the worda fairly out of her mouth,
"No," ho shouted, "I won't consider It I
Sim's saved that baby's life. You'll
havo to find somo wuy of satisfying
your whims that won't Jeopardize
thoso babies' lives. Aftor thut night
good heavens, Rose, havo you forgot
ten that night? I'm going to play it
safe."
Roso palod n Httlo and snt Ivory still
In her chair. There wero no miracles
any more. Tho great dam wus swept
awuy.
CHAPTER XIV. '
Tho Only Remedy.
Sho wns in the grip of an appalling
realization. This moment this nctu-
nlly present moment that was going
to lust only until sho should sponk for
tho next time wus tho critical mo
ment of her life.
"Roddy . . ." sho said.
Ho was slumped down In a big easy
chair at tho other side of tho tnblc,
swinging a restless foot; drumn'lng
now nud then with his Angora. v Somo
sort of scene wns Inevitable, he knew.
And he sat there wultlng for It.
He thought he wns rcudy for any
thing. But Just the wny sho spoko his
nnme sturtb'd ulmost frightened him,
she said It so quietly, so tenderly.
"Roddy," she said, "I want you to
come over hero and kiss me, and then
go back nnd sit down In that chair
again."
Ho went a Ilttlo pale nt that. Tho
swing of his foot wns urrested sud
denly. But, for n moment, he mudc no
move Just looked wondcrlngly Into
her great, grave eyes.
"Something's going to hnppen," she
went on, "and beforo It's over, I'm
afraid It's going to hurt you terribly
and me. And I want the kiss for us
to remember. So that we'll nlwnys
know, whntever happens nfterwnrd,
thut we loved ench other." She held
out her urms to him. "Won't you
come?"
Ho came a man bewildered, bent
down over her, nnd found her Hps; but
almost absently, out of a daze.
"No, not like thut," she murmured.
"In the old wny."
Thero wns a long embrnce.
"I don't believe I'd hnve the courage
to do It," she said, "If It were Just me.
But there's someone else I've made
someone n promise. I can't tell you
about that. Now please go back and
sit over thero where you were, where
we can talk quietly. Oh, Roddy, I lovo
you so ! No, please go back, old man I
And and light your pipe. Oh, don't
tr- mble like that I It isn't n tragedy.
It s for us, It's the grentest hope In
the world."
He went back to his chair. He even
lighted his pipe us -she asked him to,
and waited as steadily us ho could for
her to begin.
"Do you remember . . ." she be
gan, nnd It wns remarkable how quiet
and steady her voice wns. There wns
even tho truce of n smile nbout her
wonderful? mouth. "Do you remember
that afternoon of ours, the very first
of them, when you brought homo my
notebooks nnd found me asleep on the
couch In our old back parlor? Do you
remember how you told mo that one's
desires were the only motive power
bo had? Well, It was n funny thing
I got to wondering afterward whnt
my desires were, nnd it seemed I
hadn't nny. Everything had, somehow,
conic to mo before I knew I wanted It.
Everything in the world, even your
love for me, came like that.
"But I've got a pnsslon now, Rodney.
I'vo hnd it for n long while. It's n
desire I enn't sntlsfy. The thing I
wnnt nnd there's nothing Ih the world
I wouldn't glvo to get It Is, well, your
friendship, Roddy ; that's n wny of sny
Ing It."
Rodney stnrtcd nnd stared at her.
The thing struck him, It seemed, ns n
sort of grotesquely Irritating anticli
max. "Grnclous heaven!" he said. ' "My
friendship 1 Why, I'm In lovo with you I
That's certainly a bigger thing."
"I don't know whether It's a bigger
thing or not," she said. "But It doesn't
include the other."
He was tramping up nnd down tho
room by now. "You've got my friend
ship!" he cried out. "It's grotesque
perversion of the fucts to sny you
haven't."
Sho smiled nt him ns she shook her
bend. "I've spent too mnny months
trying to get It and seeing myself fall
oh, so ridiculously I not to know
whnt I'm talking about, Roddy."
