The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1893-12-12
Written for the Western Rural.
ALL IS WELL THAT ENDS WELL
BY JOYCE.

y ONOA Ouo AdGb GudG she was uOG IKE
other girls. She had grown to believe
she had come to the wrong planet or
been born in the wrong country, so
sensitive had she become from ponder
ing over such remarks as what a
queer girl you are" you are an odd
one" you have too many notions, "
why can't you be like other girls9'
and many more of the same sort
teasingly, often impatientIy by her
best friends. Just how or in what she
was different from others Nellie could
not understand. She had the desire,
the will to be like others but did not
understand herself or others and grew
melancholy over her disagreeable at
tempts to be other than herself.
Time passed on, Nellie Adams and
and John Dismon met for the first time
one lovely summer day in the home of
a mutual friend IL was love at first
sight IN the part of both. John was a
cessful business man. He had no
doubts, whims, high notions, particu
lar friends or other bugbear to prevent
his boiling straight forward toward
the climax OF true love. He under
stood that Nellie was resen ing his ad-
vances Yet in his honest, earnest
way he reasoned to himself that she
liked him, but of course had her head
full of all sorts of notions about men
and courtship and 10 e and marriage.
He had five sisters and had been neither
blind nor deaf during his thirty years
Of life. How could he tell what notions
she might havel If he only knew he
might live up to them, or correct them!
He sighed at the complexity of the IN
dertaking. Well, what was he to dos
He had learned never to give up what
was worth winning. And Nellie was
the n woman In the world for him!
He paced the floor, put his hands ip
his pOckets-took them o~ut-rubbed
his forehead as if there he expected to
find the recipe for winning this par
tiCular woman, then as if at the point
of desperation, clasped his hands be
hind him and stalked forward toward
the house which sheltered the woman
whom the fates seemed to have re-
served for him, muttering ''confound
it, the only way to bring her to her
senses is to go right along just as if she
could not help but be mine. | can feel
in her very presence that her heart
beats with mine, and she will no longer
meet my glance-what do I care if she
tries to hide it. OF course 1 am not
her ideal. No one ever fell in love with
the idol Of their dreams. Women are
always dreaming, men are content to
wait for reality. Mine has crossed my
path and we will start out in a new
life together. She may take her time
in growing accustomed to the new
situation-but her fate is sealed
He entered Nellie's presence with
bright eyes, rosy cheeks and the air of
a well balanced man who has satisfac-
torily decided q very important and
difficult question. When he noticed
her unusual reserve he thought II will
leave Nellie to herself and he perfectly
mathematician she may understand
what l am to her and greet a fellow in
the proper spirit" Then came to him
like a fash the thought that perhaps
Nellie realized too keenly that he was
dear to her and that this falling in
love on so short an acquaintance and
without being woOed seemed to her a
weakness, almost a sin, for which she
could not pardon herself and that it
was her great desire for his good opin-
ion that caused her to hide from him
the truth. His sympathy was aroused.
She should Immediately know now he
loved her and then she would be saved
the torture of the thought perhaps she
loved where her love was not returned.
They had been acquainted but a few
weeks and had not yet become easy in
each others society or been able to
carry on a conversation properly in
each others presence. However when
love is fully awakened nothing in the
other side of the balance counts and so
without m~isgivings or thought as to
possible results John with all the sin
cerity of his nature brought forth
declarations from the fuIlness of his
heart and asked with all the noble ten
derness of his true manhood the ques.
ton that q true roman cannot resent
from the man she loves.
But Nellie did resent. She loved, yet
her mind was 90 full of false impress
sions of life-so full of notions as to the
-.o-~SoASoo - eoIS--s I0-o--I IoS~~