Middletown transcript., 1894-01-20
!!

r. iii Enrch, n1d % not fec6i1 a.
lis hi i splt % - her home ~
thss 1hIle ~ Nigh p 4 pleasant pe1
son to I1oV, Dhe pltied tho woman n
might mziry be was evidently of
very nbt and ficle nature and his ieg
lses wsla too thin. After that she quit
| dinmiazd him from her thoughts an@
began specnlatfng On putting . mid
night New Years service into her next
story, for she wrote stories, and bad
como to Now York to live for fame
/ and pick up her bread and butter Incl.
dentally. She was young for the lonely
position she occupied, and pretty, but
despite the little wondering feminine
vagaries Of her mind, she was solemnly
! CONVINCED that q life Of celibacy was
the one calculated to nourish her gem
| ins, and that to nonrish her genius was
her duty.
New Years morning she got up
thinking about all the social festivity
she had heard Of as peculiar to New
York on that day. She was 50 belated
that she did not know that New Years
calls were out of date. She looked q
pathetic figure when she reflected that
there was no one to call on her. She
knew no one but two or three editors
who felt they had munifcenly fulfilled
all social obligations to q promising
contributor when they had asked her
to something known as q literary re-
ception, and had let her look at their
lions and talk to vague young men con-
nected with publishing houses. She:
had even always come home with q
messenger-boy-at her own expense
and to her simple. provincial mind,
the literary reception had seemed to inn
perfectly represent the pleasures Of the
world and the flesh, not even to hint at
the devil.
To-day she felt longing to be gay,
just as gay as il she had no genius to
nourish, to wear good clothes, and look
pretty and listen to silly compliments.
No one will call; no one can tell, of
course. 1t would be the most pre-
sumptuo1s thing in the world for Mr..
Noyes tothink of such thing. and /
don't believe he is so far gone in rude
ness as that, !" was one train Of thought
in her mind, and the next was to con-
clude, as she was SO lonely and IL was
dreary to be lonely on New Years
Day, that she'd play she was going to
receive, and she'd dress herself, and
burn some incense in her sitting-room,
and get out bottle of sherry and buy
a loaf of cake, 2 jnst as If Iwere a little
girl and could pretend anything I i
wanted t., and have it almost as good |
as true, she said to herself.
Mr. James Mccoy Noyes shaved him
self pensiyely as he reflected that his
choice for New Years dinner lag
the house Of the pastor Of the
Church Of the Holy Bulrnshes and
Z n
restaurant. .sYou can't always be go-
ing to q preachers house for dinner if I
you you never 60 to hear him preach, =
ran his thoughts, 'tand anyhow ones
about as dismal as the other. Then
hat red-headed daughter of his will
marry me or the next man before we
know it if ] don't look sharp. It's
hat kind of thing that makes you
reconciled to girls like Miss Arnott
yoing in for career and all that.
They say-at least, the elevator boy
says-she writes stories-rot, suppose
but she's nice girl. With girl
ike that to chum around with, and no
husband nets out, this thing Of being
llone in New Yerk would be quite a
different thing.''
It was about noon when Miss Ar
1ott got her preparations for the recep-
ion of imaginary visitors completed. /
rhe sherry was one of half dozen
,ottles that an old bachelor uncle had
ent her for Christmas. She had not
opened it because to drink wine alone
seemed to her sadder than to have the
vine, like the company, fashioned Of
hin aia She had cake and a lay sont Of
Ca, and she had dressed herself in an
I'D white muslin because it was be-
coming, though darned, andstrung her.
elf over with beads, like fancy shop
window because they were becoming,
90, and she loved them, and she did
,ot intend to allow any imaginary
women to come near her, she knew she
;onid not prevent even immaginary
women from saying she looked silly-l'
'ut imaginary men might be trusted to
admire.
AS she gave touch to her curtains
hat they mightadmit her glimpse Of
be Hudson and at the same time shut
ut the sight of neighboring wall
hat advertised liver pills. there came
mock Vt her door. She opened ii, fear
ng it was the washerwoman, and there
TODD Mr.. Noyes, with his overcoat ON.
lis hat in one hand, and a Maltese
Zitten in the other.
T found your property straying inl
orbidden paths, said he, holding out
be animal. +.
fWhy-I-dear me. the ideal ri ,
cry kind of you to bring her homo. /,
,ome 70 me this minute, you nauahty ,
r0ndlon - aoid fho 1r.7s. 80 u. ..sss9si q