Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1896-05-05
PROPOSED TO DEPEW.
A WOMAN SENDS cHAuNCEY A LIST
 OF HER QUALIFICATIONS.
Is Poor, but InteIIectual-Would Leave the Marriage Allowance to His Generosity. A Jameson Raiders Odd Request and Why He Made It.


 Why He Made It.
 Chauncey M. Depew has received proposal of marriage from a young woman in California who has taken advantage of the leap year privilege of her sex. A reporter called to learn the history of the interesting event.
 1T would like to know, Mr Depew, o began the reporter, how matters would appear to you if you were to stop all work and try to merely kill time by idling?"
 My boy" he answered, time would kill me, and before the lapse of six months you would be giving me q fine send off in your obituary columns. You are eying that correspondence very closely, see. If you could but see the whole of it, if you could but see half of it, if you could but see one quarter of it"-- He toyed with letter which ap peared to be i'll feminine hand and wheeling around i'll his chair said to his stenographer "When did this come?" Before there was time for a reply he re- stunned: ''I am asked by persons i'll all corners of the world to solve all manner of problems, to extend all manner of as- sistance to those who are i'll want, and then to tell whether there was really any asp at all in question when Cleopa- tra killed herself By and by they will deny the existence of Cleopatra herself mean her of the ancient time-but they cannot deny the existence of the modern Cleopatra who dwells ill the west and whose assurances of devotion are em- bodied in these lines. |" Again he toyed with the letter with as genuine an air of enjoyment as the great Gladstone himself shows when watching the play of his little granddaughter.
 ''Let me see it, MT. Depew?" asked the reporter.
 ''I know you well and trust you in all particulars as a man of honor, but this really is asking too much. J There was such an air of coyness and mock gravity in the way in which these words were spoken as made it evident that the stage lost an actor of no mean excel lence when Chauneey turned his atten- tion to the railroad business upon leav- ing school.
 Well, what does it eontain?' que- ried the reporter with stony hearted per sistence.
 Whisper, Mir. Depew said. Tits a proposalp'
 'Mr. Depew, " said the reporter, un- able to conceal his disappointment, T fail to see anything wonderful in that. A man in your position must be inun- dated with such things every day in the year. have no pretensions to any prominence, still scarcely day passes that some crank of fellow doesn't try to''-
 Softly" interposed the railroad president as the spirit of fun settled down upon his face and he laid his hand upon the reporters arm, you don't understand '
 ''But you said proposal, Mir. De- pew"
 "Quite true, but I mean 1t is pro- posal of marriage
 "Ah, now. this is too good" said the reporter. Won't you show it to me?"
 He gave way, and in the most deli cate manner took the knight of the pen cil into his confidence and let him see the letter. The communication had the stamp of good faith. The young woman gave her name and address and spoke of her qualifications quite freely. It bore the postmark of a city in California. There was an air of simplicity about the opening sentence.
 ''I saw by an advt. ill the papers that you intend to get married again. ," Then it went on; ''You must have many pro- posals of marriage from women who are rich and uncultured Now, am poor, but intellectual, and as for money, or rather the want of it, feel quite cer- tain, Mir Depew, that your generous heart and plethoric purse will more than make up for that deficiency" The writ CT referred to the marriage of ex-Pres- ident Harrison ill glowing terms and closed with request for full and early reply"
 Il really must keep that, said MT Depew as he folded the letter and put it away in an envelope What do you think of it?" he asked after a pause
 Tt is pleasant reading, replied the reporter timidly.
 ''I know" answered MT. Depew, "but don't you think if that sort of thing were to be encouraged they would be making matrimonial bureau of me in short time-a sort of up town Cas- tie Garden, so to speak?"
 ''It might reach indefinite propor- tions, Mir. Depew, it is true, /" remark ed the reporter, "but it would soon be discovered that there was not enough of you to go around. ]"
 Quite right, quite right, he ex- claimed. "Still, think can beat this experience in the life of busy man and railroad president. Whisper ''
 The reporter draw his chair close by until he was within earshot of the long distance telephone, over which MT. De- pew paused ill his narrative to exchange