The record-union., 1897-10-31
WERE ALL SORRY.
A Somewhat Too Sweeping Reques
To he Eznueraiea.

!
George.
This letter,"
She held it up.
Laura, have you been
! mo, I haven't been searching your
pockets You know / haven't 1 was
moving your coat from this chair, and
a letter fell out. This is the letter. 1t
is directed to you, and it's in wo
mans hand. You haven't told me of
j any correspondence you are carrying on
J with
"Open it and read it, Laura" inter-
rupted Mr.. Ferguson. "If there was
/ any letter in my pocket I didn't know
it. 20 ahead and read it. Maybe it's
/ a millinery BILL
scorning to reply to this. Mrs. Fer
guson opened the letter and ran her
eye over it.
'Oh, you didn't know this was in your
t pockat!'' she piped. you didn't know
/ it, Maybe it's a millinery bill, is it?
Listen, My dearest George'-so you're
some body else's dearest George, are
you?-'My dearest George: When are
/ you coming to see ne again? I am
very lonely'-she is very lonely, is she?
| oh, you two-faced hypocrite!-Tf you
she wants you to write if you can't
come, does she?-'You can't think,
dearest George, how I miss ~
What nonsense are you reading,
Laura?" demanded George, beginning
to lie reused. DO you mean to
| say
1 mean to say am reading this let
ter you told me to read, Mr.. Ferguson.
/ I
your-that dropped out of your pocket.
You don't know anything about it,
don't you. You can't think, dearest
George
Laura, are you fool enough to think
that's genuine? Don't you know better
! than to imagine"
Il am q fool, am I, Mr. Ferguson?
Well, I'll just show you
Let me see the letter.
Let you see it! What do you want
to see it for? Oh, no, Mr.. Ferguson!
1 am going to keep it and show it to
my mother!''
| We'll, hold it so I can look at it. 7
promise you solemnly [ will not at
tempt to take it away from you"
III see that you don'tl Here it is.
| Now look at it! Stay right where YOU
are George Ferguson! Don't you come
a step Leareri''
How can I see it ten feet awayo
Lay it down and then come and tia
my hands behind me if you are afraid
! Ill--''
"Oh, yes! Lay it down and you'll
| grab it, l see through youl What's
| the use OF pretending you never saw
this before?"
There doesn't seem to be any use
in it-that's a fact. Nevertheless. as
sure you, Laura, on my honor as a
/ man.
On your honorl H'mphI"
Yes, ON my honor-hmph! I have
never seen that letter before. 1 never
put 1t IN my pocket. I didn't know it
was there. 1 am not anybody else's
dearest George, and that letter is a
clumsy fake, got up by somebody who
| wants to have a little fun with me-
4 wish l could believe it! On.
George! George!"
(Sobs.)
-
Boys" said George Ferguson, tbe
next day when he went into the office
Where he was employed downtown
that was a good joke some one of vou
played on me when you put that let
ter IN my pocket yesterday. but if
threatens to break up a happy family
ana L ask as a favor that the chan
| VINO dld it will just write letter TO
| my wife and tell her it was a bit of fun
ana that 1 am not to blame in the
shghtest degree. [ don't want to know
Who it was. All I ask is that the thing
| shall be Straighfened ont
! 4
1t was late in the afternoon. There
came a ring at the doorbelI pertaining
to the Ferguson dwelling, and a mas
| senger delivered a letter addressed to
Mrs. George Ferguson.
| She opened it and read:
| Dear Mrs. Ferguson: In a spirit of
mischief I slipped a letter in your hus
! bands coat pocket yesterday which I
| fear may have fallen into your hands.
and in order to atone for any misunder-
standing it may possibly have caused I
wish to say that L wrote it myself and
that it is purely imaginary. With
great respect 1 subscribe myself yours
| truly"
This was signed "Marcenus TIanlxin-
SON.
Hardly had she finished reading this
when another messenger came and left
another letter. It read thus:
MY Dear Mrs. Ferguson: I have
little confession to make. Yesterday
in a thoughtless moment I wrote a let
ter purporting to come from some wom-
an and dropped it into your husbands s
| pocket. For fear you may have seen
! it L take occasion to assume the re-
| sponsibility fer the clumsy joke and to
! apologize for it. With great respect,
! yours sincerely
The signature was "Oliver Peduncle."
! Then there came another letter-also
| by special messenger. 1t was as follows:
MY dear Madam: Pardon me for
addressing you, but I wish to plead
| guilty to the preparation of a foolish
| joke on your husband yesterday.
wrote love letter (signed 'Dollie,' if I
remember rightly and slipped it into
Mr.. Ferguson's coat pocket. Fearing
| it may have met your eye I write this
| to exonerate your husband and to take
upon myself the entire blame for the
silly performance. Respectfully yours"
It was signed "A. Spoonamore."
| The bewildered woman had hardly
/ perused this note and laid it on the
parlor table with the others when a
| fourth came. It was to this effect
Permit me, my dear Mrs. Ferguson,
| to atone for an act of thoughtlessness
committed yesterday. Yielding to
hasty impulse. L wrote letter to your
husband purporting to come from some
feminine admirer. This I placed in