CUTTING OUT CLORINDA
ARE you very busy?** he asked
timidly from the doorway. It
was only when he saw Felicia
at wonc in her den that this feeling
of awe came upon him. When he could inveigle
her into going golfing conditions were reversed
i iifmlj. As an athlete he was second to none. On
the links Felicia was just a pretty girl whom one
might inspire with a certain respect for his excellent
playing; but in her workroom Felicia was formidable.
She wrote novels. Moreover, she wrote novels that
v ■■:.: -.:; i:.-. . the — r.th thousands. She was a j.er
sonage. and he— well, he was merely a person.
li^r.iu.j; • fu-ii wished that he had paid Letter atten
li r. in the composition class in youth; but then,
;• • v Iy like f.-.t-hall ; :..; ers. wnters are Uirn. not
male To think that such a tiny creature with child
ish i-y,- aM buttercup hair had such 1,1 U unlling
.' La] :•<-;: v ill the ti:ru in her mind almost was
beyond the big fellow's comprt' T >: v . he
looked in at her he wondered if the hero and villain
were having another set-to. He had been present only
a few days previous at a duel that had left b.,th her
and villain all but done for. Still, it had been only in
the eighth chapter; so evidently their time had not
come. He rather had it in for the hero, though doubt
'■■ :.«.■ w.. .. iLa c U-en surprised tv haw 1 arned that
he was jealous of Felicia's heroes.
"I'm always busy. Mr Harding." she said with
ny »re graciousness of tone than words. "Do come in —
or shall we go out on the piazza? It is delightful out
do<»rs."
• hy all r..-a!>' " cned Harding enthusia.sti.. .t\\\
"There's a nice breeze. You really should get out
tnore — mustn't work too hard, you know."
She smiled wickedly. "You don't, do you, Mr
Harding? '
\ .-. ::..»:> unkir. ■'. -re.iliv unkin ■'. — v..v
know-. Miss Kimberly. I'm going to begin in
the fall. I'm not going to let a few millions
stand in the way of my doing something worth
while. You've taught me that, you know. I'm
going to show you how much I care." he said
seriously.
She flushed a deeper pink, and turned away
hastily and began to look for something in her
deck. "I must finish a story lam doing for 'The
Pink Crow Magazine.'" she said primly. "It must
be sent off this week."
His face lengthened. "Then perhaps I had
better go. You mustn't let me bother you."
""I thought perhaps you mi^'v. MJP ni - sii <-
said cordially.
••| •."
"Why not? You have idea- thai Mi hen
and unhackneyed — new Ifpsc perhaps awaiting
literary incarnation."
* • All right." he said, suddenly grown serious.
"It is said that everybody has in them at least une
good story. Possibly I have one that might be worth
working out. Shall we try it?"
"Certainly." she cried. "Well begin at once, lii
bring my pad and pencil. "
When they were comfortably settled in a shady nook
of the piazza she said in a business-like tone: " Begin."
"Perhaps it would be best to describe my heroine
first." he said looking off at the feathery tops of the
trees 4• t h »uph whenever I think of her words fail me. "
Felicia, holding her oencil poised in midair, appeared
self-* onsci>us.
"To say that she is beautiful." went on Harding,
"wouldn't be to do her justice. She's tall — divinely
tall— and dark. In spite of her great social success,
she is vain- unsjjoiled — remarkable, when one con
siders that she has her world at her feet."
IYUcia pave a start, and flashed a scrutinizing glance
at her collaborator. Several nicely sharpened pencils
with which she had fortified herself fell to the floor
with a clatter. As Harding l»ent to pick them up their
eyes met.
"They had such nice points," said the girl regret
fully
"They are very nice eyes," said Harding.
" Your heroine Vr I was speaking of pencils.
"Oh. yes. my heroine's. Of course a man just
couldn't help being fascinated by such a woman. The
hen- met her when he was abroad, and ihey returned
on the steamer together. Quite a conventional plot,
you may think, but really it is the personality of the
heroine that I trust will save it. The maii was quite
an ordinary lot. Rather disgracefully rich, and of
course not over-ambitious. Now, the girl had all
kinds of ambitions, and used to tell him about them
as they walked up and down the deck in the moon
light. After a time he necame quite ashamed of him
self, deciding to make a hustle when he got back home."
Peboa was making queer little marks on her paper,
ax • „:.:;:. t - ; . : •. ..- a j s'.heiic.er he paused and looked
at her.
SUNDAY MAGAZINE, for OCTOBER 30. 1904
By Helena Smith
"What was her name"-" asked Felicia.
