Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1891-08-17
THE W0MAN'S ROSE.

have an old brown carved box; the
lid is broken and tied with a string. In
it | keep little squares of paper, with
hair inside, and little which hung over
my brothers bed when we were chill
dren, and other things as small. have
in 1t rose. Other women also have such
boxes where they keep such trihes, but
no one has my rose.
When my eye is dim, and my heart
grows faint, and my faith in woman
fiickers, and her present is an agony to
me, and her future a despair, the scent
Of that dead rose, withered for twelve
years, comes back to me- | know there
will be spring, as surely as the birds
know it when they see above the snow
two tiny, quivering green leaves Spring
cannot fail us.
There were other flowers in the bon
once; bunch Of white acacia flowers,
gathered by the strong hand of man,
as we passed down village street on o
sultry afternoon, when it had rained,
and the drops fell on us from the leaves
Of the acacia trees. The flowers were
damp; they made mildew marks on the
paper / folded them in. After many
years threw them away. There il
nothing Of them left in the box now but
faint smell Of dried acacia. that recalls
that sultry summer afternoon; but the
rose is in the box still.
II is many years ago now; was a girl
Of fifteen, and went TO visit in q small,
up country town. II was young in those
days, and two days journey from the
nearest village; the population consisted
mainly Of men. A few were married
and had their wives and children, but
most We're single. There was only one
young girl there when came. She was
about seventeen, fair and rather fully
fieshed; she had large, dreamy blue eyes
and wavy light hair; full, rather heavy
lips, until she smiled. and then her face
broke into dimples and all her white
teeth shone.
The hotel keeper may have had a
daughter, and the farmer in the out
skirts had two, but we never saw them.
She reigned alone. All the men wor
SHIPPED her She was the only woman
they had to think Of They talked OF
her on the ''stoop," at the market, al
the hotel; they watched for her at street
corners; they hated the man she bowed
to or walked with down they street.
They brought flowers to the front door.
they offered her their horses they begged
her to marry them when they dared.
Partly there was something noble and
heroic in this devotion Of men to the
best woman they knew; partly there
was something natural in it, that these
men, shut of from the world, should
| pour at the feet Of one woman the wor.
ship that otherwise would have been
given to twenty; and partly there was
something mean in their envy Of one
another. If she had raised her little fla.
ger, / suppose, she might have married
any one out Of twenty Of them.
Then | came. ! do not think was
prettier. do not think was 80 pretty
as she was. was certainly not so hand
some. But was vital, and was new,
and she was old. They all forsook hei
and followed me. They worshiped me
TWAS to my door that the flowers came
it was / had twenty horses offered ms
when / could only ride one; it was fol
me they waited at street corners; it wal
what l said and did that they talked Of
Partly / liked it. I had lived alone al
my life; no one ever told me that
was beautiful and a woman. believed
them; | did not know it was simply
fashion which one man had set and tn,
/ rest followed unreasoningly. l like,
? them to ask me to marry them, and Il
say no. | despised them. The mothe
heart had not swelled in me yet. di,
not know all men were my children, a
the large woman knows when her hear
Is grown. was too small to be tender
/ liked my power. was like a chill,
: with new whip, which it goes abou
cracking everywhere, not caring agains
/ what. could not wind it up and put /
away. Men were curious creatures VIII
liked me, could never tell why.
Only one thing took from my pleasure
! could not bear that they had desertet
her for me. liked her great, dream
blue eyes, | liked her slow walk an
drawl. When saw her sitting anon
men she seemed to me much too good /
n be among them. would have given al
/. their compliments if she would ono
u have smiled at me as she smiled at then
!. with all her face breaking into radianc,
! with her dimples and flashing teeth. Br
I knew it never could be; felt sure sh
!. hated me; that she wished was deat
= that she wished had never come to til
I village. She did not know, when "
= went out riding, and man who ha
always ridden beside her came to rid
ii beside me, that sent him away; tn;
= | once when 81 man fho1,oht 70 win ~,