The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1896-01-30
"A Modern Novel.

We have been reading serial tale in
The Century. Its name is The Princess
Sonia, = and it has been running now
many months. It is finished at last, and
we feel better. There was not much to
the story except the one theme Of gush-
ing and twirling emotions. There was
not any information in it for the brain.
1t did not deal with anything that any
body Of any sense is particularly inter
ested in. 1t dealt. with the quarrel and
reconciliation Of a husband and wife.
They had been married a month. Then
the wife parted from her young hus-
band. 1t is not exactly clear what she
ordered him off the place for, whether
she didn It love him any more or whether
she thought lie did not love her enough
any more. Probably the lady author of
the tale knows. Of course it was by a
lady author. Only lady novelists can do
justice to emotional high jinks.
Through many months this woman
who had been wanting to make it up
with the man lodged him to keep from
making it up. At last he caught her fair
and square. Once when they We're by
chance riding in the same cab and he
was trying his dead best to keep the fire
out Of his eyes she gave him look such
that This heart leaped, his pulses throb-
bed, his checks flushed darkly. He
moved a little nearer to her, SO that
their faces We're quite close, and still
her eyes met his with that wild, con-
centrated gaze.
The wild, concen trated gaze famed
the fire in his eyes higher than ever, and
he g1asped hard the-t top Of his stick, and
his breath came thick and fast, while
her eyes still chung to his Probably he
sucked the end of his stick too. He even
dropped his stick in the volcanic erup-
tion Of his feelings, aud his breath hove
big heaves, while his hands were cold
and shaking. For he loved her still! !!
'Sonia," he gusped, with big gasp,
In Gods name what do you mean?''
Still she remained ''motionless and
Wordless,'' although a drum away off
in the dim distance somewhere throbbed
like the beating Of a great excited heart.
No wonder he determined to have it out
with her and find out what she meant
by having her eyes clinging to him in a
wild, concentrated gaze. Puzzled,
confused, bewildered almost to the point
Of frenzy" he did nothing more desper-
ate than to get back into the cab after
she left him, with her eyes still cling
ing to him.
He went to her next day, dressed in
his best suit Of clothes. She had been
meanwhile living on the "throbbing
bliss of that one half hour" - But when
he came to see her next day, although
that was just what she was dying to
have him do, she was high and haugh-
ty. "Cowardly and cruel" she painted,
her lips blazing and her eyes curling,
Or maybe it was her eyes blazing and
her lips curling, one gets SO blown about
in these landslides of emotion. Then
she said she didn't love him, but her
breast was heaving SO, her heart was
throbbing so, that she could hardly
catch her breath, and that man knew
she lied. So he tried it again. He caught
her in his arms. She cuddled down to
him, and their hearts throbbed together
in fine style till suddenly she tore her
self away from him with wrench. 1t
was real monkey wrench, it was so
uncommon. Then she cuddled down
and ''hid her face in the curve of his
tensely Bonded arm" Then she flung
her arms wildly about and screeched,
"What have.I to do with happiness?''
Our readers will be glad to know that
he took holu of this crazy young woman
and held her back from cutting up any
more Mysteries. He used compelling
tone with her, SO that at length she
"was motionless and wordless in his
arms. - High time to shut her off too.
Doubtless many inlanders are puzzled
to know the meaning Of the expression
slime allowance as applied to racing
yachts. Other things being equal, boat
that is longer and can carry more sail
can go faster than shorter one. Allow
ance must be made for this in comput-
ing the respective rates of speed Of two
III