Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-11-17

broadly downrolling to the sea; ahead
of them a level winding road and the
lights OF Washington reflected on the
night sky; behind them the remains of
an excellent dinner aided by a pint tor
SO of odorous Burgundy. The two horses
hitched to the light vehicle walked lazi-
ly. the reins upon their backs, the har-
ness scarce rafting. The month was Oc-
tober, the air as soft is velvet.
Il rave asked you to marry me-" he
said fllcAing the ash from his cigar and
staring absently into the semi-darkness.
land l have your answer 1 co11esS that
I ann disappointed, though . must a in
honesty, that you have given little cause
to warrant my belief that you would be
my wife. i am curious to know the rea-
son for your REFUSAL"
"A woman is not required to give reas-
ons," she slowly. "A woman
is not supposed to be a reasoning ami
NAL"
'NThat is not my view," he said, smil-
ing. II know you we'll enough to know
that you would not act upon impulse.
You are too intelligent, and, xcuse me,
you are too Old"
Il will never see twenty-nine again;
that's a fact" she said, laughing. Gas
uality, however. does not come with
years. Perhaps I refused you only from
dislike to experiment"
"Tha is not So" he replied sturdily.
"Tne change wound be for your better.
ment. A man woOing hould not spread
his possessions before the wooed like a
lot of wedding presents on show, yet I
must say that 1 offer you more than you
have been able to achieve OF our unaid-
ed effort"
Let US see." she said. '"To be exact,
what is it that you offer me?" y :
Il Offer you my name and with it my
heart. 1 am thirty-five and l owe you
more than all of the other women I have
loved rolled into one. 1 offer you wealth
and freedom from toll. 1 offer you a
high social position, which shall be high
er. 1t seems to me sometimes he add
ed, that you forget that I am one of the
most important men in the country that
l am a poiiticion, a capitalist, a con
gresham and will be the next senator
from my state.' II
mo, l do not forget those things and
1 am frank to say THAT they ttEnot me.
To he your wife Woul give me more po-
sition than / am likely to win for my
self. Moreover, as the heroines used to
say in Pamela and Ciarissa Harlowe,'
and books like that, you are not-you are
not diStaStaful to me. l could, I think,
be something of a power in the eoci2ty
elf Washington, which is equivalent to
saying that I could he something OF a
political power. IicoUtu make your house
much sought by men of all parties. We
misht even cabal and conspire. With me
to help, you might land in the White
House, and 1 would come to be known
as the First Lady of the Land l do
not covet the title, though the place frees
one from the servant girl problem, but
it sounds well. Nevertheless, l lave told
you No. and it is an irrevocable No
You would like to know why, of course.
All men are curious"
Il would" He said it emphatically.
well, then, to begin: 1 am nearly
thirty and low does not stir me,
though l like, admire and esteem you.
Against the things you offer. let us
balance the things l would be required to
surrender. For your wealth I would
sacrifice my earning capacity; for your
freedom from toll / would sacrifice an oc-
cul)ation that has been with me for
years; for high and higher social posi-
ton l care nothing. l come eff a family
which can afford to la us'l at such things.
and for it I would sacrifice my ability to
go where I please, to do what l please, to
be what I please; for our name I
would be called upon to give my iden-
tity, to merge myself in you, to lose my
individuality. to be held responsible for
your mistakes, as we'll as for my own, to
share only humbly and in secondary
fashion in the %triunphs which would
come to youth a word, to play second
fiddle and I was never v%iolinist." j
He ground the cigar lard between his
teeth and muttered:
yet, I know that your life is a hard
one; that it contains trials and disap-
pointments: that it is a steady wear
ing struggle; and 1 offer you security
and ease"
''That is so,'' she conceded, IAN with
many women you would awe to offer
nothing else. But think what l am. what
1 have been and what l hope to be. AT
eighteen I marked out this career, and l
have foliowed it with steady footsteps.
Through practically incegsant toll.
through doubt, through difficulties,
through dangers, even, 1 have chung to
it, hugging it's scant rewards, receiving
unfinehingly it's buffets and always
climbing. Why, when / began I got Sc
a week and paid my own carfare. Now
| am Our Own Correspondent at the Cap
ital,' i get $1G0 a week and I have a
carriage"
whats a hundre dollars a week."
Little enough-not half so much as
deserve-but, such as it is, l have made
it with my own hands. Can't you UNI
derstand that.what 1 am and where I am
are the product of myself: it is my work
l made it; it is a part of me; | am proud
of it; I can not surrender it: / cannot
give it all up at any mans bidding. OF
asking"
THAT sounds queerly from a oman
yet it should not. Hath a woman not
eyes, ears, hands, feet. as a Christian
hath? We have our desires. our anrbi-
tions. We lock with pride upon sue
cesJful effort. We bear in silence blows
that would tempt a man to death and
raversals that would drive him to sui
eide. We have our places in the world