Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-03-13
IN AND OUT OF LOVE.

mon sense Or discrimination at all?
How do you know that rose is red?
How do you know lobster salad from
sardines?
knew she was widow from the yery
moment l took the corner seat in the car.
opposite to her little black bonnet with Its
futtering wreath of Grape vail, and the
Astrakhan mutt that held her two tiny,
black-gloved hands.
How l envied that muff.
Don't tell me of your Venuses, your
Madonnas, and your Marys, Queen of
Scots-they couldn't have held candle
to this delicious little widow.
never did believe in grand beauties!
| A woman has no business over awning
and impressing you against your will.
And she was one of your dimpled,
dalsy-faced creatures, with soft, brown
eyes, long-lashed and 1impid, and a red
mouth, which looked as If it was lust
made to be kissed.
| And then there was tangle of golden
spirals of hair hanging over her forehead,
and braids upon braids pinned up under
her bonnet, until a hair-dresser would
have gone frantic at the sight
just as l was taking an inventory of
these things, in that sort of unobservant
way that | f1atter myself belongs to a
man of the world, she dropped her mutf.
and, OF course, it rolled under the car
| seat.
| Wasn't down on my knees at once
after it? ] rather think so.
THANK you, sir" said the delicious
little widow
mot at ALL" 1 replied. "Can't I do
anything more for your"
| mo, thank you-unless you can tell
me what time we get into Glendale"
Glendale" cried. "Why am 60
| ing to Glendale"
| OF course we were friends at once, and
the daisy-faced enchantress made room
for me beside her, ''lest," as she said,
some horrid, disagreeable creature should
crowd in and bore her to- DEATH" and l
| stepped right out of the musty, iu-venti-
lated world of railway carriage into an
| atmosphere of Eden.
When bachelor of forty falls in love
at first sight-oh, acAot fall is there my
countrymen. No half-measures, I tell
| you.
Before we had been speed ing through
the wintry landscape an hour had al
ready built up several blocks of chatea,ar
d Espagne, in my mind.
/ saw my bachelor rooms Frightened
| by her presence.
fancied myself walking to church with
her hand on my arm.
| l heard her dulcet voice saying, "My
dear Thomas, what would you like for
supper tonight" l beheld myself re-
spectacle member of society-the head of
a family.
What would Bob Carter say noa0-I
meant then?
Bob, who was always rallying me on
my state of hopeless old -bachelorhood
w lo
pened to be a trifle younger and better
looking than myself, that I had no chances
whatever.
I'd show Bob
"What did we talk about?'
The weather, of course, the scenery, the
prospects-all the available topics, one
after another; and the more we talked, the
deeper grew my admiration.
She was sensible, and SO original, and
so everything else that she ought to be
l discovered that she preferred town
life to the seclusion Of country residence
so did I. Who would stagnate when
he could feel the worlds pulses as they
throbbed?
She loved the opera-so did l. She
thought this woman's suffrage move
ment all ridieulous-with a bewitching
| little lisp on the last syllable-I agreed
with her.
She thought woman's true sphere was
home; my feelings surged up too strong
ly for utterance, and | merely bowed my
| assent.
/ Here was a delicious unanimity OF
soul-a mute concord of sympathy.
What would Bob Carter say when he
saw this beautiful little robin lured into
my cage. How l would lord it over him.
How would invite him to "happen in at
any time" How l would-hguratively
of course-hold up Mrs. Thomas Smith
over his envying head. UTTERED an audi
BILE chuckle as thought of these things,
which I had some difficulty in changing
into cough.
You've got a cold" said the widow,
sympathetically. 'Do, please, have one
of ray troches; they are so soothing to the
throat"
took the troche, but didn't swallow
it. would as soon have eaten a price
less pearl. put it in my left-hand breast
pocket, as near my heart as practicable
Her first gift!
GA bachelor like me is used to such
things" said, in an off.hand manner.
"a bachelor' echoed my travelling
companion. Dear me, then you are not
married ?"
UNFORTUNATELY, no."
Its never too late to mend, haZarded
the widow, roguishly.
"That is my sole consolation" l an
swered, calamity.
''There is nothing like married life,"
sighed the widow, with a momentary
eclipse of the limpid, brown orbs, be-
meath the whitest of dropping lids. ''But
what's the use of my talking about it to
you? You can't understand"
Il can imagine" l replied modestly.
"You must find wife as soon as pos
sible," said the widow, looking intently
at the hem of her pocket handkerchief
you're only living half life now. All,
you can not think how much happier you
would be with some gentle, clinging be-
ing at your side-some congenial soul to
mirror your own"
Instinctively 1 laid my hand on nay
heart.
"Do not fancy that 1 shall lose an in
slant in the SEARCH" l said. 81 have al
ready pictured to myself the pleasures of
newer existence"
"Have yous" The brown eyes saot an
arch, challenging sparkle toward me.
Tell me all about her"
"Do you really wish to knows"
"Of course l do
l congratulated myself mentally on the
fine progress l was making, considering
the small practice in love-making that /
had had. Bob Garter himself, with all
his ready tongue and good-lcoking face,
cOHld not have carried on O Hirtot;or