THE HESPERIAN
.4- .
I
'A
A Vision of Whist.
BEING THK MEDITATITIONS OF A MARRIED MAN
IN LOVE WITH HIS WIFE.
We lmd not boon married long Con
stance and I. She had conic to visit our
neighbor Mrs. Dr. Henderson I mean
three years before. Henderson and his
cousin, McVickor, aro habitual card shufllers
and with Jjawyer llopeworthy and myself
wo had played many an exciting rubber. But
at the time of Constance's arrival we had
not met for many a week on account of the
loss of the lawyer. llopeworthy had moved
further west where divorces are more fre
quent. One night as I was lounging over
the evening paper with a long Meerschaum
pipe in my mouth, Henderson's office boy
came in and asked me to go over, "Just to
fill out a whist hand," he said. 1 did not
hnvo the least idea that 1 would bo expoctcd
to play with a woman. If such a thought
had entered my head this tale would never
have been written. "What! a woman play
whist! Preposterous!" wou'd have been
my exclamation. "What man can play whist
with a woman? I'vo tried it, I guess I know.
First it is 'Well now, what is trumps? Oh,
yes, clubs; I forgot.' Then, 'Well, isn't it
jolly to truly bo playing whist?' Then, 'Is it
really my turn so quick?' Then, 'Did you
honestly play that? How funny!' Then,
'Why, did I trump your king? "Really, I
thought she might hold the ace. Ton my
word it is too bad."'
Yes, I had played whist with ladies and
my decision was formulated: Women canH
play cardfi. What fools wo men aro! I
settled down for a dry and tedious ovoning.
I soon discovered that pleasure was in store
for mo. My, but couldn't she play. Who?
Constance, you idiot, of course, didn't I say
that she was my partner? Ah, how beauti
ful she looked sitting there in the parlor!
How her eyes gleamed when her hand was
full of trumps! How sho schomed when her
suit was good that sho might get it in! How
doggedly wo worked when wo iiad neither
rumps nor" suit!
Often of an evening did I whilo away the
time in this friendly manner. Wo nearly
always won. Dr. Henderson declared our
cards fitted togothor. A thought our cards
fit together. Why not our lives? Why not
our lives? Happy, blessed thought! That
night hearts were trumps five times in suc
cession. I couldn't help noticing it. I
glanced across the table. Our eyes mot a
moment that was all. She blushed. Oh,
ye saints, how my blood boiled that night!
I trumped her ace; I played king on her
queen I, well
As I said before, we had not been married
long Constanco and I. Often since1 the
wedding march our wedding march had
roverberated through the little, ivy-grown
church, had we amused ourselves with our
favorite game. That Constanco loved mo
I had abundant proof in the manner sho pro
vided for my comfort. A poor struggling
lawyer, when through my own bungling, I
lost the Moat1 case, she railed about the
stupidity of tho average juror. When I
won tho Franklin suit, sho vowed 1 was tho
princo of speakers. And foolish fellow that
I was I bclioved her. In short, Constanco
was no misnomer. Sho was constant always.
But tonight I was sad and disheartened.
This morning I noticed that Constanco was
somewhat feverish. Sho put on her gloves,
then took them off, then put thorn on again
I had observed her closely., Tho wedding
ring was lying on tho dresser. Why had
sho taken it off? Did she scorn my gift?
Had sho forgotten her plighted troth? I
asked if her if sho felt ill? "No, only a
little nervous." "Lot's not go to church
thon." "Yes, 1 want to go." Never before
had Constanco opposed my slightest wish.
Somewhat surprised at her perversity I
assented. Who can contond against a
pouting woman? During tho entire service
I watched her closely. I thought sho smiled
at some one on the other side of tho aisle
whilo tho priest was opening tho spcred
ritual: "Tho Lord is in his Holy temple; let
all tho earth keep silence boforo Him." Con
stanco was moro feverish than boforo. Sho