Wichita eagle., 1889-04-21
LAURA OPENED osE AFTER ANOTHER.

Quoted with great hberality, the Bartholo-
new stamp had become the seal Of fashion.
Hence it was bit Of good fortune at the out
set, Laura thought, to be awarded the UNI
brella department.
The ecuinoctial had been severe In the fall
whereof this chronicle is made, and umbrella
sales had been particularly active. On the
morning already mentioned the young at
tacke to The Daily Argosy had como hurry
ing into Bartholomew from sudden out
burst of the clouds, and while properly cour
teous, appeared o little over critical in his
choice of an umbrella. Laura opened one
after another Of the handsome shields, when,
at last, becoming nervous, she hastily closed
patent fastening, and impaled one of her
fingers upon a wire. With ell her self con-
troll and resolution the pain overcane her,
and she tainted. Confusion followed; every
one in the establishment flocked around her,
while the proprietor and the would be pur
chaser eXtricated the wire from the lacerated
thumb. When the sufferer recovered suffi-
GENTLY, q carriage was called, and the gray
haired porter of the establishment escorted
Laura home.
Several days passed by before she returned
to her duties and meantime Morgan Starr
called daily az Bartholomew's to inquire
after the invalid. As if the attention re-
quired excuse, he never failed, at the perad-
venture OF criticism, to remark to Mr.. Bar
tholonew that 'such a wound in such SEN
sitive place might be q serious matter" At
which at last the merchant srailed and said
within himself that it appeared TO be seri-
GUS matter to Mr.. Starr, Just as it was.
In due time Laura returned to duty, and
the philanthropic qualification evinced by
Morgan Starr when he found her there one
CHEEKY morning was a credit to his kind.
Within day or two he called again to offer
particularly fine lotion, e1hcacious to de-
gree in other cases Of thumbs impaled on
wires and after dreary hiatus Of week,
during which he drew heavily on his Topics
for Poems, he sauntered III with plaster ad-
vised by famous Prussian surgeon, and Just
here there came an end to his visits, for
Laura told the young journalist that he could
not be allowed TO make her conspicuous, and
of the chance Of seeming ungrateful for his
kindness she rrUst request him not to call
again.
''Is it necessary" said the gentleman, that
we now go back, and become utter strangers,
because Of conventionality, for which pre-
sumo you caro- as little Us ! dof"
1T Is not copventionality that is in Ques-
tion," answered Laura; lit is propriety and
the correct demands of self for self, and not
society at all With the latter | have moth
ing TO do. My days are passed here, my
nights with my family. read and study, 60
occasionally TO see good play or hear fine
music. and over and above al am intensely
interested n"- An interruption here oc-
Cured, and then another. and finally no op-
portunitv came up for renewal of the CON
versation. The door soon closed on the
young journalist, whose heart fairly beat the
measure of a war dance ss be walked I'D
town, wondering whether any other fellow
had as many diSappoiu;ments as he, and
whether there were ever any girls who turned
out just as fellow expected! And this was
such an annoying mattsr There were 50
many WAYS bv which Laura EverCiale and all
her kith and kin could have proved him hon
orable and not unworthy their acquaintance.
For days something like melancholy op-
pressed hiEl. Again he drew heavily on
Topics for Poeins.n and occasionally on
Topics for Stories" but all his work devel-
oped norhidly
Christmas days not long afterward ar
rived, and the shops were beautiful TO look in
upon Daily as he passed 20 and fro along
Broadway, looking into the gayly decorated
windows, be thought of the beautiful girl
who had 50 strangely insisted on Eis hanish-
meut
To forget thing find means almost al
ways remembering it, said Morgan Starr
one morning, and just this once I'll saunter
into bartholomew and see if Miss Eve-dale
is there" Up and down the place he walked,
but no glimpse Of Laura rewarded him
Then be paused and locked at umbrellas
''She might come in,n he said to himself
And then be thought possibly he might write
something about historical umbrellas; Paul
Pry's~ Sairey Gasl2's the one. Dick SYiveller