Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1894-08-18
HER DILEMMA.

10 and fro, back and across the rose
bestrcwn carpet of the drawing room
IN Victoria street lat swept and rus
tied the laces and silks of Mrs. Ven
ning's newest Paris tea gown.
What shall | do? Whatever shall
do?" cried Mrs. yenning as for tho
hundredth timcthc writing table barred
her progress and turned her footsteps
back to where the carved nlantelpiece
positively groancd under its load of
Dresden china, old worries, fresh roses
and bibolots of every description
She crossed tho white fur rug, and
pausing gazeti with self plying smile
at tho pretty profusion that met her
eyes.
Roses ct Christmasn' she said aloud
'"That's the text Of the old sermon For
the three years Of lay widowhood I've
had roses at Christmas and everything
else to match. Laura Marindin spent
| $500 when she hong Ter boudoir with
| French brocades. | ran in debt as many
thousands by doing up my rooms with
old embroideries. suppose she's got q
| receipt for her money. | have a county
court summons for mine.
She dropped into the writing chair
and leaned her chin, dimpled and round
as baby's, ia her palms. ut seems to
be about $50, coo the hor1id people want
from me can't make it any less, and
I've added everything together dozen
times. Of course l know l have been
| extravagant; but, then, I'm young
and-not bad looking which was
Mrs. Venning's way of considering her
undoubted bcauty-''and widow into
the bargain. And widows are expected
to be so very smart nowadays.
"Still the tradespeople should not
have given me such unlimited credit.
All, that's the real root of the whole
matterl The credit SYSTEM is the ruin
Of women, who, like myself, must have
pretty things about them.
Thirty Thousand dollars, and most
of it to lie paid almost at once. am
worth-nothing- cash. These things
she looked about her luxurious sur
roundings with appreciative eyes-"I
wonder what they would fetch if it
came to sale? paid--at least / owe
an awful lot for some of them But it
mustn't, it shan't, come to sale. A
rich marriage. Now, let me think who
will do.
I'D throw the handkerchief to Raph-
ael Gluckstein in a moment, and
know he'd positively jump at me, for
the sake Of my visiting list and the
country houses | stay at, but that he
would want to rry too much and would
find cut at once that when my late hus-
band, Robert Venning, died he only left
$50, 600 behind him and not the $50,
600 a year with which society and the
tradespeople have chosen to credit me.
Gluckstein wouldn't marry a penniless
woman to attain even the Duchess of
Newlands little dinner parties. y
And so, with crinkled brows and a
slender forefnger that licked off each
victim to Mrs Yenning's charms as he
came i'll view, the prettiest and most
popular woman i'll town passed before
her minds eye such men as, by THEN
station or fortune, could alone save her
from social and financial humiliation.
The Earl of Wcssex she had openly
snubbed a month ago, and only week
back his engagement to Chicago pork
packers daughter had been announced.
Hon. Bertio Shorthouse was nice
boy, and his prospects truly grand, but
he had been very wild on his own ac-
count, and a marriage with him might
scarcely be satisfactory-fromt the point
of view of the clamorous tradespeople.
The young Dplle of Woodford was
highly eligible, but the old duchess,
his mother, kept sharp eye on the lad
and had openly expressed her detesta
ton of widows.
The bishop of Barchester was rich
and well preserved man, but, oh, SO
prosy and SO dreadfully intolerant of
the ways of the world
And so on through endless strings of
moths, who had fluttered round and
burned their silly wings at the flame OF
Mrs. Venning's bright eyes.
Suddenly she paused, blushed deli
ciously, then laughed at herself for do
ing so.
cts a dreadful thing to do" she
said, passing her fingers lightly over her
burning cheeks. 81 don't know how
such an idea could ever come into my
head. F"
She opened the blotter. drew some
dainty monogrammed paper toward her,
and taking pen began hastily to scrib
| BILE few names across the sheet
Lord Fordwell, of course The duke
Il can't help it if his mother doesn' (
like it. The boy must marry some day.
The bishop of Barchester. Gluckstein-
III risk him. Colonel Dingwall is a
nice looking fellow, with comfortable
income, and he was most epris with me
at Goodwood. Lord Arthur st. John
will certainly write to. I've not seen
him for q year, but l know he is at
Brighton, and he always said if ever /
felt inclined to change my mind he
would only be too pleased Sir Roder-
ick Mcpherson and BERTHE Shorthouse.
Eight of them.
Fancy q woman writing to eight
men to express her perfect willingness
to marry any one of them! The only
circumstance that prevents mo expiring
with horror at my own temerity is the
| fact that all of them have proposed to
me, and in their different ways expressed
perfect readiness to fall i'll with my
views if ever could persuade myself
to reconsider my decision.
Yet all the time a curious hesitancy
rninpled with her air of determination.