The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1897-12-17

" ought to be in love with
the man she marries! l am hereto
enough to believe that she ought not.
If Iwere in love, 1 should not be able
to summon my reason to array all the
advantages l am to derive from my
marriage-to stand them all up in a
row to look at and admire and to as.
sure myself that will do well to take
them and their owner, aud to leave en-
tirely out Of the question the fact that
/ care less than nothing for him.
am glad l don't love him. Love
seems a little vulgar to me when l
think of Mr. Finch. Besides, I should
be ashamed of myselfif 1 were in love
with--him! 1 hope I still have my
former good taste. My taste is not
polluted, even if l have decided to
marry him. 1 have always fattered
myself that 1 knew superior men, and
that | brought out their good points.
wonder if Mr.. Finch has any good
points to bring out! Here heis. Not
handsome--no. His best friend could
not call him handsome. | don't like
his mouth. Those thin lips look as if
they could be cruel. He won't beat
me; he will be sarcastic. That long
nose will go up at the corners and look
more pointed and ugly, aud those lines
at the side will deepen into burrows,
and dear Mr.. Finch won't be pretty to
look at nor pretty to hear, l can assure
you.
If l were in love with him, his sar-
casm could hurt me. As it is, I shall
shrug my shoulders and turn my back
on him until he cools down. l hate a
man with temper. I've enough for
whole family.
No, he is not handsome. He is not
good-tempered. Has he anything to
recommend him to woman? Yes
one. He is rich. Rich beyond the
dreams of ayarice, and he knows it,
and counts on it to buy him friends
and-eYen wife. feel as if 1 were
a bale of cotton or carload of pig
iron when [ think of it. He thinks
his money will compensate for the lacE
of family and the lack of breeding, anC
that it will even get him into heaven
Well, it will almost do that. I sup
pose heaven'is the only place where
money will not buy an entrance int
best circles.
| wonder if he loves mel He say
he does, but it makes me creepy t,
hear him talk about it. Love! VIVA
does a man who goes by the name o
Finch, and has such a colorless per
sonality, know about so beautiful
thing as love? / am sure 1 wish h
wouldn't talk about it, or try to pumr
up any of the requisite emotion. IwisI
he were even more cold-blooded abou
it than he is.
I am unable to soften the matter, O
to throw any glamour over it when
sit here and think about him and tn
life [ must live if I marry him, All m
sophistry takes wings and leaves me t
face the cold, bare truth.
I wonder if I shall be actively c
passively unhappy! Shall 1 just mis-
in general way, all the beauty an
holiness of the love i have lost, or wi
it take form and frame face an
speak to me with voice that wi
D wiring tears from my heart?
If woman's heart is filled wit
love for a man, it makes it so tend,
that he has doubly the power towouu
: by a word or neglect. Mr.. Fine
g could never hurt me. If he woul
i neglect me 1 should be glad If
attempted to coerce me, [ should ha
him. If he tried to make me lo'
a him, I should want to kill him.
IS ] don't know why L have sudden
|. come to feel things so poignantly t
. night. I have been lending myself
this thing for months, and it did n
= hurt. Ihave felt so cold and apathet
that it gave me courage to 80 0