Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1874-06-26
Popplus the Question.

dollars.
Popping the Question.
Swift. who had no more tenderness than
one of his own Yahoos, indited the most
brutal proposal we know of. Tired of his
shilly-shallying, Miss Varying seems to have
insisted upon his speaking out, and Swift
spoke out with vengeance. After protesting
he is too Just to stand in the way of her ac-
cepting more advantageous offer, he says
he must ask her few questions, questions
he had long since resolved to ask of the
woman with whom he meant to spend his
life "Are you in a condition to manage
domestic affairs with an income of less than
three hundred pounds a year? Have you
such an inclination to my person and honor
as to comply with my desires and way OF
living and endeayor to make us both as hap
py as you can? viii you be ready to en-
gage in those methods | shall direct for the
improvement of your mind, so as to make us
entertaining company for each other, with
out being miserable when we are neither
visiting or being visited? Can you bend
your love. esteem. and Indifference to Others
the same way as | do mine? Have you 50
much good nature rs to endeavor by soft
NuIuH 10 >lhpolh any IuHptu HulHvA p'Nh-
stoned by the cross accidents of life? Shall
the place wherein your husband Is thrown
be more welcome than courts and cities
without him?' Surely never was lady 50
catechised by suitOr for her hand When
Jane Varying felt able to answer every
question in the affirmative, then, and not
till then, her lover says, Il shall be blessed
to have You in my arms without regarding
whether your person be beautiful, or your
fortune large. Cleanliness in the first, and
competency in the second is all look for =
This unique epistlc ends-''l singled YOU
out at tr,t from the rest Of women, and
expect not to he used like common lover. ."
Swift was evidently enough very uncom-
mon one.
There Is n world of difference between the
loye-making Of morbid, >ell-loying Swift,
and that of cheery-hearted Richard Steele ;
the ravens croak and the lark : song are not
more unlike. The Christian hero made love
like lover and gentleman. He never
dreamed of plying his mistress with doubling
question upon question. Believing his Prue
to be as beautiful, witty. prudent and good
humored a a woman could be, Steele was
contented to know she loved him. and took
the rest upon trust. Instead of saying
shall die for you, profess should be glad
TO lead my life with YOU That Is the way
he pops the question then, when assured
that the dearest being on earth Is his own,
he asks her to name the day. Can anything
be more charming in it. way than this?'. |
have not a minutes quiet out OF your sight ,
and when am with YOU, you use me with
50 much distance that am still in state Of
al. ... I. IL . i.af
charms which am denied to approach. In
a word, you must give me either fan.
mask, or a glove YOU have worn. or cannot
live; otherwise You must expect | viii kiss
your hand or, when next lit by you, seal
your handkerchief You yourself aret1o
great bounty to be received al once there
fore must be prepared by degrees, least the
mighty gift distract me with JOY. Dear
! Mrs. Scurlock, am tired with calling You
by that name. therefore say the lay in
which YOU will take that of, madame, your
most o5edient most devoted, humble
servant.
\ Frenehman smtten with the charms Of
lydia Sternc, instead Of trying TO secure her
/ goodwill. wrote To her father. desiring II lie
informed what he was prepared to give her
/ upon marriage. and how mach he intended
to bequcath her Bat Stcrne was not 80
eager to get rid Of his girl as wis SiEnor
Baptists, and replied ''Sir, shall give my
daughter ten thousand pounds the day Of
marriage. Ny calculation i n follows
] She is not eighteen. you are s.xty-two-
there goes FIVE thousand pounds. Then. sir,
| YOU at least think her not ugly, She has
many accomplishments. speaks Italian and
| French, plays the guitar. and, a. fear You
/ pav no instrument whatever. think YOU
| will be happy To take her at my terms, for
| here finishes the account Of the ten thousand
| pounds.
Whitfield asked the hand of a young
American lady of her parents, without
troubling to ascertain her inclinationS, and
need not be afraid Of offending him by decln-
ing the honor, since he blessed God he was
free from the passion called love.
Next to ignoring the lady. the worst way
| of making a declaration Is to do it by de-
putty. Cupid Is no friend to faint-hearted
lovers fla damsel be worth the wooing.
it is odds upon the proxy suitor proving
false, and suing on his own account, as the
following story illustrates
When these two inseparable brothers.
! William and Jacob Grimm. were persuaded
| of the necessity of one of them taking
wife, they had a friendly contention a. to
which should be the victim. and after some
| DAYS argument, Jacob decided that he, as
| the elder WAS bound to sacrifice himself.
/ They had previously fixed upon the lady.
beautiful girl of twenty-five. but when it
came to the push, Jacobs courage JAILED
| him. and William undertook to persuade the
maiden to love her brother Altcra week
acquaintance poor William was Mortified at
| discovering he had lost his own heart, and
now, fully alive to the excellence of the fair
one, was miserable at the thought of losing
her, while he felt that to rob his brother of
such prize would be an objectionable
trcachery. Fortunately for everybody,
Grimm aunt, shrewd old lady, saw how
things were and told Jacob what had come
of Williams efforts in his behalf Jacob
was delighted to think he had escaped mat
rimonial bondage, and celebrated his good
fortune by roaming about the country,
free man, until the honeymoon WIS over
the cross courtship ending more pleasantly
for all concerned than such commonly do.
Convinced by kind Mrs. Churchman that he
wanted wife to look after him. the iudici-
Gus Hooker escaped the bother of courting
and popping the question by leaving his ad
wiser to find him Il mate and arrange all
preliminaries. Happening to have daught-
er upon her hands, the dsinterested matron
soon executed her commission, and the great
churchman was speedily married, as per
contract
Shakespcare's heroincs arc remarkably
ready to take the initiative, popularity sup
posed to be the ladies' right only in leap
year. Helena demands the hand of Ber-
tram as the price of her wonder working
prescription. Desdemoua gives Othelo
the broadest of hints that she is to be had
for asking. Miranda tells Ler patient log
man she is his wife if he will marry her
One Englishwoman of high degree, at any
rate, had not very long before set her sis
tiers the example. Mary Tudor thinking,
not unreasonably, one ioverleSs marriage
sufficient for life, determined not to be
sacrificed to state policy again; and Charles
Brandon had not been many hours in France
ere Mary tearfully told him that, unless he
welded there and then, he should never
have second chance. Brandon was not
the man to say nay to such an appeal from
the fairest princess in Christendom, let what
might come of it, and mt the risk of his head
accepted the proffered hand. The pair mar
ried in haste, but it is not recorded that
they repented at leisure. Had the daugh-
ter of CASTOR d'Orleans been rs wise as the
English princess she would have taken
Louis NV at his word when he consented
to her marrying the Gascon. De Lauzun.
Mademoiselle was proud, and, if love had
impelled her to offer her hand with her
heart in it, to an inferior, she could not
brook the idea of being married in manner
unbecoming a princess of the royal blood.
The king had time to listen to the remon-
strances of his counsellors, and when she be-
sought him on her knees not to withdraw
his consent, coald only reproach her with
not having profted by it while she could,
| Louise de Sayoie. sometime queen recent of