The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-12-13
a Story of the Election.
Written for the Press.)
BY ANN GREY.


s'bets"l on the success of my pet statesman
over any candidate your party could offer,
and certainly shall not over the ona you
have just Named" with infinite scorn in The
sweet voice.
Aud Vlx takes up her "stylograrhic' pre-
pAratory to the mornings work of dictation
While the gentleman whom she has just
addressed looks down on the very business
like attitude of his defiant little secretary,
let me introduce you more fully to this same
Vix.
She is really Vix-Miss Vix Dean-un-
commonly pretty and the quickest writer in
the inner Office of Straiton & Stratton, the
largest wholesale house in fne old city not
a thousand miles from here.
But why Via? you say. I knew you would
ask that; and if you Will not whisper it, I
will pause, en- PEASANT, to say that it was al.
the fault of Dean pere. He could not be
satisfied, perhaps not unreasonably, that his
youngest daughter had grown to her sixteen
years aud five feet, six inches of stature
with no more Christian appellation than
"Dot," her baby name, and persisted in, for
want of better, to this absurd length. 1t
might have continued till this time, had not
Mr.. Dean been wheedled one day into taking
his baby, this same sixteen-year-old Dot, to
see an operate affair called Pinafore-per-
haps you have heard of it.
Needless to say that for a week his life was
burden to him; his mischievous daughter
caught the prevailing fever Of singing
snatches from the opera and quoted that de-
fusion and snare "hardiy ever' SO often
that it grew chronic with her and she
could hardly say anything else. Angels and
ministers Of grace! have used it myself the
moment the expression is resurrected. A
thousand pardons if have been the one to
put the word into your mouth again! l
know l shall use it myself for week.
But to resume: Dot brought it on her
self! for finally she came to be known as her
fathers little Hardly" and has renamed
shat to this day. Mrs. Dean, good, tender
soul, suggested that it at least be made a
little less obnoxious by using thu Latin equiv
alent, Vic, and her husband at last had the
grace to yield the point. And so that is the
way she ceased to be Dot. Her worst enc
my lit she has one. which | doubt would
not dare to English her name before her
now unless DESTROYS of being transfixed by a
dash of her superb hazel eyes. Rex STRAIT
ton has all this time been gazing intently
at the dropped head before him perhaps
numbering I he hairs of the cured lovelocks),
and il is quite time it should be stopped, so
W - l.
1t is not seemly that the junior partner
and in TACT the only active partner in the
coDcern of Strstton & Stratton, should ne
idling away the morning in such fashion,
making ieeriDg comments on the remarka-
bic way the election is turning simply for
the satisfaction of seeing Vix take up the
gauntlet with all the ''party spirit imaglua-
ble
"But, Miss Vix," in a zone Of lazy remon-
STRANGE, "those invoices can wait until this
matter is settled. Irefuse to be classed
with those 'derested Democrats l am
nothing if not Independent Very well done
that! don't you think? Yes, knew you
were going TO praise my uncommon britiar-
cy, SO | will save you the trouble. But for all
that this election won't put your pet states
man in the Presidential chair, and it will,
his rival"
''No, it never will. insist! My own ia.
ther says not, and if he does not know, who
does?" with calm persistence, but an angry
disappearing glance up into the eyes bent
upon her.
Such unanswerable logic as this might
stagger another man, but not Rex Stratton,
who is hiding pretty little plot behind his
provoking coolness-if Viz did bat know it,
"Then. if your father is 80 nfaIlibe in his
Judgment, and his daughter can but echo It,
wherein is the danger of betting good-na-
turedly on he result? II there is no likeli-
hood of your losing wager, l fail to see
cause for the fears you caunot conceal in
this time that tries mems souls.'
1t is the morning following election day,
and Vix hasn't been herself, good little par
tisaD, in her anxiety over the returns"
"Come, Miss Vix, know there is some
thing in the store that is the height of your
ambition this minute, Isn't there? And
know there is something you conld easily
give me, something already in your posses
sion, that would make me happier than the
victorious President-elect himself Now You
will either bet WITH me, or you are afraid
for the result.
AT this challenge all the warm blood in
Vix's lissome body rises and flames def
aDce on her cheeks, and she cannot say
quickly enough:
T.
''Prove it then by doing as ask"
81 certainly will now-only know that
my mother would not approve, and shall
have to keep it TO myself"
Vix has way of patterning her conduct
for her mothers approval truly refreshing in
this nineteenth century.
"Your mother would not object to your
receiving or paying philopena debt, would
she?'
'N-o; for Haye done it," with frank in
decision.
swell, it seems to me the two transac-
tons are strikingly similar" smiling amused
ly over the gradual yielding of this very wa
ry little fly. But there is ring in Mr. Rex
STATIONS voice that is not quite so assured
as he continues:
81 will wager you anything you like
against-well, must first find out what you
would like, you know" shifting his leaning
position 10 another corner of her desk, and
not venturing in the light Of the level, grlsh
glance, to say what he fully thought was at
his tongues end.
"Tbere is nothing in particular that
would like, Mr.. Stratton; anything that you
think is reasonable and my mother would
allow me to keep-as, of course, I expect
to-" with all the dignity of assured judy
ment.
every well, then; let us say something
from the store here that you may select
yourself-anything from a silk dress down.
1t is not as though had to go out add pay
money for it, you see," with doubtful soph-
istry as Vix looks protest. "And may ]
claim as wide a margin in taking a gift from
you?-as, of course, 1 expect to, mi,picEing
with much fidelity her late dig1ff1ed tone.
Certainly; that woul3 DE only far" The
in