Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1898-09-28
R WHITEHEAD

The worst of a steamer filtration is that
sou are more or less bound to see it
through. Gilchrist went to Las Palmas
in Grand Canary by a British African
boat because they start from Liverpool,
near which port he resided. Mrs. White
head went by the same steamer because
she thought there was less likelihood of
meeting people who knew her there than
there would be on one Of the bigger and
faster cape boats which go from the
south of England. And to further this
coy desire she decapitated her name and
appeared on the purser's list as Mrs.
White. Gilchrist fOregathered with her
before they had brought Holyhead over
the quarter because he and she were the
only two passengers who had not seen the
necessity of going below to lie down.
"Will you let me lash your deck chair?'
he said, by way of Introduction. The
sea'u get worse soon, when we open up
the channel more, and you may get a
nasty spill"
He very naturally got leave to do that
and quite as naturally Wedged himself in
q corner beside her and began to talk.
That was the beginning of it all. By the
time they had got abreast of Lands End
he had discovered that her Christian
name was Edith, and by the time they
had crossed the bay and were carrying
the brown hills of Portugal along on their
port beam he had dropped into the habit
OF letting slip the name of Edith with the
most skilled Inconsistencies whenever
there was none else within earshot.
He was not exactly new to this sort Of
game, and no more was she. They owned
up to the fact cheerfuIly. 81 do hate cal
low youths" said Mrs. White; and,
When | find myself paired off with
school girls under two and twenty said
Gilchr1St, Il bolt as soon as l convent
emily can, and have a comfortable swear.
Let me drag you a chair behind the life
boat there, and then you can smoke 2
cigarette"
"One more cushion, please, just under
the head" said Mrs. White; "and now
tuck the rug in around my feet. There,
thanks; that's nice. Now. some men
would be shocked at my sitting here and
smoking, when half Portugal might be
looking on at US through race glasses for
anything we know. Others would be
greedy and keep all their cigarettes to
themselves. You are neither one nor the
other, and therefore [ like you"
Therefore I'm an Infinitely lucky
man." said Gilchrist.
L think you are pretty lucky all the
way round. Nothing to do except amuse
yourself. You certainly aren't going to
Grand Canary for the good of YOUR
$1,000 N~CAA y Oo 4O Lie VI i1dl
already, and | can't say you've got the
cut Of a man who's going there on bust
ness"
"Oh, I'm going to kick up my heels and
walk about and climb the mountains and
eat oranges and avocado pears. At inter
walls | shall play a little golf"
"Delightful programme. Nothing TO DO
but amuse yourself. But don't you get
rather tired of it sometimes? .
1T hasn't bored me so far. When a
mans had enough of one thing he can try
another"
It's an expensive game ringing the
changes too often"
We'll, [ suppose it is, come to think Of
it." said Gilchrist. 81 started the yacht.
ing mania last summer That came in
rather heavy for a first outfit Of ma
te~rials."
"Evidently,' said Mrs. White. with a
sigh, you are a young man having many
possessions. What a blessed comfort il
must be to get away from the region of
narrower means"
Gilchrist thought the matter over at
greater length that night when the lights
had been switched off in the smoke room
and the other passengers had turned in
II he came to several conclusions.
Above all things he was satisfied that il
was entirely without drawbacks TO b.
well Oft. He also gave q good deal Of his
time to thinking over Mrs. White. He
didn't quite know whether he was in love
with her or not; he couldn't quite define
what being in love meant. but he was
completely satisfied that she was the
incest woman on that particular steamer,
and possibly on many steamers. More
over he reminded himself that he was 81.
and was under instructions from various
relatives who took an interest III him to
get married without any further GaWdlins
over it.
To think over a matter of this kind,
Solus, at sea and under the suggestive
stars is a very different affair to doing the
same prosaically at home. Mrs. White
did not turn up all the next morning and
he was bored with his own company. In
the afternoon she was also absent, AMI be
grew more bored. And III the evening,
when she turned up again, he proposed in
the first ten minutes, out of sheer RELIEF
at seeing her again.
ooh, and now | am happy!!' said Mrs.
White.
He kissed her a great many times-she
had an excellent method of kissing-and
they arranged to get married in three
months time in London and spend the
honeymoon at his shooting place in Scot
land.
But we won't let the cat out cf the
bag yet. DEAR" said Gilchrist, 'and then
we can have our fun in Las Palmas with
out being pointed out and giving a free
comic entertainment to all the other PEG
pie"
mo. darling" said Mrs. White: "we'il
keep the engagement as our own dear.
sweet secret till we get back to England
But-from what source no one seemed
exactly to know-the little episode was
being passed about the ship in strictly
confidential whispers during the very next
morning, and by midday everybody was
chuckling over it and ostentatiously
avoiding stares, and at dinner Capt.
Image stood champagne all down the
tables and the health of the pair of them
was drunk with enthusiasm and music.
Gilchrist smiled as he returned thanks
and tried not to feel savage, and the hard
up men who were going down to serve on