Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1898-10-01
John Marshall's Sphere.
TcopyrlEht. lss7. by the AuthOr.l


copyright. 1897. by the Author.l
John Marshall, according TO certain
people, was not only n fool and snob,
but a most exclusive specimen Of the
two classes.
John Marshall had his theory:
81 understand the fool TO be ne who
invents nothing in thought or deed. 1
am 50 frequently bored by the thoughts
and deeds of men as mediocre as myself
that / prefer to be fool rather than
think or do 1 have read Thacl1eray's
sweeping words regarding snobs, and
his bosom may touch me- Yet L cannot
help being rich and having tastes I do
not work because the wealth at my
command might IL employed in traffic
swamp numerous small concerns that
are necessary TO the comfort of many a
str1ggler. / go where the fancy leads
me. and, existing in an unheroic age,
cannot take in war against infidels
and give fDica1 orders respecting my
chain armor. so confine my energies
20 the wrestling of the least displeasure
from society, to the hang of my trou-
sers and the setting of my coat And
thus / am designated an exclusive fool
and snob. Hard luckP'
He had inherited conditional for
tune from his father. Another was Of
fered him when he should have obeyed
the conditions of that will-proposed to
Jane Cristowell, whose father had been
the junior in the firm of Marshall g
Cristowell Jane was in nowise averse
John led german dlvinely, was called
an Apollo by girls and had exquisite
taste ia china.
John proposed Jane was happy, and
it would have been beneath her self re-
spect to fancy that John was not She
had conferred upon him beauty, some
brains and a future. With her for
wife, he would in time be 1.-The husband
OF that lovely Mrs Marshall, who goes
20 England every season, my dear. and
dimes at SandringhaIn- -
That there might not be too much
prestige given his name over against her
own Jane determined to be presented
at court before her marriage and on the
way pick up her trousseau- So in early
March she carried her determination
into effect John babe her goodby on
board the Adriatic and was so attentive
ia the matter of flowers that her beauti-
ful eyes brimmed over, and, watching
for him on the slip as the ship steamed
ont, spun her biggest bouquet toward
him and hit another man with it, which
man politely bowed his thanks to her
She laughed and John laughed, and so
IN merriment she left her native shores
Papa" she said. at Sandy Hook,
when che vessel began TO roll, II wish
] were not going, or that John were
going with us--though that would
scarcely be the thing. l wonder if he
will be lonely without me?''
Old Cristowell grinned at the idea of
Johns being lonely-for old Cristowell
articled John as an expedient only, SO
Jane bit her lip and looked over to a
viscount who was dying to be presented
to her
Yet John did miss her. 1t is possible
that he could have loved Jane and Jane
loved him had their respective fathers
let them alone There was no saying
how much they might love each other
once they were married
For a week after the sailing of the
Adriatic John haunted the clubs and
yawned and was more of a fool than
ever in being bored so easily. Then he
disappeared, and people missed him and
wondered if he were not more than they
had made him out to be.
he had been suddenly seized with
active satiety-the passive had long
been his Let him get away from it all.
from the usualities and ordinaries-
without Jane they were garish to a
maddening degree Let him go to ma
ture, if it could be found, although he
much doubted its existence.
All of March he wandered about from
quiet country nook to quiet country
nook. Villages grew to know him. At