ROMANCING ON BONDI BEACH.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 72, 24 March 1906, Page 10

ROMANCING ON BONDI BEACH.

A SYDNEY EPISODE. „ lie had taken up his quarters in a cottage with a cumpanion much more agreeable to him than his wife, and the excuse he made for such an extraordinary proceeding was that the love of his better-half had grown as cold as the cold, cold grave, and he had discovered a spirit of attraction to supply the place of her iv whom formerly he pinned his faith. ■ He says that he "makes excuse; he merely advances a reason., and gratuitously _t that He -was an art teacher, and held a class of students which he said paid him well enough, although 'there was little to compensate hinrloi-^ the r studies of {.i-life-time ©£ labour aad deep thought. . ■ . * .*_ , ._*. .*- • *.. * . "Perhaps," said he to .n-fAuetraJiaa-Star-? man, ':ther&. ate people who will blame--me, but. if so they will blame mc wrongly. Life is made np of romance and not of • commonplaces, as some jjeople imagine."' My wife.grew cold .to mc years ago, and my heart - waa broken- But 1 met another as deep in trouble as. I_" "How was that? Was she a victim of coldness, too?" ' She had made a bad selection. She could not love her husband if she tried. He was cold. Nor was it in her heart to Jove him, for she had ceased to respect Sim long ago. He was a brute to her; and ussd to stay out all night, and beat her ■when he did come- home. " It was while he (the art teacher) was in one of his despondent moods, consequent upon the lapse-of "his wife from the path of wifely affection "tba't He took 'a trip to Bondi, and it was here that he met with the one who was down in the dumps likewise. To her he confided his woes, and they exchanged mutual confidences. When they discovered how each was situated it appeared- to them both • that . they were OEiginally- ordained for each other, but had met too late.

Why too late? It was never too late to meet.

They • sat and sighed side by side by the sad sea..waxes,-ancLagreed to meet again and exchange their -confidences, anon. Xhey -did so, .and the result was that the Climax .was reached when they decided to throw in their-lots .together fat-better .or. worse.

-H__-rente_l.il cottage, .and, discovering that in the suburb .there waa permanent employment as a painter and decorator, he settled down to his new life with-vigour. He.says his wife longed-herself--to be free from the marriage. -tie,.-and- f requently-told him .so,. . But-her conduct- one..night,, when she met him iv . College-tstreet, . walking With his. newly-discovered, spouse, does not bear, out that.. .._:__ ..she was swift on. the track ..for vengeance, - and swooped down upon, the pair -of-them bke a thunderstorm.. One. whack of her umbrella disturbed the shape of the fond spouse's headgear, and a pull and a wrench freed it from its retaining pins and ruined it for ever and ever. Then there

were cries of "cat aud "beast,"' and-other female swear words, and three people were mixed together in a cyclonic.swirl of dust and hair and tattered -garments.

A wild and fearful figure of a male person flew across Hyde Park, and made for. obscurity. It was worried and erratic, and fearful to see. That was he who had yearned for sympathy.

, A bewildered and somewhat mixed female stood neajr.the museum, and arranged her disorder as well as she could manage under the circumstances. As she pinned her flat (or its remains) on her head again with great skewers, she caught sight of a portion of an umbrella and a wrecked head covering lying ln a shapeless mass In the gutter. With a cry of triumph she fell upon the objects, and danced on them until they were but as straws in the -wind.- -

-And abont-the same time "a sad and somewhat.. br<_en-op lady entered an Oxfordstreet shop, and purchased a__cbeap sailor's hat .and two skewisfs.' ShY borrowed-some pinsanda piece of and tied up as -much .of-.her garments as she could magage, and then, smiling as. sweetly as never was. she said she had. oust;-.'wfj&. _n accidentWhlSh, to do her iostidk, -wag o» more than, the truth..:.__•_-.■ . I. .:-. ....-• _