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THE STARKVILLE NEWS. VOLUME 11. •••••••••*••••••••••••••• : fit the liizaird j • Cotillion • • _ ——mmmmmmmmm • • • 2 By NEIiUIE I • CRHVEY GIIibMORE * • • (Copyright, I*oß, by Daily Story Pub. Cos.) THE crowded corridors, parlors and verandas of the Royal Poinciana presented a scene scarcely to be sur passed anywhere for wealth and splen dor. There was the usual flash and sparkle of jewels; the magnificent dis play of costumes, beautiful women, bare of bosom and shoulder, and impos ing men. The quintessence of ingenious taste reigned supreme. The ballroom, schemed to typify a tropical wildwood, presented a vast aspect of tangled fo liage, brilliant with native blossoms. Fastened to the network of vine and tree, with slender, almost invisible cords, the world of Lacertiiiae disport ed itself at will. Some, gorgeous in their liverj' of brilliant green, were sprightly, inquisitive, courageous, but entirely harmless. Others, shy and crusty-coated, nibbled assiduously upon the food provided for them, or shrank back in modest retirement. There were flying drakes, frilled, blind and hedge lizards, monitors, geckos, some of the water species and innumer able little house lizards, bright and variable in color. Tavares and his friend Jack Erickson made their way toward the ballroom. The first figure was already in prog ress. “We’ll watch this out.” said Tavares, “and afterwards I intend presenting you to Mrs. Mainwaring. She is that tall, lovely blonde standing just outside the door talking to the man with the orders on his coat.” Erickson followed the other’s gaze, and his heart gave a sudden, tumultu ous bound as he recognized the wom an. The light from the rose-cut chan delier above fell directly over her, changing the pink, flesh tint of her neck and arms to dead white marble. The gown she wore was of delicate mauve, and dropped about her in be witching cascades. Decidedly, Mrs. Mainwaring was a woman who not only could carry such things, but become them. For years Ericson had pictured to himself a possible meeting with the girl who had made all the love-dreams of his youth and later manhood, but it had never been anything like this. The reality far eclipsed every investi ture of the ideal. But Mrs. Mainwaring was another man’s wife! At the conclusion of the figure, Tavares dragged him across the floor to where she stood. Ericson had framed a dozen commonplace, remarks with which to greet her, but they all seemed to stick stubbornly in his throat as he once more gazed into the purple pansy eyes that had kept him a bach elor for the past ten years. “This is an undreamed of pleasure,” he managed to say at last, clasping the hand she extended. At the sound of his voice, Mrs. Main waring bent a swift, startled glance upon him, her color changing quickly. “Jack Ericson —of all people!” she exclaimed. “Why, I thought you were in Germany studying—” She broke off and bit her lip in some vexation for having betrayed the fact that she had given so much thought to any one man, and that man —him. “I have been in Germany for a good many years,” he explained, taking up her words, “engaged in the study of mineralogy. I have but just arrived, and to-morrow shall leave for the west, where I hope to make practical use of the knowledge 1 have spent y ears trying to perfect.” Tavares had vanished, and they stood there longer than either knew, talking and taking no note of time. Presently Mrs. Mainwaring recalled herself with a start. “You must let me find you a part ner,” she apologized, “I quite forgot for the moment that I was monopoliz ing you, when all this time I am sure you have been dying to join the dancers.” But Ericson made a decided protest ©gainst any such inclination. “Indeed, I would far rather not* he insisted, eagerly, “that is, if you think you can put up with my society a little while longer.” . “Oh, perfectly well,” she responded, with a smile, “hut for the next half hour I shall have to devote myself to f.ome of the guests. When you see me difiengaged, come/* When Mrs, Mainwaring had disap peared in the crowd. Ericson took up his position in the’ shadow of a huge bank of palms where he could observe all that was going on, without him self being observed. Now for the first time he gave his at tention to the dancing. Favors were being distributed for the third figure, tiny, vari-colored chameleons, fas tened with silver chains. Some of these clung tenaciously to the women’s shoulders, darting with lightning-like rapidity their extensile, club-shaped tongues half out of their hideous bod ies. Ericson shuddered with disgust at the sight, and turning, strode from the room. He paced up and down a deserted veranda for 15 or 20 minutes, after wards standing quietly near an open window where he could watch his op portunity