Weaker than a Woman — page 40: what you’re looking at

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

. es _* —_ > - . my Lt > AS = __ WEAKER THAN A WOMAN. 31 talking to one of the partners, and they were both cool, I thought, in their manner.”’ Kate threw her arms around his neck and kissed his anxious face. “Why should any one talk about you or be cool to you, dear? You have done no wrong.” “No, but there is something—I am quite sure there is something, Kate—in the minds of people about me. Il cannot imagine what it is.” Kate tried to cheer him; she laughed at the notion. What could there be? She knew that there was no one like him. No one could accuse him of a mean action; his life had always been fair, open, loyal, and transparent. It was absurd. He must be out of health; he should go away and rest himself for a time. People cool to him, indeed! She would like to see any one treat him with less respect and honor than he deserved. The kind, tender face flushed, the soft eyes filled with tears. She would have done bat- tle for him with the whole world. There was nothing in what he said, she felt quite sure, but failing health. Yet she waited anxiously for him the next day. She was somewhat surprised, for there had been a perfect deluge of tradesmen’s bills—an occurrence that had never hap- pened before. The baker had sent in his bill, and the butcher wanted ready money; the upholsterers who had furnished Vale House pressed fora settlement in conse- quence of unlooked-for losses. Kate showed the bills to her_husband. : “What does it mean?” she asked, wonderingly. “Tt means, my dear, that there is some subtle agency at work against us—I cannot tell what. It means also that the tradespeople must be paid at once. Indeed, Kate, we should have been wiser had we waited till the legacy had been paid to us before we came here.” “But it is certain,” said Kate, a little anxiously. “As certain as fate,” he replied; and then they talked a little more cheerfully about what they would do when the money was at command. That same evening Felix came home looking slightly preoccupied. He had seen one of their oldest clients go into George Malcolm’s office, and the vicar of the parish, the Reverend Daniel Hunter, had passed him with the coldest of bows. He also had an impression that there was something wrong. He could tell neither what it was nor why it was. Felix thought that there would be time to walk over to (Eo pallicel exoKo) <S (E(@) mm