And then, still smiling rather sadly,
sho told him what somo of the experi
ments had been somo of her attempts
to break Into tho life ho kept locked
away from her. "I was angry at first
when I found you keeping mo out,"
sho snld. "angry and hurt. I used to
cry nbout It. And then I saw it wasn't
your fault. That's how I discovered
friendship had to bo earned."
But he'r power to maintain that atti
tude of grave detachment was about
spent. The passion mounted In her
voice and In her eyes ns she went on.
"You thought my mind hnd got full of
wild Ideas the wild Idea I was pulling
you down from something free and fine
that you had been, to something that
you despised yourself for being and
had to try to deny you were. You
wero wrong about that, Roddy.
"I did hnve an obsession, but It
wasn't tho thing you thought. It was
an obsession that kept mo quiet, rind
contented nnd happy, and willing to
wait In splto of everything. Tho ob
session was that noue of those things
mattored because a big miracle was
coming thnt was going to change It nil.
I wns going to havo n Job nt Inst u
Job that was Just as real ns yours
the Job of being n mother."
Her voice broke In n fierce, shorp
little laugh over tho word, but sho got
It back In control ugaln.
"I wns going to havo a baby to keep
allvo with my own care. Thero was
going to bo responsibility and hard
work, things thnt domauded courage
and endurance und sacrifice. I could
earn your friendship with that, I said.
That was tho real obsession, Roddy,
and it never roally died until toulght.
Well, I flupposo I can't complain. It's
over, that's tho mala thing.
"And now, hero i am perfectly nor
mal nnd well again as good ns ever.
I could wear pretty clothes again and
stnrt going out Just ns I did a year ago.
People would admire mo, and you'd bo
pleased, nnd you'd love me us much
ns ever, and It would nil bo llko tho
paradlso It wns Inst year, except for
ono thing. The ono thing Is thnt If I
do thnt, I'll know this tlmo what I
really ntn."
With u dangerous light of nnger In
his eyes, ho said quietly: "It's perfect
ly outrageous that you should tnlk llko
that, nud I'll nsk you never to do It
ngnln."
After ten seconds of silence, sho
went ou : "Why, Roddy, I've heard you
describe mo n hundred times. Not V&t
you that's my lover. The other yoa--
talking nil over the universe to Bnrry
Luke. You've described the woman
who's never been trained nor taught
nor disciplined ; who's been brought up
soft, with the bloom on, for the pur
pose of making her marriageable ;
who's never found her Job In mnrrlago
who doesn't cook, nor sew, nor spin
nor even tnke cure of her own chil
dren; tho woman who uses her charm
to save her from having to do hnrd,
ugly' things, und keep her In luxury
Do you remember whnt you've cnllei'
her, Roddy?
"I didn't understand nny of thnl
when you married me, Roddy; It wns
Just like u drenm to me like n fnlry
story come true. But I understand
now. How enn you be sure, knowing
that my position In the world, mj
friends, oh, the very clothes on mj
bnck, nnd the roof over my bend, nr
dependent on your love how nre yot
going to bo sure thnt my love for you
Is honest nnd disinterested? Whnt'e
to keep you from wondering usklng
questions? Love's got to be free, Rod-
.v
"Roddy," She Said, "I Want You tf
Come Over Here and Kiss Me."
dy. The only wny to mnke It free
Is to huve friendship growing along
side It. So when I cun be your part
ner nud your friend, I'll be your wlft
too. But not not, Roddy, till I cai
find n wny. I'll have to find It foi
myself. I'll have to go off . . .'
She broke down over a word sin
couldn't ut first say, burled her fac
In her arms, nnd let a deep, racklnf
sob or two have their way with her
But presently she sat erect agali
and, with a supreme effort of will
forced her voice to utter the word
"I've got to go .off alone away froa
you, and stay until I find it. If I evei
do, nnd you want me, I'll come buck.
The struggle between them lnsted t
week a ghnstly week, during which
so fur us the surface of things showed
their life flowed along In Its nccus
tomed chnunels. But nt all sorts oi
times, and In all sorts of places, when
they wero alone together, the greu'
battle was renewed.
