Sunny Slopes

by Ethel Hueston

  CHAPTER IV

  A WOMAN IN THE CHURCH

  And there was a woman in the church.

  There always is,--one who stands apart, distinct, different,--in thecommunity but not with it, in the church but not of it.

  The woman in David's church was of a languorous, sumptuous type, builton generous proportions, with a mass of dark hair waving low on herforehead, with dark, straight-gazing, deep-searching eyes, the kindthat impel and hold all truanting glances. She was slow in movement,suggesting a beautiful and commendable laziness. In public she talkedvery little, laughing never, but often smiling,--a curious smile thatcurved one corner of her lip and drew down the tip of one eye. She hadbeen married, but no one knew anything about her husband. She was amember of the church, attended with most scrupulous regularity,assisted generously in a financial way, was on good terms with everyone, and had not one friend in the congregation. The women were afraidof her. So were the men. But for different reasons.

  Those who would ask questions of her, ran directly against the concretewall of the crooked smile, and turned away abashed, unsatisfied.

  Carol was very shy with her. She was not used to the type. There hadbeen women in her father's churches, but they had been of differentkinds. Mrs. Waldemar's straight-staring eyes embarrassed her. Shelistened silently when the other women talked of her, half admiringly,half sneeringly, and she grew more timid. She watched her fascinatedin church, on the street, whenever they were thrown together. But onedeep look from the dark eyes set her a-flush and rendered hertongue-tied.

  Mrs. Waldemar had paid scant attention to David before the advent ofCarol, except to follow his movements with her eyes in a way of whichhe could not remain unconscious. But when Carol came, entered thedemon of mischief. Carol was young, Mrs. Waldemar was forty. Carolwas lovely, Mrs. Waldemar was only unusual. Carol was frank as thesunshine, Mrs. Waldemar was mysterious. What woman on earth but mightwonder if the devoted groom were immune to luring eyes, and if thatlovely bride were jealous?

  So she talked to him after church. She called him on the telephone fordirections in the Bible study she was taking up. She lounged in herhammock as he returned home from pastoral calls, and stopped him forlittle chats. David was her pastor, she was one of his flock.

  But Carol screwed up her face before the mirror and frowned.

  "David," she said to herself, when a glance from her window revealedDavid leaning over Mrs. Waldemar's hammock half a block away, doubtlessin the scriptural act of explaining an intricate passage of Revelationto the dark-eyed sheep,--"David is as good as an angel, and as innocentas a baby. Two very good traits of course, but dangerous,tre-men-dous-ly dangerous. Goodness and innocence make men wax inwomen's hands." Carol, for all her youth, had acquired considerableshrewdness in her life-time acquaintance with the intricacies ofparsonage life.

  She looked from her window again. "There's the--the--the dark-eyedJezebel." She glanced fearfully about, to see if David might be nearenough to hear the word. What on earth would he think of the manselady calling one of his sheep a Jezebel? "Well, David," she said toherself decidedly, "God gave you a wife for some purpose, and I'm slickif I haven't much brains." And she shook a slender fist at her imagein the mirror and went back to setting the table.

  David was talkative that evening. "You haven't seen much of Mrs.Waldemar, have you, dear? People here don't think much Of her. She isvery advanced,--too advanced, of course. But she is very broad, andkind. She is well educated, too, and for one who has had no training,she grasps Bible truths in a most remarkable way. She has never hadthe proper guidance, that's the worst of it. With a little wisedirection she will be a great addition to our church and a big help inmany ways."

  Carol lowered her lashes reflectively. She was wondering how much ofthis "wise direction" was going to fall to her precious David?

  "I imagine our women are a little jealous of her, and that blinds themto her many fine qualities."

  Carol agreed, with a certain lack of enthusiasm, and David continuedwith evident relish.

  "Some of her ideas are dangerous, but when she is shown the weakness ofher position she will change. She is not one of that narrow school whoholds to a fallacy just because she accepted it in the beginning. Theelders objected to her teaching a class in Sunday-school because theyclaimed her opinions would prove menacing to the young and uninformed.And it is true. She is dangerous company for the young right now. Butshe is starting out along better lines and I think will be a differentwoman."

  "Dangerous for the young." The words repeated themselves in Carol'smind. "Dangerous for the young." Carol was young herself. "Dangerousfor the young."

  The next afternoon, Carol arrayed herself in her most girlishlycharming gown, and with a smile on her lips, and trepidation in herheart, she marched off to call on her Jezebel. The Jezebel wassurprised, no doubt of that. And she was pleased. Every one likedCarol,--even Jezebels. And Mrs. Waldemar was very much alone. Howevermuch a woman may revel in the admiration of men, there are times whenshe craves the confidence of at least one woman. Mrs. Waldemar ledCarol up-stairs to a most seductively attractive little sitting-room,and Carol sat at her feet, as it were, for two full hours.

  Then she tripped away home, more than ever aware of the wonderful charmof Mrs. Waldemar, but thanking God she was young.

