The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-01-11
STRANGE MARRIAGE.

STRANGE MARRIAGE.
Speaking Of short oourtships, did you
ever hear of the way that old Mr.. Stebbins
came to get marrieds'
The speaker was q solemn looking young
man with contradictory twinkle in his
eye. He had been introduced to the COM
pany minute before by old Mr.. Stebbins
himself. didn't catch his name at the
time, and don't believe any ono else did.
We learned it afterward, though, in a way
not to be forgotten. At first thought it
was Mileson or Miteson, and, though 1t
wasn't, will call him Miteson for the
present.
"You wouldn't think" he continued,
| THAT sedate gentleman ike Mr.. Steb-
bins could have been guilty Of . hasty
marriage in his youth"
II don't know what you call hasty,"
responded young Hyson, who had been
looking furtively at large photograph of
Miss Stebbins which graoed the mantel.
"Mr and Mrs. Stebbins correspondent for
three years. He told me so himself.
wonder what young people did before the
opii'oAes 100 AhNSheCu' 1hC iuCuub VI tfbtCk
were SO slow and the mails SO uncertain
that, with no telegraph or telephone,
should think that lovers would have abso-
lutely required photographs
Sometimes they were better off with
out them," contradicted Miteson. eyes"
in response to our looks of incredulity,
"some were undoubtedly benefited by the
absence Of modern conyeniences. Why,
tot 4.
appearance of Daguerre.
Having at last enlisted our attention and
silenced young Hyson, he ratified on like
bolt polisher
"You gentlemen have all been to college
and remember how blank and empty the
world seemed when you first came out.
knowI nearly died from sheer lonesome
ness the year after graduated There are
times when your heaft goes out toward
the old associations, and If there is
girl there you half like you begin to love
her, and If you don't make her promise
to write to you you wish you had, and
II you can't remember her address you
try to find 1t or guess at 1t. Isn't 1t sof"
Even young Hyson admitted that II
was and sighed in the direction Of the
photograph, though he Is only an under.
graduate.
"That," continued the speaker, ''is the
way 1t was with young man who was
born away back In the early thirties
and consequently in the days+ Of 8 and
10 cent postage and no daguerreotypes
He isn't sorry for that, though, even If 1t
does make him pretty old man by now
whom nobody but his wife dares to call
Henry any more.
30, 10, - l.
was II lad, but he managed, poor as he was,
to matriculate in an old college that is in
existence yet not far from the Catskill
mountains.
about year after he got his degree he
was one day feeling blue, or spoony, to DO
exact, thinking of Molly Sharp, whom no
had flirted with in the silly fashion of a
student. Then he saw in an old newspa-
per personal to the effect that Mr.. and
Mrs. John Sharp, with their daughter
Molly, had just returned to TarrytOwn
after u brief visit to relatives in the east.
Tho east in those days meant New Eng |
land, and Henry was yexed to think that
Molly had been in his own section without
his knowing it. But he had her address |
now and could write. She could do moth |
ing worse than leave his note unanswered.
~ huppCbcu tidl WHeL NhlbS 9ItTD
read the epistle she was day dreaming over |
her memories too. There was certain |
Henry who figured in them largely. She,
too, had gone to the little college up in the
hills, which was one of the first coeduca-
tional institutions in the country. She,
too, felt glad to get the address Of an old
schoolmato. So she answered as soon as
maiden reserve would permit.
ip,n t,,r,,
after that. They correspondent regularly.
They recounted old interviews, stolen ones,
of course, INDUCED in at their peril. The
experience of everybody at school is prac-
tcally the same, SO needn't recount the
particulars. Then they driftcd to sheer
loycmaking of the old fashioned practical
sort, in which the words husband, wife
and housekeeping bore a prominent part.
Neither of tho young people was rich, and
it wasn't the custom to waste in useless
galivanting and counting the money that
should be used in purchasing household
furniture. Besides, they had met fire.
quently during the blissful six months of
their early Irritation and were conse-
quently as well acquainted as they thought
necessary.
"Finaly the day was set, and Henry
l
difficult iourn, to his intended for the
first time He 'arrived three days before
the wedding and found her waiting for the
stage, ready to accompany him over the
two or three l2ncly miles that lay between
them and no. ~"
Miteson stopped, heaving with inward
laughter.
81 don't see anything funny in thatl"
cried Hyson. II think it was rather nice"
He had voiced the sentiments of all, but
we listened when the narrator recovered
himself.
Nothing funny about itS Why, no
found himself face to face with a perfect
stranger, and she advertised to be his bride
within three days. He had been writing
to another Molly Sharp all the while /
told you that all people had about tho
same experiences at school, especially Mt
the same school, and lovers arc all alike,
too, in ono respectfully don't write
much about sublunary matters. So 1t
was small wonder that he never found out
his mistake until he saw her If they
could have exchanged photographs it
would have been different and the romance
spoiled" e.
''But what did he do?' asked young
Hyson.
ale fell in love with her on the walk
lOmc.'
And she, demanded-"sh had been
writing to the wrong person, too--er'-
"You must ask my mother, interrupt
ID he, with the contradictory twinkle
more in evidence than ever.
"What yarn has my son been telling you
low?" asked old Mr.. Stebbins who, with
lis smiling wife on his arm, entered the
Ipartment.
My son! So that was what our host had
aid when he introduced the young man,
Who had just returned from abroad and
vas consequently even a stranger to Hy-
on. And Miteson was just u name created