to join Mrs. Mainwaring. In a little while it came. He saw her speak to a debutante in pink, and then move off aimlessly in the direction of a vacant corridor. “You look warm,” he said, going up to her, “suppose w T e walk outside.” When they had stepped out on the piazza he turned to her with an odd light in his eyes, and drew her arm in his. “Do you know,” he said quickly, “one thing has given me inexpressible pleas ure to-night.” “And that is?” “That you are not in there —one of them, those women with the loath some little things clinging to their bosoms and shoulders. It’s utterly nauseating. How can refined women stoop to such as that ?” Mrs. Mainwaring laughed in an in scrutable fashion and sukl nothing. Then presently: “It does seem absurd,” she admitted in a curious voice, half sober, half-contemptuous. “I could never marry a woman who lowered herself to such things,” he said musingly. Mrs. Mainwaring offered no protest, and Ericson went on in a different tone. “Speaking of marriage,” he said, flush ing under cover of the dark, “that is a change which has come to you sine* —” “Come —and gone," she interposed, in a low voice, “my husband has been dead three years.” Ericson gazed at her incredulously', tremulously—with a breathless heart beat. Under the impulse of this great, new joy, he bent suddenly toward her; then controlled himself and said, quite carelessly, that he had not heard. “Mr. Mainwaring was very much old er than I,” she pursued, presently. “We never were congenial; he was nearly always occupied with his business, and I —well, I quite inadvertently drifted into this life.” Ericson was regarding her intently; he could not altogether comprehend her mood. He wondered vaguely if ever so faint a regret for the old past, their past, stirred in her heart. She had refused him once, and, man-like, he had accepted her words as final, and put the ocean between them. The orchestra was playing some dreamy thing of Chopin’s; the spirit music fired his blood, and he looked down into her eyes with a strange, compelling intensity. Mrs. Mainwar ing felt his gaze, and her cheeks crim soned in swift, response. There was no word spoken, but he caught her sud denly in his arms. For an instant she lay there, her cheek against his. Then she freed herself and glanced up into his face, shyly. Ifcer scarlet lips were slightly parted, and her breath came through them in tremulous little whis pers. Ericson bent and kissed her twice. “Can you be ready to go with me to morrow?” he asked, eagerly, “I can’t lose anymore time, and I can’t possibly part with you again.” Mrs. Mainwaring did not speak at once. But presently a wondrful smile came into her eyes, and she laid her hand in his. Mrs. Mainwaring wasstanding before a picture looking up at it when Tavares tapped gently on the door of her pri vate parlor. “I sent for you, Teddy,” she began, waving him to a chair, “because—” she appeared to hesitate a moment, then hurried on: “Because I wanted to ask a favor of you.” “Teddy,” she went on, folding and unfolding her fan, in a nervous little way that did not belong to her, “Mr. Ericson does not —must not know wha planned the cotillion for to-night.” She came and stood in front of him, re garding him with oddly anxious eyes. Tavares gave her a quick glance of amaze. “1 don’t exactly understand,” he observed, in a puzzled tone. “Then I musttellyou something,Ted. We are to be married to-morrow— Jack STARKVILLE, MISS., FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1903. and I—and go west immediately. I knew him many years ago; I have al ways loved him. Something foolish and insignificant came between us— What he saw here to-night sick ened him. T could never marry a woman who lowered herself to such things’—that is what he said. He is going to take me away from it all — the sham, hypocrisy —emptiness of such a life. And I, ah, I shall be the happiest of women, Teddy, the very happiest!” * Tavares’ eyes sought hers piercing ly, and from their,depths a keen bitter ness looked out. For one brief second his emotion threatened to master him; his face paled, and he felt himself shake from head to foot. She had been the one woman, and there would never be a second. “Of course I shan’t,” he said, with a careless smile, stooping a moment to kiss her outstretched hand. The next, he had passed noiselessly from the room. Mrs. Mainwaring sank into a chair and broke into a storm of tears. expressionTn the hand. t That Member Is Frequently Far More Eloquent Than the Tongrae. There is a wealth of meaning in the simple pressure of the hand. Not in frequently a woman’s nature and breeding may be distinguished by the manner in which she shakes a friend’s hand. It may be due to the fact that there are more nerves between The brain and the hand than between any other two portions of