The Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1885-1886, 1886-05-08

the Temples up with remarkable warmth.
He gave dainty little lunches and snug little
dinners for them; and he was forever calling
in his carriage to take one or other of the
girls drive, the little mother attending as
chaperon. At first we were in doubt as to
which he was pursuing mother or daughters;
and we even thought that grave Sophia, with
her heavenly face, had attracted him; but
we forgot that he was man of some
common sense. Mrs. Temple was his choice;
her yivacity, her polish, her knowledge of the
world, her untiring energy, were all after his
own heart He soon began TO drop hints as
men do who have matfimony in their heads
| Mrs. Temple was a remarkably fine woman
| Forty five was the exact age that the wife of
a man of fifty should be-the exact age"
Mrs. Temple did not look forty-five" the adj
| mitted that, "but'-and he would drop his
voice-"he knew she was every day of il"
| The intimation was that he had either seen
| the register of her baptism OF she had told
him the fact direct, and he declared over and
| over again, with amusing eaInestness aud pub
iieity, that forty five was the age he approved
| of; that for a man of his standing one year
Younger would be one year too Young, and
| one year older one year too old OF course
so far he had not said that he hoped or wished
| TO marry Mrs Temple, but the drift of his
| conversation and conduct was unmistakable.
In the meantime it was evident that the
lively widow did not dislike attentions which
had now become 50 marked that even those
saw them who could see nothing. Sh. ex-
changed compliments freely with the rector,
invited him TO her house, praised his ser
mons, and she was actually found one even
IYtrQ al nAisS1
presided. She listened to his speech with the |
| utmost attention, sitting erect, and keeping |
her eyes fixed upon him, although it would |
have been hard to say whether she knew or |
cared less about the subject She could not |
have told in which continent the district |
spoken of lay, nor whether the people |
were white, brown or black but |
she listened as attentively as if She |
had been hearing of dear relations in a |
far-oif land. In short, with garden parties |
and lunches and dinners and drives. things |
went so far that we all considered the matter /
settled; and when We heard that no proposals |
had yet been made we all agreed that there |
must he taeit engagement, which, for some |
private reasons was not just yet to he avowed |
To all ntents and purposes, we regarded Mrs |
Temple and Mr. Brent as afIianced; and. on |
the whole, we approved Of our rector's choice
Certainly we should have liked a lady more |
interested in religious affairs: but then. We
argued, it was much better than if he had |
married Young woman. So, balancing |
matters, we accepted the event with satisfac- |
ton.
The rector was in ecstasies He was in his |
element, dancing attendance on these foar
brilliant women; and really careless OBJ
server might have been puzzled 10 tell which |
OF the four he was pursuing In the most |
polished of hats, the newest of suits. the most
faultleSs lavender gloves, and looking all |
over comfortable eccleSiastic he would fit |
around them, glowing and beamiItg with
satisfaction. The girls, for their part, ac-
ceptcd his civilitieS with charming freedom:
and their mother-shrewd woman-ne,,.r
manifested the smallest jealousy. In this,
beside proving her own good s4.rSs., she paii
her admirer a compliment which lie fully de
served; for he looked upon the three girl, as
daughters already, and was fond OF them in
the mos; parental fashion
All, Mrs. Temple he sal / one ,iav, when
he vas getting hoo, as the children say in
their hde-Md-sssek game, Il have but on,
rl,td-l son, dear good fellow. away il
Australia / always louged for daughters.
NhpIeutoa Mrs Barbara Temple turned
full upsf him one of her keen looks. which
said: / understand" but a good hum,aed
louk all the time; and then she broke into
little bland laugh and made herself more
confer able IN her seat, for they were driv-
ms. The rector was Just gong to propose
then an4 there; bat. it happened that the ear
riage. >r-,,iin. down the dusty road, met the
cul5tte, Who wa, footing it home from some
remote pat Of the parish, where lie had been
visiting sick I'D woman. He signaled the
carriage to stop and addressed the rector:
Odd Spcarman is dying" he said
Poor Hannah SpearmanI" the rector re-
piled, shaking his head IL have known her
many years, Poor Hannah Spearman,1
Polly the curate remarkei-APolly
Spearnan"
"Of course, it is Polly the rector reioined.
"ln visiting about parish like mine"-he
turned to Mrs Temple-"one's head gets so
full of PollieS and Sallies and Billies that one
Is apt to take the name that comes first
am sorry for poor Han-Polly But what
cdn you do in case of natural decay
1t is not natural decay the curate
answered. with a waggish dryness in his
manner. "She fell down stairs"
40 he sure she fell down stairs!" little Mr..
Brent cried, reproving his faulty memory by
a gesture of his gloved hand "How came
to eonfound the two-compiaintsPr
Perhaps because You are suffering from
third, reto rted the curate He loved Joke
and had before this broken jest on his own
bishop. And our rector was tempting oh
jet being not apt to take offeIlse. and not
one to inspire great respect or fear l.
The carriage drove on: hut for once little
Mr. Brent was downright angry II
Rather an impairment speech" be said,
giancing ditlidently at Mrs Temple. |,
impairment cried easy -humored Mrs.
Temple. Nothing of the sort
"Miiligan has no sense of proprietyr
She gave little laugh.
Il like Mr. Milligann
AT this Mr.. Brent took heart changed his
view OF the matter, redeemed with pleasure,
and gave himself up to laughter. which lasted
until the tears were chasing each other down |
his rosy cheeks. But somehow the proposal
''sS-'"at nlade that day.
IT, he