Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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McCORMICK MESSENGER, McCORMICK, SOUTH CAROLINA PAGE NUMBER THR] ^ RUBY M. AYRES SIXTH INSTALMENT At twenty-two the only thing Diana really desired was another woman’s husband. A nervous wreck from the excitement and strain of London’s gay life, she is taken by her aunt, Mrs. Gladwyn, to a fam ous specialist’s office. The phy sician orders her to the country to take a long rest. She rebels, but the doctor is handsome and sym pathetic. She learns that he is not the great man himself but an as sistant, Dr. Rathbone. “God made the country and man made the town,” he tells her, and she agrees, to go to a rural retreat. Before she leaves she goes to Dennis Waterman's flat, where they are surprised by Linda, ten nis’s wife, who takes the situation quite calmly. “I suppose she wants you to marry her?” she asks Den nis. At the night club where she goes with Dennis, Diana collapses. She regains consciousness in a little country cottage, with a nurse, Miss Starling, bending over her. Dr. Rathbone’s home was close by, Miss Starling told her. After three weeks Dennis Water man calls. He tells her he willj have to go away, and his manner, as he leaves her, suggests that his love is waning. But Dennis has not been gone many days before Diana finds herself asking Miss Starling all sorts of questions about Dr. Rathbone: NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY “That depend^ what you mean by foolishly. His Wife won’t divorce him. He only wishes she would, but she won’t, and so ” She stopped suddenly, feeling rather foolish. “And so—what” Rathbone asked. | “And so,” Dian^ rushed on reck lessly, “as soon as he comes .home and I’m well enough, I’m going away with him.” “I see. Well, if he’s a decent fel low ” She gave a little strangled cry. “I thought you would lecture me. I thought you would try to prevent jaae from going.” The ghost of a smile lit his eyes. “I prevent you? Why should I? Do you think I flatter myself that I could prevent you from doing anything you wish—once you are well?” She looked a little sullen. “No, but I thought you might try,” she said ingenuously. He went back to his old position of leaning on the bed rail, his hands loosely clasped together be fore hiin. “No lecturing in the world has ever yet stopped a woman who is in love from doing what may seem foolish to other people,” he said quietly. “You think it would be foolish?” she listened. “To go away and live with a man who is already married and who cannot get his freedom?” he quer ied. “Well, it all depends. In your place I should be afraid that if he had already wearied of one woman it would not be difficult for him to weary of another.” “He never loved his wife.” “That is what he tells you. That is what all men tell all women in the circumstances you describe.” “You seem to know a great deal about it.” 1 Rathbone stood up. He looked infinitely weary all at once. “Then you must be prepared for Jhim to grow tired of what, after all, can never be anything more than an ordinary liaison. I’ve seen so many of them, and they all end badly. It seems a pity—you are too good to be wasted on ‘that sort of thing,’ as you call it. I wonder you don’t think so too.” She said sullenly, but with flush ing cheeks, “Only the other day you told me you doubted if I was worth trying to keep alive.” “Did I? Perhaps I’ve changed my mind. Is there anything else you want to say to me before I go?” “You’re not going already?” “I think I’d better—before I make you too angry.” “I’m not angry,” she said. “I like you, though nobody has ever been so- so brutal to me as you have.” “Isn’t ‘frank’ a truer word?” “Perhaps—but sometimes frank ness can be brutal.” She was sitting up in bed, her chin resting on her hunched-up knees, her big eyes fixed on his face. “But I like you,” she said again seriously. “Whenever you come into the room it’s like a b&ath of country air.” He laughed, though he looked a little embarrassed, and took his leave. CHAPTER IX Diana grew well with much greater rapidity than either Rath bone or the Creature had expected. In a week’s time she was getting up after her breakfast, dressing herself, and spending long hours in the tiny garden of the little house. Mrs. Gladwyn sent some stocks of books and enough illustrated pa pers to keep the entire village oc cupied a month. . She also sent large boxes of chocolates and expensive fruit which Diana gave to the village children who came to stare at her shyly through the gate. 1 Tl^ere wfcs no back garden to the cottage, only the long straight plot in front, with a high clipped hedge that shut it cut from the narrow lane. One day Miss Starling said. “I don’t think it is altogether nice of you to encourage that boy so much. He already has ideas far above his station.” “What boy?” Diana asked, though she knew perfectly well to whom the Creature referred. “The boy from the Meadow Farm,” Miss Starling explained. “Jonas, don’t they call him? He is only a pupil to Mr. Shurey, learning farming like any labour er.” Diana' laughed in frank amuse ment. “But he’s only seventeen, at the most,” she objected. “Just a lad —and he amuses me—goodness knows there are not many amusing people in the village, as far as I can see.” “He is a very grown-up seven teen,” the creature asserted firm ly. “And your aunt ” “If my aunt was in the least con cerned about my health or my mor als she would not have gone off to Aix, as she has done, without even bidding me a fond