The girl went back to the party. Apparently excusing herself, she came back and sat down at the table as requested by Bess.
“Alice,” said Bess, “look at that man and woman over on that side.”
Bess pointed out the couple the party had under observation.
“Jimmy Lannigan,” said the girl called Alice. “He’s been rolling about the Tenderloin for three nights. But he’s spending no money except on the woman that is with him.”
“Do you know who she is?”
“Yes, I do,” replied the girl Alice, with a laugh. “She comes from our old city, Bessie, and if she keeps this racket up much longer, if there won’t be a swell divorce case with fine trimmings, I’m no guesser.”
“Why do you say that?” asked Chick.
“The thing with me is,” said Alice, “why the burst hasn’t come long ago. She is the wife of a rich young fellow in Philadelphia. She is herself of a good family and she’s going with the best. Her husband is a man engaged in business and lets her go her own gait, while he is working night and day to get rich. This young woman has been sporty for two or three years; but I don’t think she’s guilty of anything worse than a keen desire to have a good time. She respects the moral code, though she goes into places which the majority of wives avoid.”
“How is it,” asked Chick, “that she’s in with such a fellow as Lannigan?”
“I don’t know how to answer that,” said Alice. “I don’t know how much she knows of Lannigan. But you know Lannigan is very swell. He’s a handsome fellow, so I suppose that he’s caught her fancy.”