The Butterfly House
ustace who had the build of a racing human, being long-winded and limber. Annie caught up with her, just before they reached Alice Mendon's hous
which had probably somewhat hindered her movements. "Let me go, I sh
are you
m go
he
,-away fr
Annie's great relief, a tall figure appeared, Alice hers
he matter?
the ten-thirty tra
are you
New
in Ne
m go
l return quietly to your own home like a sensibl
sperate voice. "You would run away i
f I were, I should stay and face the situation." She
and and children and not ent
ll the children, they will never really have a mother again. They will never forget. But if I d
the onl
alk, Alice Mendon. You h
ite true. I have never been temp
it to you. You
so. I was made so. It
rench her arm free
Eustace," she sa
I don't love you any more myself. I don't
aid Margaret, and she see
ithout stealing, if I could have given them to y
s known," said Margaret in a low
wn unless you yoursel
ve thought it all over. I cannot tell
ure punishment. I suppose that is your punishment, Margaret. You have always loved
s such things," said Margaret, a
hite draperies, towered over Margaret Edes like an embodied conscience. She was almost unendurable, like the ide
in your whole body. You have not an ungratified ambition. You neither love nor hate yours
iled a large calm smile as a statue might smi
hat I stole, and she knows it, and that is enough for
always done," said Alice; but Annie was si
down upon me, Alice Mendon," said
d Alice, "that your own
hing. I did not know it myself. Why, I never
hing to further her own ends," said Alice in her inexo
d not loved her so much. She felt the little arm tremble in her c
positively go home at once. I will take your suit-case, and return it to you to
ng," said Margaret; "I can
You will meet it at the end of every mile. Margaret Edes, go home. Take care of your
garet. "If they knew, if he knew, Wilbur would not
will set it inside the gate here. Now Annie and I will walk with you
epeated Marga
sleep, but
When they had reached Margaret's door, Alice
s you can, and to
ked Annie in a small voice when th
her," whispered Alice. "Now yo
ha
to the other door. Thank God, there are only two doors, and I don't think she will try the windows because she won't suspect our bein
, n
be afraid of," said Alice. "No
up her joys of life and almost forgot poor Margaret who had trampled hers in the dust raised by her
e. "That was the last train. Do you think you
. She wakes very early of herself and she may
will s
I can man
is away from the others or I should not be su
illage houses seemed rather awful with their dark windows like sightless eyes. When
li
little
be married, to
"You are a lucky girl," she wh
red not lock the door behind her lest she arouse somebody. She tip-toed upstairs, but as she was passing
fear she would arouse the whole house. She followed her grandmother into h
" said she. "It is after th
as no harm, but I can't tell you. Inde
you? I'd li
eed, I can't,
to know. Pretty d
you why not,
th a man-I don't care if you are eng
rimsoned. "Oh, gran
to-morrow, no, to-day, right after breakfast and give h
, there wasn
elling me
s tell t
ying," said the old woman. "I rather think you do tell the truth, but sometimes when a girl gets
ven't bee
with you? There
s not any man
room as fast as you can and move still
ie
e old woman clambering back into bed. She
daughter's engagement at the breakfast table. She waited u
at Susan, "I have some good news for you. Our little A
l like Margaret Edes," she said, and Susan laughed also. "Whatever news it may be, it is not that," she s
ng look. She flushed under it and swallowed a spoonful of cereal hastily. The
said she, looking away from the girl, and fixing unsparing ey
ped their spoons and s
about?" said Harriet sharply
to be exasperating, "sometimes, a little attention is so strong that i
ered, yet kindly smile. Poor Susan had never regarded the honey pots of life as inten
ed to Mr. von Rosen," said the old lady.
