Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1893-08-12
A little Romance

A Little Romance.
cali the world loves lover" some
one said, long time ago. This may be
stating it a little strong but one may say
and not miss it that the world is always
interested in lover. Anything tinged
a little with romance viii interest peo-
pie when everything else might fail.
You could not imagine more tired,
more disguised, disgruntled, hotter,
dirtier crowd of people than were aboard
the train enroute west from Kansas
City. Brave men arose in their seats
and with the 81 dare do all that may
become man, who dares DO more is
none" air told of by Shakespeare, hur-
riedly threw off their coats and vests,
unbuttoned their collars, tied handker-
chiefs around their necks and sat def
antly down among the crowd of once
fair women, who sat sullenly silent, while
the last crimp faded from their naturally
curly hair, leaving the once pretty ring
let like so many diminutive horns.
Babies walled because it was so hot,
then walled again because it was nc
cooler.
People eyed each other with cold
stares-if you can imagine cold stare
when the thermometer boiled and bub-
bled merrily in the shade. Suddenly
everything seemed changed. People in
the "forrad end" of the car talked to-
gether, smiled, nodded, and winked
knowingly at each other, then turned
around and whispered it to the folks
behind, and the newsboy carried it to the
next car. Then we all knew in little
while that we could see her if we would
only 90 to the second car back from the
engine and that we would know her by
the "white bow" on her shoulder
"Who is she?' why her name is
Jennie Shelton, so she told lady in the
Union depot, and she is 4S years old, a
native of Little Rock, Arkansas; that
she has been corresponding with Joseph
Taylor, widower, SO years old, living
near Manhattan, Kansas. Well, Joseph
promised faithfully to meet Jennie in
Kansas City where they would become
one"-that is one to the extent that
they might call each other "Joe" and
"Jen" thereafter.
"Why didn't he appear?" Was "Joe'
sick, was Joe" a flirt, or was "Joe" q
fake2"
The lady counseled sending the ailing
recreant, or mythical lover a telegram
stating that Jennie would, in the kind,
ness of her heart, 60 more than hal
way, in fact meet him at Manhattan.
Well, everybody was anxious to know
how it would all turn out and the trip
to Manhattan was taken up in sympa.
thizing with Jennie or moralizing on
these matches made "sight unseen, y
and differences were drawn from SINH.
lar case, where two persons, once resi-
dents of Wa-Keeney, were brought to.
gether by that matrimonial paper known
as '"The Heart and Hand"
Why had Jennie, who had remained q
maiden lady till the age of 4S, when hel
steel blue eyes were as cold and unex'
pressionate as the eyes of fish, now
taken it into her head to chase after ar
abstract masculinity? Why? Well, you
60 on surmising as we did, while L tel
the romantic, giddy girls that Joe die
not appear at Manhattan. That Jennie
nervously paced the platform with hel
white bow pinned on her shoulder, tc
the amusement and perhaps pity of the
crowd, and there, seated in the little
waiting room with her market basket Of
belongings on her lap, we left her to hel
sorrowful and lonely reflections and-tc
fate.