Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1896-05-23
A WOULD BE FLIRT.


IF woman really is in love with
her husband she cannot expect to have
very good time at dance"
So spoke the dearest little woman in
all the world late one evening Oh re-
turning from a pleasant entertainment
given by one of our neighbors, as she
sank wearily into one of the big sofa
cushions that adorned the couch of our
room.
l knew by the curious way she had
acted during our short walk home that
something was troubling her pretty
head, SO preserved discreet silence
after the utterance of the above remark.
She gave me quick glance to notice
the effect Of her words, and seeing me
white carnations from the lapel of my
dress coat she continued:
"She may enjoy herself after fashion,
but in order to thrill as she did as a
girl it is necessary to be interested more
or less in somebody else.'
Still l kept silent, and gathering
courage from pure lack Of opposition she
went on:
eff were only able to flirt, could
get along famously. have often seen
other women add this variety to their
lives, and as far as l could ever find
out no harm resulted"
Pray do not abstain from any such
enjoyment on my account" interposed.
Don It f1atter yourself, my dear, " she
said. II have the inner consciousness
that have tried and failed-yes, failed
utterly"
"Tried what?'
''Tried to firt, you goose. determin-
ed to try it just as an experiment I'll
tell you all about it if you Won't inter-
rupt me and will be real good to me for
the rest Of my life.
eyes, tried desperately to imagine
myself an i'll treated woman; that
hated you terribly, and finally to make
myself believe that such person as
Geotfrey Gordon never existed, hut to
what an ond Just as I fancied I was
succeeding, you would bob up serenely
into vision and there you would stay, no
matter how hard l tried to forget you. I"
OF late, after the many social func-
tions we had attended, [ had noticed a
disposition on the part of my wife to
answer only vaguely to my inquiries as
to whether she had enjoyed herself at
Mrs. So-and-so's musicale, or Miss
Somebody's reception, but never sup
posed for a moment there was anything
serious Oh her mind, as the above some
what gloomy expression indicated. So I
turned all attention to hear what might
be called a confession.
Maybe you would not be averse to
being given an opportunity to use my
insurance money, Or else a judge i'll the
divorce court might be prevailed upon
to render his decision''-
But here my remarks were cut short
by demonstration that would hardly
look we'll in words-in fact, should be
at loss how to express such mani
festation OF feminine protestation.
When she had resumed a state that
made intelligibility possible, she broke
forth:
Nov, Geoffrey, that is too unkind
for anything. When come to you to
tell you all, you stand there and make
fun of me. You had better be careful,
young man. 1t may be worse than you
suppose. You know what your favorite,
Congreve, says:
Heaven hath no rage like love to hatred turned,
Nor hell "a fury like woman scorned.
$50 keep real good till have finished.
'You see, before I was married,
whenever I went to dance, there was
always some one-four or five in fact
whom l thoroughly liked, and on whom
/ could count to speak to me before the
evening was over and with whom I
conld have pleasant chat and dance.
So, 10 matter how distasteful my pres
ent partner might be, my anticipations
were pleasant enough to make up for
the present.
'"There were certain men who per-
haps were not actually i'll love with me
(she said this with perfectly straight
face), but who invariably felt disposed
to drift in my direction, SO that I was
kept perpetually buoyed up while talk
ing with the stupid ones and absorbed
after they did speak to me by delightful
uncertainty rs to what the future might
bring forth. That, of course, was before
] met you, dear.
"When l go to dances now, seem to
lose remembrance of the fact that l am
married, and with woman's vanity l
begin to be painfully aware that the
very men who would have stood ON
their heads had | asked it in the past
conld not count on now to take the least
interest in me or to talk other than the
dreariest platitudes They We're painful
ly polite. would advance toward me
with few commonplace remarks, and
when they favored me at german with
some glittering trinket, for which l