Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-10-19
SOME ODD PROPOSALS.


No man cares to have lady refuse
his offer of marriage. If he did not
want her to become his wife he cer-
tainly would not ask her. Therefore,
to avoid the modification of possi-
BILE refusal it is always best for the
love-sick swain 10 be sure of his ground
before he ventures to ask the momen-
tous question. There are thousand
ways in which any man can tell with
considerable accuracy whether wo-
man will refuse him or not. 1t Is a
hard matter for a woman-especially
a very young one-to conceal from
male object of her affection that she
loves him. The eyes, those tell.tale
windows of the soul, are pretty sure
TO disclose the fact to a shrewd, obser-
want man, let their owner try ever 80
hard to make them tell different
story. If man is absolutely sure
that girl loves him the manner of
his proposal is a matter of little mo-
ment. In such case he can often
take the lady's answer for granted, as
in case of young man l knew of,
who, after courting girl for long
time, was so sure of favorable an
swer that one night, without having
previously spoken a word of love to
her, he said: II heard something
about you today"
"About me? Pray tell me what it
was !" exclaimed his sweetheart.
After u great deal of coaxing he
said, IA fellow told me that you are
going to marry me in June instead of
waiting till fall"
"June is as good as any other
month";" responded his inamorata,
and the matter was considered as set
tied from that time without another
word.
I think a great many proposals are
made in just some such way as that.
Most men court girl long time be-
fore they resolve to propose marriage
to her, and by the time they are ready
TO carry that resolution into effect
they know her so we'll that the max
ing of an offer is seldom the formal
affair that most novels represent it to
be. I have known cases where chill
dren have been the medium through
which proposals have been made. A
noteworthy instance was related to
me by a plump, rosy matron, who was
one of the chief actors in the scene
she described, which I will let her tell
in her own words.
81 had an older sister, and when I
returned home from finishing school
for young ladies, where l had COM
pleted my education, met a young
gentleman with whom I must confess
1 fell deeply in love at first sight. He
came to our house very often after
that, and I always thought his visits
were intended for my sister, greatly to
my grief and dismay, though never
allowed anyone to know what my
feelings were, and 1 thought that he
of all others was the very last one who
could possibly suspect them.
"On one occasion he called when both
my mother aud sister were out, and as
he was an old friend of the family
by this time, and the butler said he
had asked particularly to see me, and,
moreover, as my little brother George,
who was at once the delight OF my
life and the plague of my existence,
was already in the drawing room with
bim, l thought there could be no i'm
propriety in my going down. After
the first greetings had been exchanged
he began to tell me Of the approach
ing marriage of dear friend of his,
whereupon George blurted out, Sister
Ethel (my name is EtheD would like
TO be married, too.' is that SOP
oueried the friend of the family; then,
come here, George, and let me whisper
something to YOU
George climbed upon his knee and
after something had been whispered
IN his ear the little rogue came running
TO me, exclaiming, % Ethel, he says if
you want to get married he will marry
you whenever you say, and will give
YOU solitaire diamond for an engage
ment ring The friend of the family
rose from his chair and was standing
by my side before the little rascal had
flushed the speech that had been
taught him. i mean it, every word,
with all my heart, Ethel he said.
what is your answer, dearest, yes or
10 P"
When she had reached this point in
her story the plump, rosy matron held
out the third finger of her left hand,
ON which shone a wedding ring, and
pressed her lips to the glossy golden
curls of the sweet little 4 year-old
maiden sitting in her lap, as token
of what her answer and its result had
been.
scribed are the best ways in which to
offer marriage, and that they are much
to be preferred to those stilted and
grandiloquent speeches in which the
1 think such proposals as | have de-
hero Of the yellow-covered novel usu-
ally asked the girl of his heart "to be
his. IN. E. Braddon.
pdr 1t costs hut little TO live accord
m