Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1898-08-10
DISSEMINATED.


suspected herself of being a sentimental
list She thought she was modern in every
particular, including heart and soul. She
Was charming she knew, and somew hat
vain, clever and a little mcrccnary and
thoroughly worldly wise and worldly
! minded and vet there were three years
when Miss Brockton rivaled any old time
heroine of romance in her sentimental at
titude
1t happened in this wise: One day, when
she was %, there came TO her a certain
stalwart fellow she had known from in
faey and told her what she already knew
that he loved her and wished to marry
her Miss Brockton, liking him exceed
ingly we'll, realizing how pleasant life
might I've made with his money, his name,
his devotion TO her and his companionship
and deciding that the ecstatic love of
which poems and novels treated would
never come to her anyway, accepted him.
The engagement came out duly; the cups
and saueers came in. Margaret liked Jack
Whittle>tone a great deal and found the
position of fancee charming, and all was
we'll
Then the villain appeared upon the
scene in the shape of Louis Radcliffe,
Jack cousin Louis was a delightfully."-
uHilptItEu l6ESgil, NHD sttllltN 10 HiiNt
taken fer his model some Of the early Vic
torian heroes He was a combination Of
youthful romanticism, elderly eynicism
and other interesting qualities. He had a
superb scorn of the conventions mag
nificent belief in himself and a correspond
ing amiable shepticism in regard to other
people
He interested" Margaret greatly, she
said, at first. Then she ceased to say any
thing about him. Jack, not being skilled
in the ways of women did not worry over
either his betrothed' : speech or its absence.
He knew the new woman well enough
not to assert his rights and bid her have
less conversation with his cousin, even
had he wished to do SO. Liberty being the
law of Margaret life and unsuspecting
good nature of Jacks, the situation had
every chance to complicate itself.
1t did so promptly. Margaret, who had
decided that fervid and ecstatic love WAS
not at all likely to come her way, awoke
one fine morning to the realization that
the universe had in IL just one man
Jack S impossible poverty stricken, ire
sistible cousin, and Jacks cousin, who
had laughed at Margaret's feminine Gym
icism and pretense of GOODNESS, felt that
she and she alone could be the complement
to his life. They were both unhappy
enough to give them credit for some good
intentions, but In the midst of their I'M
happiness they were supremacy conscious
of what trifle misery was compared to
the JOY Of seeing each other.
Margaret knew perfectly In her few sane
hours that she did not wish TO marry Louis
Radcliffe. She realized that he would de-
velop into thoroughly undesirable sort
of husband, even apart from his poverty.
IT only could get over this" she
moaned to herself AT 40 I should be
wretched with him, at 40 I should be COM
Portable If not madly happy with Jack. II
only-if only l were 40 nowl''
1t was one day when she and Louis had
sat for an hour staring ahead Of them at
the sea that the climax came.
Why don't you TALK" demanded Mar
garet, finding her heart beats oppressive.
Because I cannot say what I wish to,
he answered Then, of course, he proceed
ed to say the things which he should not
have said. and for few minutes the sea
and sky reeled before their eyes and they
breathed as If in a trance, after which,
according to the sacriticial modern man
| her, they decided to part, and the next
day the community was startled to learn
that Mr.. Radcliffe was going TO Europe.
Then it was that Margaret showed how
thoroughly lacking she was in the modern
mercenary spirit she had always claimed.
1t gave her nournful satisfaction to
think that though she could not marry
Louis, who to tell the truth, had not
asked her to do so, she need not marry
Jack. So she broke her engagement
promptly and proceeded TO indulge herself
in her great grief She heard nothing of
either of the cousins for a long time, for
naturally her course of action with Jack
/ had suspended communication between
/ the families.
+ For three years she was secretly as ro-
/ mantle as the most romantic schoolgirl
/ She thought of Louis constantly and
/ pleased herself by imagining that he, in
j Egypt or Algiers or wherever he was, must
know her thoughts. She was exceedingly
happy with her grief. Outwardly she
seemed much the same, but inwardly she
acknowledged the sway Of love and its
power
One evening three years after Louis
Radcliffe had gone away she went to a re-
ception. A little pudgy woman, over
dressed and overgemmed, stood by her
hostess side.
My cousin, Mrs Radcliffe, Miss Brock
ton, - said her hostess And then, with
sudden remembrance: You must recall
Mr.. Radcliffe. He was Jack white
stones cousin, YOU know"
And then as Margaret cordially inquired
after Mr.. Radcliffe and said how she well
remembered him sentimentalism for the
first time fell away from her. From that
moment she was the really skeptich and
thoroughly modern" woman she had al
ways claimed to be.--Exchange