"Clorinda." said Harding promptly.
"Why." said Felicia. "I wonder — " she stopped,
and her brow wrinkled in perplexity.
"Clorinda seemed to just suit her rich, dark beauty,"
he said meditatively.
"Did she — did she dress well?" asked Felicia in a
little, muffled tone.
"Oh -tunning' Now. she had a red gown that just
set her ..rf 1 always like to think of Clorinda in that
red gown."
Felicia's head was bent low over her pad.
"Really, Mr. Harding, your style is decidedly of the
" "You Mum Be Very
FicKle. Mr. Harding, or
Perhaps You Are Practising Now"
realism school; but may I ask just what is the point
of this story ? "
"Well, we must get the heroine drawn first," he said.
"Don't you think she has possibilities?"
Felicia didn 1 ' ike to admit that the glorious Clorinda
didn't appeal to her.
"It is time something happened." she said. "They
have been parading up and down the deck long enough. "
"That's just it," he said. "Nothing happened.
That's the story."
"Do you mean you — he — didn't tell her how much
he cared, before landing?"
"Didn't have the nerve. Clorinda was a queen,
and he was such an ordinary lot."
"But he kept on caring," suggested Felicia. "You
want this to be one of those pathetic unhappy affairs.
Hero meets her on the battle-tield at last, and she is
the nurse who holds him by the hand at the end."
Felicia's laugh had a jarring note in it.
"You might help bring them together," said Hard
ing There was a smile in his eyes.
" Has he lost trace of her? "
"Xo. He sees her now and then, and sometimes
thinks she cares: but still he is too shy."
"I'm ashamed of you — of him!" declared Felicia.
"A man who is afraid to ask a woman to marry him
doesn't deserve her."
"But she >cc:::> .->• > far above him," said Harding
humbly.
"John Harding, you are as good — "
"That was the way the hero felt,
Miss Kimberly." said Harding nuietiv.
"Oh!' r It was an eloquent word
when Feiicia said it.
"Sometimes he thought she cared " sani Harding
suggestively.
"That dark person is a flirt," said Felicia in acrid
tones. "Otherwise she never would have led — the
hero — on to dash his hopes finally."
"She was a noble character," defended Harding.
"I never knew a woman who was so little of a
coquette."
Felicia sniffed. "Probably tried the 'elevating man
kind ' role," she said "Did she actually have the
assurance to try to make you believe that you
needed elevating?" queried the other collaborator.
"She did the hero
asked. "It isn't much of a story as yet."
"! want to tell you how much I love you, Felicia.".
Harding's voice was gentle, and his eyes were telling,
how truly he spoke; but the fill would not look up, >
though he tried to tilt op her chin so that he might,
see her face. "I'm not going to be afraid of you. any f
more. Felicia; for a man who is afraid to tell a woman*
how much he loves her doesn't deserve her! " .
"And Clorinda? You must be very tickle. Mr.'
Harding; or possibly you are practising now." • ]
"Bother Clorinda!" said Harding. "That was vist
a story." ' ♦
"You never invented that red dress," persisted-
Felicia. "I always was sure that you admired dark
women. The first lime I saw you was about two years
ago at a garden party. You simply were fascinated
by Annette Asp-'nwall. She is beautiful, I admit. As
you just had come from abroad, probably the memory
of Clorinda, who was dark, made you admire Annette."
"Annette is a distant cousin," defended Harding.
"Didn't you know that?"
"You were anything but distant." said Felicia
"You were!" promptly retorted Harding. " Howr
you disliked me in those days' You told somebody I
was just a 'type.' It's really a dreadful thing to l>e
called a type." Felicia had the grace to blush. At
least I trust you never put me into one of your
stories."
She started guiltily. "Shall we go on about
9
a lot of good.
Developed the best
that was sleeping
in him, you know.
He needed it
badly. After he
met her he seemed
to realize how im
possil de he was.
Had rather had an
impression that
money covered a
lot of delieiences
" I never knew
a man who was so
absurdly well off
that had so much
character and so
ma n y splendid
'jualities as you
have!" declared
Felicia stoutly.
'"Oh, thanks,"
said Harding. "It
is just splendid of
you to say that.
My hero wasn't so
fortunate. And
Felicia — suppose
we nniah the story
some other time —
there s something
— a story I want
to tell you, dear."
He reached over
and put his
bronzed hand on
the little one
tha' vas holding
a penal tight.
Felicia looked
startled, and her
face, which dur
ing Hardings
character study
had grown white.
"Don't you think
we had better fmUk
one story before we
begin another?" she