farewell,” Diana interrupted flippantly. She yawned and got up from the deck chair. hand, which seemed somehow odd ly out of keeping with his rough clothes and general appearance, and carefully helped Diana into the high, hard seat beside him. “Jonas,” she said, “do you know where Dr. Rathbone’s house is?” “Jonas nodded. “Yes, I know.” Diana turned an eager face to him. “Let’s go there,” she said. “I should love to see where he lives.” The lad hesitated. “It’s more than five miles away.” “But that’s nothing in a trap like this.” “I know . . . but won’t they miss you?” “I daresay, but that doesn’t mat ter.” She laid her hand on his arm. “Do let’s go there,” she urged soft ly. “It’s such a lovely afternoon, and it’s weeks since I was out by myself like this.” He would have gone to the ends of the earth for her, and Diana knew it well enough. She felt quite happy and a lit tle excited. The seat was rather hard, it is true, and made her oody ache a little, and the sun was get ting hot on her bare head, but those were trifles. At last he pointed across the hedge on the right side of the road. “Dr. Rathbone’s house is just there,” he said. “You’ll see the chimneys in a minute through the trees.” Diana was a little disappointed to find that Rathbone’s house stood so far back from the road that even when they had driven round to the front of it one could only catch glimpses between the trees of pointed red gables and queer Jacobean chimney pots. She stood up in the little trap, her hand resting on Jonas’s should er, but even then, beyond splashes of viVid colouring here and, there in the garden, most of it was effec tively shut out by a high brick wall which had many trees and shrubs Diana said “Thank you” and gave him a little smile that quickened his heartbeat. where she had been lying, and walked down to the gate. It would be fun to go down to the village and see what sort of a place it really was. She opened the gate, hatless as she was, and went out into the lane. Diana reached the end of the lane and stood looking to right and left, uncertain which way to go, and it was at that moment that a light farm trap driven by a lad in breeches and a loose shirt open at the neck turned out of a gate close by. He saw Diana and pulled the horse to a standstill, and Diana asked eagerly: “Where are you going? And would you like to take me with you?” She had made friends with Jonas when he called daily at the cottage with eggs and cream, and she knew without any warning from Miss Starling that, lad though he was, he was greatly attracted to her. In a few years’ time he would be a fine-looking man. She quite agreed with the Creature for once in her assertion that he was a very grown-up seventeen. His face lit up when she spoke to him now. “I’m only going over to the oth er side of the village,” he said. “Well, take me,” she urged again. He reached down a slender brown planted on its near side. She sat down again with a little disappointed sigh. Jonas was pulling the trap to the side of the road to avoid a big car that had *just at that moment rounded the bend. The road was not very wide at that point, and there was hardly room for the two to pass in safety. “How dangerous to drive at that speed,” Diana said, and at the same moment recognized Rath bone’s car. She turned eagerly to look after it as with a wide sweep it pulled up to the closed gate. The back hood of the landaulette was down, and sitting there alone was a woman. Apparently a very young woman with Titian red hair: Diana had only time to notice those two facts before the trap was round the bend and the car hidden from view. “That was Dr. Rathbone’s car,” she said in a small voice. “Was it?” Jonas was not inter ested. “There was a woman in it,” Diana said. “Was there? It’s the one who lives at the house, I expect.” She looked up at him. “I thought Dr. Rathbone was a bachelor.” “So he , is.” She frowned impatiently. “Then who is the woman?” she asked. Jonas shook his head. “I don’t know, but I know she lives there.” “What’s her name?” she said. “Miss Rosalie.” “Rosalie what?” “I’ve forgotten,” he said almost sullenly. “Only Rosalie?” Diana persisted. “Not Rosalie anything else? She must have another name!” “If she has, I’ve never heard it.” Neither of them spoke again till .hey were back in the village street once more. It was half-past five oy the church clock; the big bell chimed as they passed. There was nobody in the little garden when Jonas jumped down and gave his hand to Diana. “You’ll have to lift me down,” she said. “I’m tired.” He took her in his arms very carefully, as if fearing to injure her, and set her down gently on the path beside him. Diana said, “Thank you,” and gave him a little smile that quick- med his heartbeats. Miss Starling told her Dr. Rath bone had caned to bid her good bye. Diana was startled and insisted on sending Jenny over with a note asking him to call, marking her note “very urgent.” She waited in her room, feeling sure he would come. Presently she drifted off into a vague sleep of sheer exhaustion from which she was aroused by Miss Starling’s hand on her shoul der. The room was nearly dark, lit only by the pearly gray twilight “Dr. Rathbone is downstairs,” the Creature said. CHAPTER X , Diana started up, trembling a little, and conscious of a queer sen sation through all her body, as if someone had poured healing balm onto an intolerable pain. “Oh ... please put on the light and ask him to come up.” “Dr. Rathbone says he is in a great hurry and could you come down?” She went downstairs into the room and shut the door behind her. Rathbone was standing by the cable turning the pages of a maga zine with impatient fingers. He threw it aside as Diana entered. “Well?” She thought there was not quite the old friendly tone in his voice, or was that her imagination? Diana echoed, “Well?” and could think of nothing else to say. She stood leaning agairtst the door, still trembling a little from her sudden # awakening from sleep. (CONTINUED NEXT WEEK.) J. B. WHITE & CO. To Celebrate 58th Anniversary With Sale of Unusual Importance This sale, which begins Saturday, April 23rd, and continues thru Saturday, April 30th, is planned as the most important event in the yearly program of J. B. White & Company store in Augusta. Store officials designate it as outstanding in the following respects. 