happy," she said in an awed voice. Harriet rose, to follow
years older than
aid the old lady, and sipped her coffee deli
o imagine that her Aunt Harriet might have had her own dreams which had never entirely ended in rainbow mist
happy. Her lover brought her an engagement ring, a great pearl, which had been his mother's and put it on her finger, and Annie eyed
like it, de
ever saw," said Annie, "but I k
hich do not seem so," he said, and caught up the
hat it was not remorse which she felt, but a miserable humiliation that she, Margaret Edes, should have cause for remorse. The whole day had been hideous. The letters and calls of congratulation had been incessant. There were brief notices in a few papers which had been marked and sent to her and Wilbur had brought them home also. Her post-office box had been crammed. There were requests for her autograph. There were requests for aid from charitable institutions. There were requests for advice and assistance from young authors. She had two packages of manuscripts sent her for inspection concerning their merits. One was a short story, and came through the mail; one was a book and came by express. She had requests for work fro
said. "They did so enjoy talking over their mother's triumph
t said sharply, but Wilbur'
had been reading The Poor Lady instead of his beloved newspapers and now
world did you ever manage to think that up? I suppose just this minute, as you sit there l
aret. Oh, if she had only unders
king up to little Annie?
n't k
se her mental calibre is limited. She may make a good wife, though. A man doesn
s. "Thought I must order a new suit, to live up to
l outlook would make the new suit
expect may get me the office," laughed Wilbur. "This new suit is simply to ena
eady clothes enough,"
e much difference how the old ma
ffort. There were depths beyond depths; there were bo
fe's bedroom at midnight. "Awake?" h
es
s just this minute gone. Gue
turned Margaret wearily. Love affairs di
getting married any way," returned Wilbur
good-night in answer to Wilbur's and again fell to thinking. There was no way out, absolutely no way. She must live and die with this secret self-knowledge which abased her, gnawing at the heart. Wilbur had told her that he believed that
self the injured instead of the injurer possessed her. Oh, what would it mean to be Annie sitting there, without leisure to brood over her new happiness, working, working, into the morning hours and have nothing to look upon except moral and physical beauty in
eit rather shamefacedly, assuming that she could defray her own expenses from the revenue of her book. He would never call her to account as to what she had done with the wealth which he supposed her to be reaping. She was well aware of that, but he would naturally wo
ter. That book had to be written first. Poor Annie could not enjoy her romance to the full because of over-work. The girl lost flesh and Marg
vinced. The book was really an important work. The writer had gone far beyond her first flight, but there was something unmistakable about the style to such a jealous reader as Margaret. Annie had her success after all. She wore her laurels, although unseen of men, with her orange blossoms. Margaret saw i
with yours," he told her. "The publishers ought to push yours a little more.
stly. "Don't do anythin
if you don't wa
Wilbur, who seemed nightly more incensed at the flaming notices of The Firm Hand might, in s
nion of her, seemed at times to go a little way toward squaring her account with her better self. And the club also seemed to rouse within her a keener vitality of her better self. Especially when the New Year came and Mrs. Slade was elected president in her stead. Once, Margaret would have been incapable of accepting that situation so gracefully. She gave a reception to Mrs. Slade in honour of her election, and that night had a little return of her lost peace. Then during one of th
ok that I shall be glad when you are old enough
s and her own reputed authorship. She was Spartan in her courage, but she suffered, because she saw herself as she was and she had so loved herself. It was not until Annie Eustace was married that she obtained the slightest relief. Then she ascer
their home. Then one evening, seated with her husband before the fire in the study, with the yell
e something
d lovingly at h
, for the publishers insist upon its b
ation and looked at Annie and sh
u like me to write? I will never neglect you
knelt before her. "I am proud that you are my wife," he
hough it is really I who am proud, because I have you for
He put his arms around her as he knelt, and kissed her, and the yello
d come to tell you and I hoped you would be pleased. It
ld have been lovely anyway, but your su
our chair and smoke and I wi
e had written at high pressure, and one can go over a book a thousand times and be blind to things which should be seen. She had repeated one little sentence which she had written in The Poor Lady. Von Rosen knew, but he never t
very wonderful to her. They were still spread out, most of them on tables in the parlour because all Fairbridge was interested in viewing
t I have been looking all around and the pre
said
knew what was coming,
des' book, The Poor Lady, and I have always thought it was a very silly
utographed the forty-two. She had not even
E
criber
ies were present in the original an
rd
sed/en