Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1881-05-26

L
an instant. Six years ago, when / was
nineteen, first fell in love, and I've
been doing it ever since, with decent
intervals between. Little Marthy was
fifteen then, little, wild-rose Vermont
| girl, just as shy, and as sweet, and un-
sophisticated as that letter and all her
other letters seem to say she is; yet ]
feel like boy of nineteen in love with
her again, to talk about it to you. Like
the great calf that I was, with not q
dollar In my pocket, and no prospects
| ahead of me, up and told her how
felt one day in the spring, when the
grass was SO green and the birds were
singing so loud-I had to tell some
thing to somebody. She looked up at
me for moment with such a smile;
full of tears, coming into her eyes, and
such q milk and rose blush glowing
upon her cheeks, and / just took her
right up in my arms then, and kissed
her as I'd been longing to do ever since
/ first met her, six weeks before. Ever
since that she has considered herself
engaged to me"
ga precocious youngster you were at
nineteen, I must say, and ripe
acquaintance it must have been that
rooted, blossomed and fruited in six
weeks"
"Well, make fun as you please,
answered Dick, gloomily; you have
the whole story now, and you can't
think worse of me than think of my
self"
No, Dick, I tSven't by any means
all of the story y~S. AS you are twenty
five, suppose this little girl, now twen-
ty-one, has been hoping and trusting in
you for six years. Very likely she's
never permitted herself another lover.
Why, it's patheticl Every year she has
thought, maybe, you would come back;
she has never had a suspicion of you;
she has dreamed about you and prayed
for you. It's burning shamel And
look at you, violently attached to every
pretty girl you see, riding with them,
two at time, dancing with them, max
ing love to them and dressing like a
dandy, when you ought to, be in the
Green mountains, wearing butternut
and carrying Marthy's milk-pail."
Dick groaned in anguish of spirit.
"And I've always told her I couldn't
afford to come after her quite yet. Give
it to me-you can't hit me too hard
but oh do help me out of the scrape. !"
Help you out Well, I should
think you would be glad to be in it.
Just to think of that little Vermont
blossom, tasting like cream and maple
sugar, I'll warrant, if blossoms ever do
taste; just think of her dropping down
any minute among all the furbelows,
the frizzes, the paints and the powders
of the ladies In our set r.
"Oh, AL don't harrow fellow SO.
/ don't believe you imagine how deep
I'm IN for it. There's Kate Richardson,
now, when you talk about flowers; she's
tiger lily; she's real cactus; she's a
tea-rose; she's magnificent, she's gor-
geous, she's radiant. Oh, Al Fisher,
can't you see how love her ~
And she ?p-the question was like a
fame springing from bed of Goals.
Well, I Just thought never was so
in love in my life. wasn't sure about
her; but one night, month ago, l was
carried complet' ly away. I forgot all
about Marthy, and Il asked her to marry
me. By George, she said she would
and should have been too happy alto
gether, If, after my first transport, little
Marthy hadn't occurred to me again.
Now I'm engaged to both of them,
don't you see, and it's deuce of a mess.
I wouldn't give up Kate If could, and
/ don't see how could give up Marthy
f / would
A silence fell between the two then,
in which the falling of cigar ash
might have echoed, and the twilight
stealing down, came like vel to cover
silence.
It was fully six months later when
Kate Richardson walked into sleeping
car at Omaha, followed by baggage and
porter. Her step was so quick and
confident, her accouterments were SC
appropriate, and the porter followed hel
with so deferential an air, that the pas
sengers, making themselves comfortable
on either side the aisle, looked after
her with great respect for her style.
Very common sort of people shan't
make the acquaintance of any of them, =
Miss Richardson thought, rs she
observed them in . glance, without
seeming to. She paused near the mid
die of the car
Put my things here" she said to
the porter. &c I have the whole section
and you may pile them all on the front
seat"
She sat down upon the back seat and
spread her skirts comfortably, took out
her silk handkerchief and wiped hel
lips, sighed as enduring penanee,
smoothed the collar of her ulster and
thought what bore crossing the conti-
nent was. The prominent setting of a
ring, visible under her glove, made one
forefnger noticeable; and it might have
been tenderness or not, but she placed
her elbow on the arm of her seat and
rested her lips upon it.
In the meantime the car was rapidly
filling. There was much talk between
the passengers and porter, and from he1
square of window she could see piles Of
trunks being carried forward. By-and-
bye the cars gave little shake and
culver as if rousing; then jerk, a
dizzy, gliding motion, and then Miss
Richardson became conscious that some
one spoke to her. It was voice that
was apology itself, as it said:
Oh, If you please, ma am, it's mis-
take, and I've had so many mistakes;' =
and it was almost cry for help. II
had color in its cheeks and its lips, d
little mouth and shiny light in its
hazel eyes. It carried a portmanteau,
and the porter lowered above all with .
patronizing air.
Miss Richardson was disturbed. 8 But
porter, said she, had engaged the
whole of this section. I don't want any
one in with me. I shall have no place
to put my things"
The hazel eyes were turned piteously
upon her, but the voice was tinged with