The hardest thing nbout It nil foi
Host the thing thnt enme nenrest t(
brenklng down her courage was tc
see how slowly Rodney came to realize
It at nil. He was like a trapped anl
mnl pacing the four sides of his cage,
confident that in a moment or two he
would find the wny out, nnd then, in
credulously, dnzedly, coming to tho sur
mise thnt there was no wny out. She
renlly inennt to go nwuy und leave him
leave the babies; go somewhere
where his care and protection coulc"
not reach her 1 Sho was actuully plan
ning tho details of doing itl By the
end of one of their long talks, It would
seem to her thnt ho hnd grnsped this
monstrous Intention nnd nccepted It
But beforo tho beginning of the next
ono, ho seemed to munnge, somehow,
to dismiss tho thing as u nightmare.
Somehow or other, during the calmer
moments toward the end, practical de
tails managed to get talked about
settled after a fashion, without tho ad
mission really being mudo on his pnrt
that the thing wns going to hnppen at
nil.
"I'd do everything I could, of course,
to make It easier," she said. "We could
have a story for peoplo that I'd gone
to Cnllfomlu to mnke mother a long
visit. Wo could bring nnrrlet home
from Washington to keep house while
I was gone. I'd take my trunks, you
see, und really go. Peoplo would sus
pect, of course, after a while, but
they'll always pretend to believe any
thing thut's comfortable."
"Where would you go, really?" he
demanded. "Have you any plan ut
all?"
"I havo a sort of plan," she said. "I
think I know of a wny of cnrnlng a Uv.
Ing."
But Bho didn't offer to go on nnd telf
him whnt it wns, nnd, nfter a Httlo si
lence, ho commented blttorly upon this
omission.
Rose's point of view may Beem
foolish to old-fashioned women.
How do you feel about It? Im
portant developments come In
the next Installment.
(TO BE CONTINUED.)
inNER'S
SK
MACARONI
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CAFE PRICES REASONABLE
GIRL OF 14 SOLDIER'S WIFE
While Her Husband Flnhtc In Franco
Young Bride Will Go to
School In This Country.
A fourteen-year-old schoolgirl be
came a soldier's wife in Brooklyn re
cently, thus following the example of
her mother, who became the bride of
one of Uncle Sam's men In khaki 14
months ago.
Mnttlc Leo Iludsbeth of Douglas,
Ariz., was the latest bride, snys the
Brooklyn Eagle. The soldier boy .who
became her husband Is David Eugene
Henry pf Spring, Tex. The bridegroom
is only twenty-two, and a member of
tho Twenty-second Infantry, now sta
tioned at Fort Hamilton.
The girl's stepfather went abroad
with General Pershing and Is now
"somewhere in France." His wife
planned to join him nnd come East.
While waiting passports here her
dnughter met Henry, with whom sho
became acquainted In Arizona, two
years ngo.
While the bride's mother Is nbsent
in France her dnughter will remnln
here nnd will attend school.
Same Old Lectures.
On n certain occasion Professor
Brander Matthews of Columbia uni
versity, speaking Jokingly of his age,
said he trusted that he was not so
old that the students could play on
him the trick he once saw tried on a
senior professor in hlsown college
dnys.
"Professor Blank," he said, "wus our
most venerable Instructor, nnd he
could bo Just a little Irritable at times.
Once, noticing that a member of his
class who sat right under his eyo
never took nny notes or paid tho
slightest nttcntlon to his lectures, ho
stopped nbruptly nnd demnnded:
" 'See here, young man, whnt do you
menn by coming Into my clnssroom
dny nfter dny nnd never tnklng notes?'
"'I hnve my father's,' wns the stu
dent's complacent reply." Youth's
Companion.
What Did He Mean?
Mulford Your wife used to sing
and play a great deal. I have not
heard her lately.
Stllford Since we hnve hnd chil
dren she hns hnd no time.
Mulford Ah, children nro such a
blessing I Everybody's Mngnzlne.
One of the best grades of Italian
cheese Is sold only uftcr It hns been
seasoned for at .lenst four years.
Through a man's tongue we get a
glimpse of his brain or lnck thereof.
Call to
Your Grocer
will bring a
package of
A delicious,
healthful food
and a pleas
ing lesson in
economy.
There's a Reason
(Crap