Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-03-20
LOVES kEEPsAkEs.
The Crushed md Faded Rose That Bind
The nvAop novs

The Crushed md Faded Rose That Binds
Us to the Olden Days.
Yes. sentiment and association and all that
sort of thing play big part in cur lives,
suppose. She takes a rose out of her corsage
and gives it to you and you keep it laid away
long after it has withered into dry dust,
until you forget what it is and where you
got it. And tn IN you don't like to destroy it,
because, although you can't for the life of
you remember Who gave it to you, you know
it is associated with something that soothes
your vanity. That is why it cuts fellow
when the young woman asks him for her
presents back. It Is not that he cares for
them or for her particularly, but it seems to
leave him nothing to console himself with.
1t not only cuts of the whole business; it
pulls it up by the roots and leaves q kind Of
hole In his life he can't fill up. As long as he
keeps the sleeve buttons and the lock Of hair
and things he has something to hold on to,
some evidence that once upon a time he really
had some hold upon her, but those gone, he is
without proof Of anything; she has taken
back everything, spiritual and material, she
ever gave him.
But everybody passes through that stage Of
emotion when he or she keeps things for
their association, flowers notes, any little
tokens that may have dropped in course of
pleasant hours ] have seen stacks of dried
flowers; have glanced casually in a parlor
at odd things that, not being there for orna-
ment and not being there for use, one knew
instinctively we're keepsakes, and asked no
questions She hands you her favorite poet
out of the library and you look through it.
faded leaf drops out You stoop to pick it
up. She bushes and says, mo matter" but
she smoothes & out accidentally and when
you aren't looking she puts it back between
the leaves exactly where it was before. al
ways look at the poem when a little event
like that happen rs, and it is almost invariably
something sweet and tender, applicable to a
little love situation. know he has read it
to her or she to him on some occasion, and it
has been in a garden or out of doors. And
perhaps the little leaf foated on the breeze
and fell between the pages or he gave it to
her to mark the place. / have seen many
dainty things that were doubtless memen-
toes, but the n alden lady of 60 comes to the
front and wins the prize without a question
1t was a little paper box of old, old fashion,
glazed. 1t had had pills in it once, fancy
1t looked very drug storey of the past, be-
fore they had S xteen hundred different kinds
million kinds Of face powder, all recon-
mended by tho best known prima donnas.
1t belonged to The days when they put on ex-
pensive perfume bottles the kind of labels
they put now on castor oil In this little box
was mixture Of bits of brown leaf and dust.
She had kept it, she said, for forty years.
what is itF' l asked
"A memento."
''Yes but is it a flower or a leaf?n
Its leaf"
"A leafi The color is peculiar
Its leaf-you won't tell anybody, win
you' was very much in love with young
man in those days, and one night, tho first
night he ever kissed me, he laid down his
cigar-cigars we're looked upon as great lux
uries then in our part of the country--he laid
down his cigar on the fence and went away
without it. Next morning found it there.
1t had been raining, and it was all wet, but
took it and put it away, and-well-I don't
know how it came here-but hero it is. and
even now am young when look at it and
l don't feel Ike throwing it in the fire ~
San Francisco Chronicle.