Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-06-04
CHAPTER v.

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CHAPTER v.
MRS. TEMPLE IA H PAR OF MRS.
SOBER.
Prendergast remained to be nodded, and
our strategist took care to nave al interview
with him before the great event of his pro-
poSal came off. For this dialogue she as
sumed a specially grave, not to say pious, air,
rs she now fully understood Prendergast's
habit of mind.
ut is a serious matter, " she said, in the
voice and face of her new character of Mrs.
Sober. ayes, marriage is a serious matter"
To this sentiment, of which the force, like
that of many a popular sermon, lay rather in
the delivery than in the matter, Prendergast
assented, and business began.
"You are going to propose to Sophia" size
said, in confidential tones; for, indeed, They
had chatted the affair over several times.
al am, with your permission"
Every well. Are you above taking a hlntg'
she paused here, for the most engaging smile
made up of self-confidence, self Interpretation,
and a coquettish consciousness that all the
charms of her sex had not yet forsakcn her
"are you above taking hint from a withered
old womanf
You must be going to take me to consult
som elderly friend Of yours" he answered
with successful raillery.
a Capital, capital" she cried, forgetti1g
Mrs. Sober, and clapping her hands. "Ch,
Prendergast, | do wish you would be more
like that all the day round! 1t becomes sou
vastly! 0, | should make something of you,
too-in time!"
Grave Prendergast could stand this no
longer. He burst into a laugh, which our
little mother merrily echoed, until she again
remembered that seriousness was her part
to-day. Turning as solemn as a Quakeress,
she asked:
"But, seriously, will you take a hint"
seriously, from you l will take as many
hints as / get"
well, then, remember this: Sophia is a
girl whose head is full of the idea of useful
ness and activity, and being elevated, and
elevating others, and-you can finish the
sentence better than 1, for you hear more of
that sort of talk. l am not saying anything
against all that. In its way, and at proper
times, it is very well; but | maintain, and al
ways have done, that it is not the thing a
woman should live for. Just fancy, my dear
Prendergast, what a whole world full of
serious people would be! Serious people, and
nobody else! Really, l believe you serious
people would want a few of us sinners back to
tickle you a little! But this is not my business.
We must take Sophia as she is. She has not
grown up in the way | expected, but she is a
good girl, and amiable. When shall l get
back to my point2 Sophia, then, being so
full of these notions of service and aspiration
and duty, and all the rest, in proposing to
her you must fiddle on that String--I mean"
said Mrs. Sober, withdrawing this rather
hippant form of speech, you must let her
know that such is your view of life also. 1t
is, is it not"
at is" Prendergast answered, divided
quite between sincerity and amusement at the
singular little idol that chartered away before
him.
"Then he careful you let Sophy know it.
And, Prendergast, be careful, too, that you
tell Sophy that you have a work i'll life-I
suppose YOU have-and that she is the woman
that can help you to perform it. Present
yourself before Sophia in that form, as a man
who has a work to do-such a work as she
would approve of; such a work as she would
w AtlStH II EllC NOblut Z Z VIC Aull klNC
} YOU strength, guidance and all that sort of
thing. This is the way such a girl must be
carried. We none of us like to be thought
mere dolls, dressed for your drawing rooms,
and, least of all, do girls like Sophia like it.
Tell her you will go through the world lean
iEg on her, as they do in pictures, half sup
yyorting, half reclining. Tell her that you
will draw inspiration from her eyes and from
her character, and then Sophia is yours. o,
/ wish l had been a man, just to teach the
rest how to propose to usG'
well, Mrs. Temple" Prendergast said, re-
pressing his smiles with no small difficulty,
"there is a great deal in what you say. And
/ can assure you that whatever woman / pro-
posed to, or thought / should wish to propose
to, | should mediate something of the kind. "
"If you really mean it" she said, at will
come a great deql better. 1t always does"
surely you would not have me say what /
did not meant"
Fudge, Prendergast, to put it in that way
In love making we are not understood to
mean what we say. No more than a monarch
OF the stage is understood to mean what he
says when he promises to bestow kingdoms on
people. He has two rooms meanwhile, which
he means to keep to himself) But in this
particular case, if you do mean it, why, of
course, you will say it with more emphasis.
Ali, dear me-" she added, resolved to efface
the impression of her %hippancy, II daresay
you are right, Prendergast, after all, and we
wrong. But the world is SO pleasant, one
can't help loving it"
She sighed this out so naturally that Prem
dergast reflected that there must be good in
this merry old pagan after all; and he pleased
himself with the thought that before she de-
parted from human life she might rise to q
higher mood and confess her follies. So our
little mother showed admirable tact, for she
gave the finishing touch to her pupil, and
when bidding him good-by, she asked: "a
Nov, Prendergast, will you say exactly
what l have told your
He answered:
II will, exactly"
CHAPTER vi.