The Monmouth inquirer., 1897-07-15
THE MAN WHO BELIEVED.

ROOM . but | assert once more ana Tor
the last time-no really must go, thank
you-that nine-tenths Of our girls
would no more think of marrying a
man without money than they would
of staying in New York all summer;
and amid chorus of questions and de-
risive remarks, he marched out the
door, as firm as ever in his opinions.
The others looked at each other, and
then Ames remarked slowly,
Il fear me much that Lowe is get
ting pesimistic. He never used to be
so.''
Perhaps he has gone through the
mill, who knows?7 said Redmond.
HE has, replied Graham, "and was
ground out exceeding fine. His be-
trothed threw him over when he fail
ed"
Lucky man!'' murmured the roman
tic boy and the others smiled indul-
gently.
"And of course he thinks his expert
ence the rule said Topleys. But why
shouldn't it be the exception?"
1T might be, but for the fact that
Low never did an exceptional thing, "
returned Stratford, decisively, "and you
fellows don't understand what he mems
any way. He did not say it was the
fault of the girls; he did not say that
they do not know how to love a man
as they used to when true love was the
thing, the absolutely correct thing; all
he asserted-and l quite agree with
him--was that our girls have not the
moral courage to face poverty nova
days, with the man they love, and !
don't blame them. We've become so
used to the so-called luxuries of life
that you cannot place a finger on one
of them that hasn't really become a
necessity, and no man wants to drag
a girl fror the comforts that riches
provides down to a struggling fifth
foor-back existence, for the mere sat
isfaction of seeing her three times a
day, in place of once.
But loce," gasped the romantic boy,
. "do you count it out completely"
My dear boy returned Stratford.
turning upon him, you are young, ex-
ceedingly young, and you must not try
to monopolize the conversation with
such by-gone topics. Love is all very
well in it's place, but it should never in
terfere with business, and marriage is
a business nowadays quite as much as
concerning wheat.
stAnd about as uncertain as to pro-
fits and losses" put in Ames.
Exactly, though when we've corn
cred wife she usually stays"
Except in Chicago" ventured Red
mond-but no one heard him.
s"To blame the girls for this state of
affairs is nonsense, and unjust, Strait
ford went on; 1T is due to our pro-
gressive ideas, and nothing more, not
to the girls, who simply do as they
must. Though l deplore the fact that
we are a mercenary nation, | can't see
that we, can lay the blame upon the
shoulders of our girls and women, with
any justice. They but do our biddings.
and if we-that is the fathers of the
girls understand-say Go, thou, and
pick thyself a rich husband, lest
break and be confounded before cred
itorsi' pray tell me what choice have
they? None. And so long has this been
going on, in one form or another, that
you do not find our girls marrying poor
men,
There was a pause after this out
break on Stratford's part, and then
Holland, the. only man who had not yet
spoken, said:
"And yet, Stratford, Low acknowl-
edged exceptions to this rule You do
not, do you?"
"Oh, yes!" replied Stratford, "one in
ten thousand. But l do not know ten
thousand girls my dear fellow, and I
never expect to meet that exception,
though / should like to do SO! She
must truly be a remarkable grill"
81 hope you will some day." said
Holland, quietly; Il think it would do
you good, and perhaps make you appre-
ciate your sister more
The other flashed an angry look at
the speaker, but Holland met it calm
ly and said nothing.
Il speak from experience, or that of
Low and several others, whom / hap
pen to know have suffered as he has, =
said Stratford, slowly, and dare say
that there is not an engaged man in
this club who would go to his fiancee
and tell her he has suddenly failed.
and keep the deception up for week.
If he did, he would find himself free
again, that's ALL
The small number of engaged men in
the room smiled thoughtfully and said
nothing. Those who were not, nodded
decidedly, but Holland was still undis-
mayed.
Though / am not an engaged man,
and therefore cannot prove or disprove
your asertion,'' he said, Il fell sure that
you are radically wrong. Though the
tendency of the time is to bury our
emotions and great passions, and to be
iconoclastic to the last, in everything,
/ can't but believe that there are girls
whom you and know, who would will
ingly give up their 'needfuP luxuries,
their social standing, and their past
life in society, to go, hand in hand
with poverty even, each with the man
she loves--to share his fate, and be the
partner of his joys and sorrows, just
as they did when your mother and
mine were young. l am not looking at
life-nor the girls of our set-through
rose-tinted prince-nez but humanity is
humanity all the world over. and
through ages past and ages to come;
and love. after all, is the greatest thing