Search America's historic newspaper pages from 1756-1963 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present. Chronicling America is sponsored jointly by the National Endowment for the Humanities external link and the Library of Congress. Learn more
Image provided by: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library, Urbana, IL
Newspaper Page Text
Jtr70rV' $rflwv" 1: ' There was no doubt that in joining the cult her lover had improved so far as an ability for petty drawling high art ideas was concerned. He had grown immaculate in Ms dress. To pick a flower, he would have been horrified to vulgarly snip it from the stem without a napkin or a handker chief to protect the tips of his spot less lemon colored gloves. He never smiled. To laugh outright would have disturbed his aesthetic ideas for hours. He became a drone and acted bored. "A balanced serenity," was the way Miss Irwin described the tired, blase pose of her inestimable suitor. "And, oh, he has such poetical ideas! He gave me a bunch of violets last even ing with a deliciously apt sentiment! 'They seemed to kiss with a hundred fairy, delicate lips, their beauty spoke like a song.' " At which Jerome gritted his teeth and almost snarled, and commented in an undertone: "Rot!" Twice Ada asked her lover to ac company her to the city and attend one of the readings at the "soul shop." The high priestess of the cult was to preside. She was described to Jerome as some rare princess of light, beauty and brains, but he re sisted the magnetic Influence. "I understand that she collects two dollars a head in advance at these aesthetic seances," he advised Ada. "Barnes inherited his money; I have to earn mine. I'm savinglt for a little home for you and I, one of these days. We won't waste time and money listening to a lot of mushy trash. We'll take a right royal spin on the; river, dear. Bracing air, the invigorating skate glides they are worth all the stuffy, idealistic non sense of your clever 'high priestess of the soul shop,' believe me!" And Jerome looked so strong, so noble, so intensely humanly perfect that Ada began to think that there was a force and meaning to his self reliant ways, that promised some thing better of a future, than the azure-tinted, pearl-tipped pictures painted by the impressible Miss Irwin. Certainly it was a jovial, inspiring scene to participate in, that of the following evening. All the village was out on the river, it seemed. Laughter, exercise, health the atmosphere was pungent with their influence. Miss Irwin appeared for a moment to look on, shrugged her dainty shoulders at "the common herd" and went home. Her escort, Barnes, shivered- It hurt his sensitive- feelings to see people enjoying themselves in this crude fashion. "Wait wait!" spoke Jerome, half an hour later, as amid the rare ex hilaration of the sport, Ada dashed away from him with a gay, trilling laugh of defiance. "Now, catch me if you can!" was the quick challenge. They had skated beyond the center of sport. Ada, was away like a sprite. She managed to get a fair start in ad vance of Jerome, and glided along recklessly. "Stop! Turn quick!" shot out Jeronie. "A danger sign, Ada!" and his shout was a thrill as he noted what had happened. i Heedless of the sign Ada Bad swung past it There was a warning crackle and then a crash. She fell as a break in the ice tripped her up. Then, half engulfed in the chilling flood, her head struck a projecting spur of ice. Just in time, but not until Ada was half submerged, Jerome reached her side, lifted her while his skates were fairly dancing over the swaying sur- face, and bore her out of the peril that menaced. "Darling, speak!" he breathed in love and alarm, but "a dark bruise' showed on Ada's forehead. She lay limp and senseless. , ' With a jerk Jerome tore off his overcoat. He wrapped Ada within it. Then with a strength and vigor that was not born of the "balanced seren ity" of the "soul shop," he darted away like an arrow. bmamgm