the body, but true it is that the hand is often more eloquent than the tongue, a Washing ton orator is quoted as sajnng, and when a woman once appreciates the importance of this she will immediate ly begin to study the expression of the hand. One human touch of sym pathy or grasp of the hand can and frequently does mean more than a volume of words, and to possess this quality, particularly in a woman, is up light charm and aching that lies with in the reach of every woman. Should she not have it naturally she should speedily cultivate expression of the hand. Of course therearecertain hall marks of a refined hand, beauty and texture of skin, whiteness of nails all essen tial, but not half so important as ex pression, Graceful gesture and a touch of quick sympathy, these never lose their charm or power. WHATIS SUCCESS? j What Is success, the winning of much gold? Perhaps, if it be won in honesty; But he who, striving after higher things. Dies poor, may equally successful be. What Is success, the winning of a name? It may be. If the record shows no spot; Yet he may be successful who Is true. Although he pass from earth to be forgot. "What is success, the winning of great power? It may be, if while great power one doth seek. He still respects the rights of other men. And tramples not upon the low and weak. "What is success? Not wealth, nor fame, nor power. But purity of heart, and love, and truth; And honest work well done for God and man. Success like this be yours, ambitious youth! —Mary M. Currier, in Ram’s Horn. Usually They Are. “Are women good managers?” “‘Well, yes, in one way or another, I think they are.” “What do you mean by one way or another?” “Why. the woman who can’t man age a house creditably very often can manage a baby all right, and the woman who can’t manage either fre quently is capable of managing a husband. So I hold that in one way or another nearly every woman is a good manager.” —Chicago Post. A Narrow Escape. “You seem to have a great liking for large words?” v “Well, suh,” answered Mr. Erastu* Pinkley, “I once knowe'd a man whose life were saved by a big word. He done tole me dat I prevaricated an’ by de time I foun’ out what dat word meant, it were too late foh me to let on how mad I was.” —Washing- ton Star. Softening: the Expression. “I have no doubt you have heard some stories to my discredit,” he said; “I don’t like to put it in that way,” she quickly replied. , “How, then?” he hopefully asked. “I have never heard any stories to your credit,” said Ceveland Plain Dealer. ' 0 —— CHARITY WITH A MOTIVE By JOHN A. HOBSON, Lecturer on Ethical Culture. £ 1 9 us remember that charity is not justice, and let us resist all jLr forms of charity that have a secret motive behind them. Unless a fortune is inherited it is a<scumulated by one of a few forms. And if it is inherited we have only to look back a generation and we will see that the forms still hold good. Here they are: First, a fortune is made by the increase of land; then fortunes are made by com binations to control the output and supply; rebates and discriminations of carrying companies are responsible for other fortunes ; manipulation of talents sometimes leads to wealth. That is, things are so manipulated that fortunes are secured from government by contracts; then specula tive pools make others wealthy. Men have it in their power to render unsteady the values of commodities. All fortunes had for foundation one of the above causes, lam not one who would scrutinize every gift to, charity to determine whether it should be accepted. An investigation would reveal that all sprang from the same source, and to reject one would be to reject all. In these days of many millions the question arises: “How is the millionaire to spend his income?” He has learned that he cannot spend it all without injuring himself. Then shall he give it away personally? 1 believe he should not. Here is an illustration: A great city needs schools and parks, hos pitals, and some great cities feel that the streets should be cleaned. Now, should the millionaire be allowed to furnish these necessaries? If he did, the citizens w r ould relax in their vigilance. They would come to rely upon the millionaire. The result would be that they would feel their obligation. Friends of Andrew Carnegie do not believe he gives to ward off criticism, but that is what his gifts accomplish. SCHOOL AND CHURCH. In the national military home at Leavenworth, Kan., is a Christian En deavor society of 120 members, all vet erans of the civil war. Mrs. H. L. Higginson has presented Kadcliffe college with several hundred rare foreign photographs. She is the daughter of the late Prof. Agassiz. The church of the Holy Ghost at Heidelberg is the only one in the world in which both Protest tint and Roman Catholic services are held at the same