Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1899-02-18
A DOUBLE ROMANCE.

Young Pierce impressed any n at first
sight as an energetic fellow, and he is. I
know of his energy by experience with
him in business extending over two years.
1t was Morgan, or rather the Morgans,
husband and wife, who caused him to set
tie in our western town. That much
have known all along, but I never knew
just why in particular the Morgans took
such a parental interest in him. And
when he told me the history of it it seemed
thoroughly consistent with my high esti-
mate Of his energy, all except the last part
of the story, and that, as you will see, /
managed to bring into line with the rest.
1t seems that when Pierce was not a
young mar yet, but only a boy, Morgan,
whose business occasioned him to be a
wanderer over all the United States, made
the acquaintance of the Pierce family in
Philadelphia, took fancy to young George
and proposed to ''make a man of him"
George was to be made into a man sim
ply by accompanying Mr.. Morgan in his
wanderings and picking up the ways of the
world, particularly the business ways, in
| the course of these wanderings.
But while observing all these things
with much profit to himself George Pierce
more especially studied Mr.. Morgan, and
the more he studied him the more strange
it seemed to George that this genial, pros
porous man, evidently not the sort of man
to prefer his WI company, should be still
a bachelor at the ripe age of As.
nNl,o %1f,>r, IN t., ,,,7ouloJ Caorco orI 1o
in his energetic but prematurely wise
fashion, set about trying to find the reason
of it.
IT see you can't make me out, George"
Morgan said to him n day, when they
were on the cars together. "You won't be
satisfied until I tell you all about it, will
your"
Gan about what, Mr.. MorganP" said
George.
"Why I am an old bachelor at my time
of life, obliged to borrow another mans
son to keep me company OF the road and
be my apprentice in the ways of the
world"
"Well, I have wondered a little, I must
say"
II might as we'll tell you,' said the
older man, and then he paused and seemed
to be debating the matter within himself.
Then he went on: "It's a romance, of
course. You must have guessed that"
"No, I didn't - said Pierce.
ooh, you never thought Of associating
romance with the life of a matter Of fact
old duffer like me, eh?"
"You're not a duffer nor DID," said
Pierce.
III
"Well, If l am, I wasn't always, let me
tell you. I wasn't any duffer when l used
to go calling on Linda Sherwood three
evenings a week. That was 20 years ago.
How old was II"
"You were 49," said George promptly.
Correct. You are quick at figures, my
boy. 1 was 25, and she was only II. That
was what began the trouble. Her parents
said she was too young to think of marry
ing. That wa what began it, but it was
only the beginning"
"The next thing was that she took a
sudden strong fit of wanting to make her
self independent, as she called 1t. She
told me I must not come so often to see
her, because she had to study hard to fit
herself to earn q living as a teacher. That
was what her parents wanted her to do,
and that is what she Is doing now. 1t
seems q pity"
'Wellp" said Pierce, beginning to be
deeply interested.
"Well, 1t hurt me dreadfully. But when
after cutting me down to two visits a
week she cut me down to one, l got mad.
l told her that, If she preferred it, I would
stay away altogether. Then she fared up,
and that was the end to it.
"And yet, do you know, l really loved
that girl. And the remarkable thing about
1t Is I never loved any other. / vowed that
If I couldn't marry her I would marry no
one else. And SO / am an old bachelor.
Now, what do you think Of my romanceY''
II think it's nonsense" said George,
in a brusque, downright manner, which
generally pleased his older friend.
WHAT" said Morgan. lis that all the
thanks I get for telling you my ~secret?"
"No," said Pierce, quite ~unabashed,
THAT isn't all, and you haven't told me
all yet. Iwant to know whether you never
wanted to marry any other girl"
Didn't ! tell you I never had loved
any others"
eyes, but didn't you ever want to love
any other9"
"Oh, you split hairs. No, l never even
wanted to-"
"And what did shs dor Marry somebody
elseP"
mo, I believe not. She left the town
where we were both born and reared and
went to q normal school. Then she went
to teach school In Boston"
"And she IL teaching school in Boston
nowf"
II believe 60. Why do you askf"
well, you see, MI. Morgan, you started
out to tell mi your story, and I want to
be sure I get it all straight. You said her
name was Linda Sherwood"
Pierce says that he went to work with
the single purpose Of making his friend
happy. The romance in Morgan's life
looked to him like a piece of utter non.
sense-'rot," he called it in telling me
about 1t. He made up his mind in five
minutes to put a properly happy ending to
this romance.
That Is why I said that, for the most
part, Pierce's story seemed to me perfectly
consistent with what l knew by experience
Of his character. He Is q strenuous young
man now and very likely was y strenuous