Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-10-23
MARION AND MILLICENT.

Ou ought TO know whether you
care to marry a man Who-let me see
how old is this Mr.. Kane?"
Il don't know. Thirty-three or five,
suppose"
Yes. Well, he's nobody yet, you
know, and if man is not somebody
before forty the cha noes are"
Eyes, yes, [ know! on, [ know. You
are quite right. He won't do at all.
Young lawyers always have a miser-
able struggle getting on. l don't know
just how much he makes year, but |
suppose it's dismally little. Gertrude
Pycke married one of his chums last
winter. But see what she came to.
Her father helped her, too. But they
lived in an awfully small way. No, L
see clearly that it is not to be thought
Of"
And, having reached this conclusion,
Millicent looked questioningly at
Marion. The latter was a year or two
older, handsome, collected impressive,
large aud fair. She laughed out:
My dear Millicent, | believe you
really care for this Gerald Kane. You
want me now to tell you that you bad
better accept him; for suppose he has
already proposed" she added.
Milicent made no reply to this.
well, continued Marion Il cannot
tell you that. don't think you would
do well 10 marry him. Oh. dare say
he's ightful-these ineligible crea-
ture are always fascinating. That
makes it all the harder to have an eye
to the future. But unless one is very
silly one tries not to let ones self be
carried away. If you marry Gerald
Kane YOU will PROBABLY live in a mite
of house. You will probably have a
servant who won't wear cap-that
class OF servants objects to caps, YOU
know. You will have to give up the
continent in summer and take board
someW here quite near the city, where
MIR. Kane can 90 in and out to his
business conveniently every day. You
"Oh, Marion! Don'tr'
Marion laughed again, showing all
her magnificent teeth.
''An telling you any thing but the
truthp Is not that what you will have
to do?'
MIIicent, her hands in her lap sat
the picture of detection in her blue and
white boudoir. Involuntarily she cast
glance around it and Marion followed
the processes Of her thought. 1t was
a dainty place. 1t was full of flowers,
books (Which MIllicent rarely opened).
bric-a-brac soft rugs, pictures. 1t was
a sheltered and perfumed bower, and
individually 1t was the right setting for
MIlicent, who was delicate and slight.
and violct-cyed and fastidious, and
not accustomed to- rough encounters
with the world. Marion came closer
to her friend and with fine movement
of her handsome arms, her slender,
beautiful hands drew the Younger girls
fair face down to her shoulder. Such
demonstrations were rare with Marion
Lang.
Il am sorry, dear, if you really care
for him." she murmured. And Mil
licent cried little and then pushed
her friend away.
Marion had her on her mind the rest
of the day.
Il hope she does not care very much
for him." she thought. 1T is hard, |
suppose" From personal experience
she did not know whether it was hard
or not. She consoled herself at last
by remembering, though there seemed
certain disloyalty in the act, that,
perhaps after all, Millicent, sweet as
she was and gentle, and lovely, was
not capable or caring as deeply as some
others. Now if | really loved a man
very much-but no, hope l should
have sense enough to do just what
Millicent is doing"
That was in the last days of the
spring. Before another fortnight had
elapsed Nlillicent had sailed for the
continent still free, and so far as Marion
could see, looking bright and happy
enough, and Marion herself had left
town with an invalid aunt for quiet
summer on the DevOnshire coast.
1T is fearfully and wonderfully
stupid" she wrote in her first letter to
MIIicent, land l shall read Browning
and Herbert Spencer for four months
without intermission.n This letter
to post. 1t was hot dav, and when
Marion discovered that there was no
one in sight to take her letter or to
hold her horse while she diSmounted
from her cart, she was filled with an
unreasonable irritation. Her pug
parked and she administered to him a
sharp rebuke with her fan, while the
horse iidgeted reStlesSly.
AT that moment dark man in light
tweed, looking very cold, passed and
observed the predicament of the young
woman, by this time flushed and angry
of glance, and suppressed smile.
May | take your letter." he said
civilly.
Marion's blue eyes met his in a
straight look from under the rim of her
broad white hat. The man was an ad-
mirer of beauty. He thought he had
never seen a handsomer creature.
Thank YOU" And the cart ratified
down the road. raising Il little cloud of
white dust which mounted slowly in
the still, hot air.
The following day Marion, calling on
a friend in the cottage next to her
aunt's discovered sitting on the piazza
her deliverer of the morning before
1T was very considerable of YOU to
come TO my rescue, Mr.. Crane" she
laughed.
Kane" amended their hostess, smil-
ing
''Ah, ! always blunder over names
when new people are introduced to
me-" So his name was Kane? Marion
looked at the man before her more at
tentively. Thirty-three or five. Yes
that might be his age She had decided
that she would ask as soon as he had
Sone whether his other name was