The Argosy — page 141: what you’re looking at

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

124 On and Off. for proposing it, and in no hurry to take it. To be sure, no man cares to be jilted by his own wife. ‘“There’s no use in being anything but cool. Besides, I have been thinking it over a great deal, and I have talked to Mr. Burdon about it.” Mr. Burdon was Mrs. Lifford’s lawyer. ‘The deuce you have! You're in a hurry to get rid of your bad bargain. And what will become of your precious plan if I hold to my rights, and say that I choose to keep my wife with me?” ‘“Why should you?” asked Ada quietly, looking straight at him, as he stood angrily twisting his moustache. ““Why should I?” he echoed loudly. ‘* Because—because Why should I want my wife to live with me? What a question for any woman to ask!” He began walking up and down again, and there was a minute’s pause. Then he laughed awkwardly. ‘‘ Why should I? Upon my word I don’t know.” ‘You aren’t going to say that you are in love with me?” ‘Might as well be in love with a dissecting-knife at present, it seems to me.” ‘And I never professed to be in love with you. I don’t know whether the sort of thing one reads about in books would make it tolerable to knock about the world always poor and miserable, but I am very sure that nothing else can. You would lose your temper, and I should lose my looks. We should come to hate each other.” ‘“‘ A pleasing picture,” muttered Wilfrid to his moustache. ‘We've made a mistake, and the best thing we can do is to undo it as far as possible. We shall have a pleasanter remembrance of each other if we say good-bye next week, than if we fret and quarrel through twenty years.” Somehow the little bit of sentiment about saying good-bye touched Ada’s feelings, and she began to cry. ‘Those tears did more than all her arguments. She looked ugly when she was crying—nearly all women do, by-the-bye—and Wilfrid hated to see it. He took a few more turns, and then sat down facing her, in a business-like fashion. ‘‘Now, look here, Ada: after the way you’ve been talking, you’re far too sensible to go on crying when I’m ready to talk business. I should never have thought of what you have proposed; I have married you, and I’m willing to stick to you, and do my best to maintain you in whatever way I can. But it’s true that it’s likely to be a very poor way, and if you think that you can do better for yourself, I don’t feel that I have a right to hinder you.” “‘T think of you as well as myself,” put in Ada. ‘It will be best for us both.” ‘‘T don’t deny that. Of course I shall be freer alone, and have a better chance of getting work. What I don’t like is your going out on the world by yourself. But remember it is your own choice.” “Yes,” she said, meekly. ‘‘T’ll have no lawyer sticking in his oar. I’ve got nothing to settle ; Eomicbooks.co m