Kansas University Weekly.
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the house and yard. Not many young men can stand so much expense all at once. And I'm pretty much much mistaken if Harold Falconer don't begin to see his mistake. His wife dresses pretty fine too, don't she?" Here Mrs. Kennedy paused, for once really expecting an answer to her question. Seeing this, Mrs. Perry replied:
"Mrs. Falconer always dresses in very good taste. That is all I have noticed."
"Well, I've heard that she had two new dresses this spring and another this summer. And you'd think, to see the furniture of their house, that he owned that whole bank of your husband's instead of being only cashier. And I can tell you too, that man aint as happy as he looks, nor as easy in his mind. I despise gossip, but I really feel as if I ought to tell you Mrs. Perry, just between ourselves, that there is trouble in that fine new house. I'm sure of it because several times lately I have heard loud talking and quarreling as I passed the house, and last night as I came by they were at it again and I made out the word 'expenses' from him as if he were as mad as could be. I didn't hear what she answered and then he spoke again and I heard 'fashion' in such a disgusted tone. To think they have only been married six months and quarreling this way! What a warning it must be to that poor sister of hers!"
As she stopped to sigh over this thought Mrs. Perry seized the opportunity to escape from the steam of words which had been pouring forth and drove off. Riding on, the ladies tried, by pleasant chat about other matters, to drive from their minds Mrs. Kennedy's gossip, but the pure pleasure of the morning was gone and Mrs. Barton soon asked to be left at her own home. This Mrs. Perry did and returned home herself.
All day the thought of the two ladies reverted at intervals to the unpleasant suspicion inevitably aroused by the morning's talk. Being high-minded gentlewomen, they did not breathe a syllable of the story to any one. Soon, however, they heard from less scrupulous persons, rumors of the same nature, and guessed that
Mrs. Kennedy had confided her secret to all her acquaintances. Such was the case and the story spread as stories of that sort always do, until the whole town was talking of it. Everybody discovered that they had always suspected the Falconers were "carrying things with a high hand" in fitting up their new home.
Mrs. Falconer received an unusual number of calls for a few days as most people were a little curious to see for themselves if there were any signs of domestic storm. She, however, entertained as pleasantly as usual, thinking that her friends wished to meet her sister, she had no suspicion of the part gossip was playing in their uncommon sociability. Very pretty she looked in her daintily shaded parlor on hot summer afternoons. She formed a most pleasant picture, dressed always in delicate shades of green, gray or blue. Then she never seemed in the least hurried or worried and so diffused around her an atmosphere of restfulness and peacefulness. The suspicion of her guests were allayed while they were under the spell of her influence. After they had left her presence, however, the visitors would remark to each other that Mrs. Falconer "held her head up pretty high" in spite of her troubles, and that she really seemed quite carefree. Naturally enough every caller discovered some new evidence of the extravagance of her hostess, in or about the house, and, wafted by a little zephyr called envy, public sentiment among the ladies veered round in Mr. Falconer's favor. Indeed there were not wanting some to remark that now no doubt he was repenting that he had not "married a Fairview girl who had no high and mighty notions, instead of going clear back to Ohio to get such a wife."
Fairview had few amusements, so, an entertainment to be given by one of the church societies now began quite to absorb the popular interest, "Only local talent," as the village paper said, "would contribute to the entertainment." But as all the people of Fairview and vicinity knew what great ability existed there, it was hoped that a large audience would greet and encourage the performers." The program