Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1892-12-18

1eet Sunday morning with rs In q quiet
wood strewn thick with spring beauties
and adder tongue. She confessed after
ward that at first she thought il was
wicked, but when we got there she knew
II wasn't.
Well, with botanixing and tennis and
examinations the last days Of this blessed
year slipped past.
The Saturday before commencement
Ed and went up the river for orchids.
We found only few yellow ones, but
could not feel much disappointed. Tie
sky and the river would have made up
for much greater loss. We driitsd
back almost in sileace. listening 10 the
soft plash Of the water against the boat,
the dreary whispering Of the trees on the
bank and ut intervals the faroff cry Of
hawk.
Presently Ed interrupted il all.
Il want To give you something be-
fore you co." he announced suddenly.
"May r.
why, yes. il it isn't too valuable" !
answered priggishly in desperate at
teinpt 10 DE proper.
II assure you it is absolutely worth
less unless you care for it," and he dex-
terously tossed long, folded paper into
my lap. Another Of the legal jokes he
was always laboriously perpetrating!
Yes-a deed this time, carefully filled
out. except short blank space near the
rop:
This indenturc. made this Goth day Of June,
In the year Of our Lord one thousand eight
hundred aud eghty-ouc. between Edward
Mills Rice. party Of the first part. and -
-, or the Aecond part. witnesscfh that the
said party OF the first part, for and In consider
etion OF love and affection 10 him ia hand paid
by the said party OF the second part. tho no.
ceipt whereof Is hereby confessed and &C.
knewiedeed. does by these presents grant. ba--
gain. sell, rornise, release. alien and confirm
unto the said party OF the second part and to
her heirs and assigns forever ali that certain
piece or parcel Of humanity situate and being
az present In the city OF Ann Arhor, county of
Washtenaw and state Of Michigan. and de-
scrioed as follows, to wit: An ordinary enough
piece OF goods, reasonably well educated and
moderately we'll fixed: twenty three years old
and quito alone In the world, with no eyes TO
speak Of. and at least two years of grinding
yet ahead. together with all and singular, the
hVA c~AsSaAouto auu aPpuTtcuduceS belonging
or In anywise appertaining. to have and to
hold the said -
read no further.
Ed. why don't you give this to Or
pha:'
''Orpha" he echoed. "Sher wouldn't
have it; yon know she wouldn't. And
besides added the audacious youth.
"she hasn't paid me the consideration
mo, toned therein"
"Eell, goodness knows l 'idn't SUD-
pose had, either. Ed. But-whatsh shall
do with thisy'
lyon might just write your name in
the space left for it," he suggested.
/ didn't quite dare to.
leaned my chin upon my hand, looked
into the water and thought. But Eds
face floaNd persistently between me and
all prudential considerations. HE is a
year younger than You. What about the
mature ready made man whom you as
sured Tom you should marry? What
will Tom say? And how supremely ri.
diculous and inconsistent! Refuse Tom
because he wasn't old enough and marry
a man six months younger than he and
twice as boyish looking! But, if choose
to be inconsistent, whose business is it
anyhow" would not reason. would
not consider" Ishot swift smile up
into Eds anxious face and then with nv
fountain pen traced in round deliberate
characters across the space he had left
Kate Marion Barrett.
l have the old deed yet. Since our
marriage it has lain in state, the sole &C.
cupant of convenient pigeonhole in my
writing desk. Here I often run across
it and smile as l wonder whether in
dear old Ann Arbor, fragrant with the
memory of countless student romances,
the momentous question was ever be-
fore or since asked and answered in such
fashion. But Ed and don't
care. We have had our poetry SINCE
Kitty Carew in Detroit News.