time. A partition wall in the center separates the two congregations. “The time has come, in my opinion,” says Bishop Burgess, of Long Island, “when the church should be particular what money it receives. Money ob tained by fostering the gambling in stinct in young parishioners is some thing which ever}’ rector should refuse, and, while at first the church may suf fer in its funds, it will in the end gain in spiritual strength.” Rev. Dr. James Rosedale, of Syra cuse. N, Y., lectured on the Bible re cently. some of his comments indi cating considerable breadth of view. Prof. I. J. Peritz. of Syracuse univer sity. in an interview referred to Dr. Rosedale’s lecture as “unlettered and unscholarly.” To this the doctor re plies by challenging Prof. Peritz to de bate the matter in question in any of the following 11 languages: Greek, Ger man, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Arabic, Hebrew and English. Statistics at Harvard university are always interesting, and a recent an nouncement shows that yiere are 325 graduate students this year, as com pared with 314 last year. Of this number 310 are resident students, and 15 non-resident. The graduate stu dents Represent 110 American colleges and other higher instittitions of learn ing, while last year 108 were represent ed. There are in the school 11 instruct ors, or four more than last year; nine Austin teaching fellows, five less than last year, and 43 assistants, or ten more than last year. What is thought to have been the first initiation of Catholic priests into the order of Elks, has taken place in New York. Rev. W’illiam H. J. Reany, chaplain, U. S. N., and Rev. James Byrne, who has a Staten Island parish, have joined the secret society, which is favored especially by theatrical peo ple. There has never been any op position on the part of the church to the laity joining the Elks, which is re garded in the light of a fraternal so ciety, and it is well known that thou sands of Catholics throughout the country are members of the order, but this is the first instance, as far as known, where priests have become members. Only Statue with Umbrella. There is only one statue in Great Britain with an umbrella. This is to be seen at Reading and represents Mr. G. Palmer, of biscuit fame, standing bareheaded with a silk hat and umbrel la in hand. —N. Y. Sun* NUMBER 15. HUMOROUS. He —“Everything* seems high in Chi cago.” She —“Yes; even heaven seems farther off in Chicago.” —Yonkers Statesman. Miss Stayler—“Everybody says I don’t look my age,” Miss Pertleigh— “Of course you don't, dear. It would be impossible.”—Boston Transcript, Y'ea, Verily. —De Broune —“Is Fitz- Green good natured?” Van Schmidt —“Good natured? Good natured? WeH, T should say so! Why, he laughs at his own jokes.”—N. (). Times-Democrat, On Her Good Behavior. Hicks— “ Henpeck is very fond of entertaining* isn’t he?” Wicks—“ Yes, his wife is always pleasant to him when there’s company in the house.”—Philadelphia Press. Johnny—“(lrandma, I wish you’d give me some cake.” Mother — “Johnny! Didn’t I tell you not to ask your grandma for cake?” Johnny —“I didn’t ask for anything. I’m just wishin’.”—Catholic Standard. Might Have Been Expressed Differ ently.—He—“l hope you are better to day. I thought you were not looking well when I was at your house yes terday.” She —“I had rather a bad headache; but it passed off soon after you left.” —Punch. Cheapley—“You’re in a brown study, old man.” Subbub—“Hello! Yes, my wife told me to stop at the market and get something, and I can’t think what it was,” Cheapley —“Have a cigar. Maybe that’ll help you to think—” Subbubs* —“Ah! that’s it. Now I remember. She wanted some cabbage.”—Philadelphia Press. A Little Darling’s Discovery. —Pro- fessor —“Some of the grandest inven tions of the age have been the result of accidental discoveries.” Young Lady —“I can readily believe it. Why* I made an important discovery myself, and it was the purest accident, too.” “I should much like to hear it.” “Why, I found that by keeping a bottle of ink handy, a fountain-pdn can be used just the same as any other pen —without any of the bother and muss of refilling it,”—N. Y. Weekly. • A Reason (or It. “Those little arbors and cozy nooks cost something,” explained the pro prietor of the summer hotel, “but we consider them a mighty good intest ment.” “They attract people to the place, I suppose,” commented the thought less stranger. “Oh, it isn’t so much that,” returned the proprietor, “but they encourage love affairs, and th's,L enables us to save something on the provisions.”— Chicago Post. An Ultimatum. Father (trying to read) —What’s that terrible racket in the hall? Mother —One of the.childreu just fell down the stairs. “Well, you tell the children if they can’t fall downstairs quietly they’ll have tq atop it.” —Chicago Uailv Kewt^