St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1888-03-17
EDITH'S VICTORIES.
Her Triumph Over Quaker Gus
toms and Prejudices.


II would offer to help you, Edith,
only don know what you mean to
take, said Helena Marvin, looking into
the room where her sister was pack
ing
..Takep" said Edith. hardly pausing
to answer as she moved about the open
trunks from closet and bureau, why,
am going to take every thing"
Don't you mean to make any con-
4cesslons?'
mot a concession.
..You think it will be better to defy
them?"
defy them! no, indeed! what hor-
rible idean'
''Then what do you mean to doP''
al mean to please them. "
''But how can you possibly please
them if you wear silk dresses and curl
your hair?''
81 don't know; perhaps sha' MT; but
I'm going to try. And I know I never
should please anybody if I left my hair
straight; and the pretty Cambridge
belle thought to herself that it would
be pity, indeed, if she, who had al
ways pleased everybody without try
ing, could not please Roberts relatives
if she did try.
But this visit to Roberts relatives
was naturally contemplated with even
more than the usual trembling excite
ment of the young foncee. For Rob-
-ert's father and mother and sisters
were all QualSers, with traditions and
beliefs and customs according to which
they ought to contemplate with horror
and distress this union of their only
son and brother with world
ling! And such wording!
Such a fascinating combination of
laughing eyes and merry lips and curl
ing hair and tinkling bangles and
rustling long silk skirts and coquet-
tish bonnets and bewildering laces and
ribbons and little slippers. Oh. dear!
oh, dear! how they would hate her!
And Edith did not want them to hate
her. She had not the slightest desire
to defy or to horrify them. She was
very anxious, indeed, to please them.
But combined with this anxious desire
to please was a quite unconscious,
though equally firm, determination not
to win their affection by concessions.
Not SO much as the bow of a.
slipper would she offer up on
the shrine of devotion to Rob-
ert's relations. Worldly she was;
worldly she would be sure to remain;
and it was best that they should UNDER
stand from the first that she was
thoroughly addicted to silk, satin and
lace whenever she could get it. But
she had a faint hope that, once brought
in contact with her worldliness, they
would find it pleasanter than they
thought. Why notP She had con-
-quered Robert; why should she not
conquer them? Robert had not fallen
in love with her in spite of her airs and |
graces; he had fallen in love with the
airs and graces themselves. He had |
often told her so. He had repeatedly |
pointed out the particular little curl |
over her adorable forehead that had |
first won his attention, and had assured |
her that it was certain bit of lovely
lace about her throat that had COM
pleted his subjugation. And that dear
little curl was not only a curl but it /
was boughten curl, held in its place
by hairpins, and as fictitiously world
" as curl could possibly be- True,
Robert was not exactly Quaker; he
was only a descendant of Quakers.
he had not definitely renowned the
world, although there chung to him,
from the force Of heredity and train
ing and circumstance, certain
grave demeanor and atmosphere
OF earnestness. He did not dance;
he didn't even want to dance:
but he did not exactly disapprove Of
other people dancing If anybody did
choose to indulge in so foolish q ca
price; and on the evening when he had
been lured by friend to one OF the
Cambridge Assemblies, y and had met
there his immediate, unquestionable,
irresistible. worldly little fate, he had
even felt suddenly sort OF impotent
rage with himself at not being able to
dance. True. he didn't want to dance