1. In the large assortments of merchandise offered, and in the thousands upon thousands of dollars invested in special purchases for this sale. 2. In the genuine and most unusual values offered . . . for even, greater values will be available than those offered from month to month in the store’s regular sales calendar. 3. Last, but not least, it is the year’s greatest event, to the store organization, from the standpoint of sentiment, for it celebrates the birthday of the business—its 58th birthday—and every employee feels a desire to have all friends and customers join in celebrating the event. Naturally plans have been made to give such value as will make the occasion one to be long and pleasantly remembered. “MORE VALUE FOR YOUR DOLLAR IN WHITE’S ANNIVERSARY SALE” Experience Service Facilities Those are the important things in measuring the worth of a funeral director, and should be borne in mind when you have occasion to choose one DISTANCE IS NO HINDRANCE TO OUR SERVICE and there is no additional charge for service out of town J. S. STROM Main Street McCormick, S. C. AN APRIL ADORATION (By Charles G. D. Roberts Sang the sunrise on an amber morn— “Earth, be glad! An April day is born “Winter’s done, and April’s in the skies, Earth, look up with laughter in your eyes!” Putting off her dumb dismay of snow, Earth bade all her unseen children grow. Then the sound of growing in the air Rose to God a liturgy of prayer; And the thronged succession of the days Uttered up to God a psalm of praise. Laughed the running sap in every vein, Laughed the running flurrier of warm rain, Laughed the life in every wander ing root, Laughed the tingling cells of bud and shoot. God in all the concord of their mirth Heard the adoration-song of Earth. MYHOMt m YOURJ fey&RTHA fDSON LAY Tuna Fish, A la Newburg 1 can of tuna fish 1 pint of cream sauce 2 egg yolks Nutmeg Salt and cayenne pepper 4 tablespoonfuls of cooking sherry. Make the cream sauce, and add a dash of cayenne, slat to taste, a teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, and add the tuna fish broken into pieces with a fork. Cook until very hot, add the sherry and serve at once. Cooking sherry may be purchased at any good grocery. If you have no shelf in the kit chen for cook books and books on house-keeping, do try to have such a helpful aid as soon as possible. The handy man can make such a shelf, or maybe the handy woman can, but, if neither of them is able to use tools, try buying a small shelf or set of shelves at a hard ware store, or in the housefurnish ing department in a department store. These may be purchased for less than a dollar, and will save innumerable steps, and the books being so near at hand, the culinary tempo will have a sudden but lasting rise. Has the family income been cut to the extent that it is not possible for the children to have the things they have been used to,—must the amount of their spending money be reduced? Have you tried call ing a family “confab,” and talk ing it over, telling not only the mo ther how finances stand, but the children as well? Explain the cause and the necessity for re trenchments, and see if they all, the • children especially, will not help and do it with cheerfulness and zest. It gives the children a feeling of being part of the family, and teaches a lesson which would be hard to equal. MARY MARSHALL It’s the simplest trimming in the world and yet so absurdly easy to achieve! Just fringed edges of the material neatly stitched into place. You can make use of this trim ming on a dress of wool crepe or one of silk crepe with the satisfac tion of knowing that you have the authority of Paris behind you. Simply cut strips of the material about one inch and a half wide and - . 4 <> ~ *j r *t?,.... While tigers are much feared in India, they are also useful in that they prey on other animals that destroy the crops. Use a soap shaker for the ends of soap. In this way each tiny piece of sopa may be used up, and one does not need to put one’s hands into the hot dish water to rescue the soap. Not only saves soap, but saves the hands as well. Tack a square of material on the back of the closet door in the kit chen, to hold wrapping paper and bags. unravel at one side to obtain a fringe of about three-quarters of an inch. If you are using the fringe at the edge of a collar, peplum or cuff insert it between the outside piece and the facing so that only the fringe shows and then machine stitch along the collar, peplum or cuff just above the fringe. This gives a neat finish and incidentally keeps the fringe from fraying. If you use the fringe as a trim ming bn bodice or sleeve cut the material so that you will have an overlapping section beneath which, to insert the strip of fringe.