The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1897-12-19

1t was Christmas eve, and Miss
Thorne was tired.
The week before Christmas is a busy
one for most of US, but it is especially
busy for fashionable young ladies like
Miss Thorne, who belong to many and
various charitable organizations and
cOnscientiously try to perform all the
duties thus devolving upon them.
There had been the kindergarten
children, the old people in the home,
the sailors at the Bethel, the Chinese
at the mission, the prisoners at the
Jail, the invalds in the hospital, the
Working Girls and Newsboys' clubs
and the church poor all to be looked
after. There had been trees and pres
ents to be attended to and visits to be
made to all quarters of the city, and
Miss ThOrne had worked like a tiger, -
as she expressed it, through it all.
This afternoon had been passed in
the rooms of the Fruit and Flower
Mission making bouquets and packing
baskets to be sent to the hospitals on
the following day, and when the last
scrap of flower had been utilized and
the last orange tucked away the load
of responsibility which had burdened
Miss Thorne's shoulders for the past
few days had rolled off them. The
yearly rush was over, and she could
look forward to doing such good works
as might be required of her in a leis-
urely and comfortable fashion for
twelve months to come.
A perfumed bath and a dinner, eaten
for the first time in a week as a din
ner should be, had done much to re-
fresh Miss Thorne both bodily and
mentally. She was still tired enough,
however, to enjoy a quiet season in her
own room in a loose wrapper and a
sOft-cushioned lounging chair in front
of a CHEEKY CRATE fire before dressing
for the evenings festivities. Indeed
she declared to herself as she sat there,
warm and comfortable and thoroughly
content, that she would really be far
happier if she could spend the evening
IN her coy room instead of being
dragged out to ball in which she felt
not the faintest interest. However,
go she must, for Mrs. Van Aleyne's
Christmas eve ball was sure to be one
of the events" if not the event of
the season, and it was almost obIiga-
tory that all society people-at least
those of the inner circle"-should ap-
pear there. If only Mark Sheldon
were in town now she would feel very
her. OF course she did not care any
thing about Mark now that he had
proved to be of such a suspicious, jeal-
Gus and domineering disposition She
had not been actually engaged to him,
anyway. Perhaps is not yes" and
she had just taken his case under ad-
visement," as it were. Therefore he
certainly had no right to be angry and
say diSagreeable and untrue thing
just because she had given young
Van Aleyne three dances before supper
at the Pinxleys!
He had accused her of flirting" of
being fond of admiration" "frivo-
lous" and 'vain!" She certainly never
would forgive him for that! and then
then she had told him Jelly that it was
plain that they were not meant for
each other" and that it was better
for them to part" and he had taken
her at her word-the stupid! And
the next thing that she had heard
about him he had gone up to some
pOky place in the mountains to spend
the holidays, and she-well, she was
going to Mrs. Van Aleyne's Christ
mas eve ball, and that afternoon a box
Of flowers-each blossom so perfect in
form and tint as to be worthy of spe-
ciaI admiration even here in flower
empowered California-had arrived
with Mr.. Van Aleynes compliments. "
Plainly there was no necessity for her
to wear the willow, and tonight a GER
tain pair Of accusing eyes would not
be present to note every word and
smile that she chose to bestow upon
any other than their owner. Surely