Should She Have Left Him? — page 156: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

MRS. DEEKMAN'S DINNER. 143 lovely music by striking bells with a little stick, I have had but one serious ambition in life, and that . isto be on terms of intimacy with a bell ringer. If Mr. Trescotte will acknowledge this Swiss bell ring- ing wife, I'll be her dearest friend.” Mr. Magrane, who was the lady’s vts-a-vis, and who was meeting her for the first time, addressed her across the table, his eyes twinkling with humor: “You do not believe the Swiss family story ?” “Believe it?’ shecried. ‘‘Oh,I must. My great desire to have a Swiss bell ringer in our set compels , me,and then Mr. Sheffer tells it, and he has never been known to spread a story the truth of which he has not fully investigated—have you, Mr. Sheffer ?” The appeal was made with such sweetness and confidence that “ Airy” lost a little of that airiness which had made the pun on his name possible, and teplied, quite red in the face: “Tf I had had the honor of your closer attention, Mrs. Trevor-Allen, you would have heard me say that I did not vouch for the truth of the story, but that it was current talk.” “How disappointing,’ exclaimed the lady. “I am afraid my ambition is not to be gratified. Be- sides, if Mr. Sheffer’s tale falls to the ground, what guarantee have we that the whole Trescotte gossip does not go down, too? There is a legal maxim tothat end, is there not, Mr. Magrane?” Mr. Magrane laughingly assured the lady that her information was correct. “Then the whole story about there being any- GOMMGIOO cS (GO)