Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1880-06-24
THE SECRET.

] wish could tell yon--I do wish |
could | hate to have secret; 1t burns
like money in my pocket It's an I'M
natural thing, anyway. One wants sym
pathy; if it's a gloomy secret, somebody
to &c gloomy with; and if it's glad one,
somebody to be glad with; somebody to
talk it over with, to make much or little
of it with, to conjecture concerning it,
it's beginning and it's end, to dwell upon
it, and gloat over it; how in the world is
one going to enjoy anything all 10y ones
self!
| suppose / wouldn't care half so much
to tell it if it were only commonplace
affair, if there were no romance about 1t
Mt all. But there is. Some people are
80 fond of romance-our Romaine is;
and don't believe anything could have
pleased her half so much that happened
in the regular, expected way. Our
Romano always was so full of fancies
and ideals, and when there's anything
romantic going on, it always falls to her
lot.
Will, now, do you know, | believe
that from that very moment Romano
met that young officer, she made HIM
her hero and her ideal. She didn't
know his uqme, she didn't know his reg
iment, she didn't know his rank, she had
hardly seen his face; but, for all that,
she Just resolved-very likely without
putting it in so many words to herself
that if she couldn't marry him, she
would never marry anybody, and she
would keep herself and all her thoughts
sacred to this hero. And she did. And
that is what has given her this mir of re-
moteness, almost as If she belonged to a
superior rank, you know, She didn't
know whether her herb was alive or dead;
there were skirmishes IN the neighbor-
hood, and before long great battle far
Their off; hut there were no means OF
learning anything, of course, and he
never came back Somehow think she
felt that if he were alive he would, and |
think she began to look upon him as
dead. aud herself as-well, don't you
iaugh-us something like his widow; at
any rate, rs vowed To- him. She was
only seventeen then, You know. Oh,
yes, | know I'm only sixteen myself, and
a terrible chatter-boX too, Paul SAYS; but
know that things get fixed in ones
mind at seventeen TINT even seventeen
more years won't undo, and Romano has
only ten years more. But Romano has
the poetical temperament.
Well, in n year or two Uncle Paul
died. and left mamma Il comfortable for
tune. AS the farm really belonged to
Paul, when he reached home mamma
decided TO come to the city for orr win
tiers, and to build this little villa for the
summers. aud sometimes Paul comes to
us. and sometimes we go to HIM. yeal
ago nearly | came back from school.
Mamma said / was very pretty, but very
uniformed. and she wondered what my
teachers had been about 10 leave all this
trouble for her, and she doubted what
sort of match | would make | said
how could | make any, with Romano
still hanging ON her hands? Whereupon
mamma said Romano was the most pre-
posterous girl alive; she had Just let
millions slip through her fingers, and
she didn't believe the Archangel Michael
would make any impression on her. So
| began TO watch Romano, and | found
an old brass button was one of her treas
nres, and | learned what sort of people
it was in whom she felt m interest.
Again. once when we were all recount
ing old times, and mamma was telling of
the fright she had when the soldier vas
flourishing her cap ON bayonet, and tie
gratitude she felt TO her deliverer, who,
She always did feel, came straight from