  When David came in to dinner, a radiant Carol awaited him. In theruffly white dress, with its baby blue ribbons, and with a wide band ofthe same color in her hair, and tiny curls clustering about her pinkears, she was a very infant of a minister's wife.

  David took her in his arms appreciatively. "You little baby," he saidadoringly, "you look younger every day. Will you ever grow up? Aminister's wife! You look more like a little girl's baby doll."

  Carol giggled, and rumpled up his hair; When she took her place at thetable she artfully snuggled low in her chair, peeping roguishly at himfrom behind the wedding-present coffee urn.

  "David," she began, as soon as he finished the blessing, "I've beenthinking all day of what you said about Mrs. Waldemar, and I've beenashamed of myself. I really have avoided her. She is so old, andclever, and I am such a goose, and people said things about her,and--but after last night I was ashamed. So to-day I went to see her,all alone by myself, without a gun or anything to protect me."

  David laughed, nodding at her approvingly. "Good for you, Carol," hecried in approbation. "That was fine. How did you get along?"

  "Just grand. And isn't she interesting? And so kind. I believe shelikes me. She kept me a long time and made me a cup of tea, and beggedme to come again. She nearly hypnotized me, I am really infatuatedwith her. Oh, we had a lovely time. She is different from us, but itdoes us good to mix with other kinds, don't you think so? I believeshe did me good. I feel very emancipated to-night."

  Carol tossed her blue-ribboned, curly head, and the warm approval inDavid's eyes cooled a little.

  "What did she have to say?" he asked curiously.

  "Oh, she talked a lot about being broad, and generous, and not allowingenvironment to dwarf one. She thinks it is a shame for a--a--girl ofmy--well, she called it my 'divine sparkle,' and she said it was acompliment,--anyhow, she said it was a shame I should be confined to alittle half-souled bunch of Presbyterians in the Heights. She has alot of friends down-town, advanced thinkers, she calls them,--a poet,and some authors, and artists, and musicians,--folks like that. Theyhave informal meetings every week or so, and she is going to take me.She says I will enjoy them and that they will adore me."

  Carol's voice swelled with triumph, and David's approval turned to ice.

  "She must have liked me or she wouldn't have been so friendly. Shelaughed at the Heights,--she called it a 'little, money-saving,heart-squeezing, church-bound neighborhood.' She said I must study newthoughts and read the new poetry, and run out with her to grip soulswith real people now and then, to keep my star from tarnishing. Ididn't understand all she said,
but it sounded irresistible. Oh, shewas lovely to me."

  "She shouldn't have talked to you like that," protested David quickly."She is not fair to our people. She can not understand them becausethey live sweet, simple lives where home and church are throned. Newthought is not necessary to them because they are full of the old, oldthought of training their babies, and keeping their homes, andworshiping God. And I know the kind of people she meets down-town,--asort of high-class Bohemia where everybody flirts with everybody elsein the name of art. You wouldn't care for it."

  Carol adroitly changed the subject, and David said no more.

  The next day, quite accidentally, she met Mrs. Waldemar on the cornerand they had a soda together at the drug store. That night afterprayer-meeting David had to tarry for a deacons' meeting, and Carol andMrs. Waldemar sauntered off alone, arm in arm, and waited in Mrs.Waldemar's hammock until David appeared.

  And David did not see anything wonderful in the dark, deep eyes atall,--they looked downright wicked to him. He took Carol awayhurriedly, and questioned her feverishly to find out if Mrs. Waldemarhad put any fresh nonsense into her pretty little head.

  Day after day passed by and David began going around the block to avoidMrs. Waldemar's hammock. Her advanced thoughts, expressed to him, oldand settled and quite mature, were only amusing. But when she pouredthe vials of her emancipation on little, innocent, trusting Carol,--itwas--well, David called it "pure down meanness." She was trying tomake his wife dissatisfied with her environment, with her life, withher very husband. David's kindly heart swelled with unaccustomed fury.

  Carol always assured him that she didn't believe the things Mrs.Waldemar said,--it was interesting, that was all, and curious, and gaveher new things to think about. And minister's families must be broadenough to make Christian allowance for all.

  But, curiously enough, she grew genuinely fond of Mrs. Waldemar. AndMrs. Waldemar, in gratitude for the girlish affection of the littlemanse lady, left David alone. But one day she took Carol's dimpledchin in her hand, and turned the face up that she might look directlyinto the young blue eyes.

  "Carol," she said, smiling, "you are a girlie, girlie wife, withdimples and curls and all the baby tricks, but you're a pretty cleverlittle lady at that. You were not going to let your darling old Davidget into trouble, were you? And quite right, my dear, quite right.And between you and me, I like you far, far better than your husband."She smiled the crooked smile and pinched Carol's crimson cheek. "Theonly way to keep hubby out of danger is to tackle it yourself, isn'tit? Oh, don't blush,--I like you all the better for your little trick."