Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1888-08-30
MY GUARDIAN JIM.
Changing the Might Have Been
Into the Shall Be.

your chronic WlckedneSS breaking Ou1
I'll put George Hamilton On his guard. ,
MY chronic wickedness! What dc
you mean?'
'Miss Ingenue, cOquetry may or may
not be as harmless as any other femi-
nine fad. 1t depends on the tempera-
mcnt of the mn on whom il is tried
Harry Petrie. suppose, rather enjoys
it, and the other half-doZen lovers to
whom you at present distribute your
smiles with touching impartiality are
used, l dare say, to flirting with q
pretty girl, and win feel none the worse
when the comedy is ended. With
George Hamilton it might be differ.
ent.''
''Oh! you are apprchensive of your
friend making love to me-
Rather. I'm seriously apprehensive
OF you making love TO my friend"
'.Jim!'
''Not in words: you are too finished
m artist to bungle after that fashion
Since you escaped from short dresses
you have been ID psychological study
TO me, and do you think | haven't
tumbled TO all your kittenish tricks?
The studied information of the voice,
the sudden drooping of the eyeiids be-
cause their lashes are long and silken,
and that charming habit of blushing
dprOpOS dc rie9 save that il be-
comes you. Pom my word, Miss Mel
rose, you are the only young woman
/ ever heard of vino could blush to
Or7er, as some emotional actresses
claim they can shed genuine tears on
the stage when the exigencies Of a
part demand it. Now, If you were
anatomically constructed on the lines
of other human beings and had a
heart l wouldn't mind Hamilton fall
ing in love with you, for then he
would be taking only the ordinary
chances. So give you fair warning,
if catch you at any of your old tricks
I'll give you away without compunc-
ton" And with this threat my
guardian abruptly left the room.
Yes, he was my guardian, this man
of thirty-four, and l had lived beneath
his roof since my fathers death ten
years before. Ny poor father, he was
the medical practitioner of our little
town, and despite the disparity of
their ages, between him and James
Esnond a friendship almost fraternal
existed for many years. Yet people
thought it strange that the sensible
DIR. Melrose should have left his little
girl eight years old to the sole guard
ianship of man of twenty-four. But
in his quiet home with his mother,
who had been indeed a mother also to
me, an orphan child. my life had been
IA singularly happy one. For the first
time in all these years | believe l was
really angry with him this afternoon,
and setting his threats and authority
at defiance | was resolved to flirt to
my hearts content with our coming
guest. Mr.. Hamilton arrived the fol-
lowing evening, and as my guardian
introduced him l could not possibly
mistake the meaning of his warning
look.
lIuSt. lit Sdltl, tudb
Miss Melrose and you may learn to be
excellent friends. During your briet
holiday you will necessarily spend
most of your time together, for the
work on the farm leaves me little
leisure to devote to even as old a
friend as yourself. But Nell is a clever
young person, who can make herself
entertaining when she chooses to take
the trouble"
OF course Mr.. Hamilton's sense of
gallantry compelled him to say that he
felt quite sure the hours he spent in
the society of the clever young person
Gould be simply delightful, and men,
tally recorded a VOW that would take
the trouble to make them so.
ssWell, what do you think of him?''
was the question my guardian asked
me when our guest had retired that
night.
''Passable. suppose, as men 60"
''He is certainly handsome" he said
tentatively, land the best fellow in the
world, but little over-sensitive.'
HE is sensitive, therefore he is
vain. There was never yet sensitive
man who was not a vain one"
..Fudger'
..But faint fudge. sir, for sensitive
ness is, after all, only the offspring of
self-consciOusness."
..Say. youngster, did you evolve that
bright idea from your own small brain?
Don't let Hamilton think l have lit
erary nuisance beneath my roof. And
now be off to bed
Mt. Hamilton possessed, with a fair
share of good looks, a more than aver
age share of intelligence and educa-
ton, and when certain shyness or re-
serve. which seemed habituai, had
worn away, found him, indeed. an in
teresting companion. Ii | were writ
ing love story | might be tempted to
linger overth days that followed, but
as / am moi may be allowed to epit-
omize the events that rounded out
these days in "a sentence. Mr.. Hamil-
con became the most ardent of NJ