The age-herald., 1900-12-31
SKETCHES FROM
 EVERYDAY LIFE

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 A little group of men were chatting in the smoking room of a prominent hotel recent ly, and in some wSy the conversation ran to instances of boyish bashfulness. T was quite bashful as a boy said one land never will I forget the agony of my first visit to a young lady. Although we were both from the same city l first met her at summer hotel I fell quite in love with her, but I never had the courage to tell her so. I really said very little to her on account of my bashfulness, and the best could do was to admire her at a distance There was another boy at the hotel who also admired her and as he was not af- f1icted with bashfulness l used to suffer daily by seeing them go off together laugh ing and talking while I looked on from a distance angry with myself for being such fool and yet unable to do any better. In course of time we both returned home and after being there a week I felt I ought to call on her. I was anxious to see her and yet dreaded the interview, for I knew the paralyzing effect she always had my powers as a eonversationalist. At last love getting the upper hand, I put on my best clothes and called. l had previously arr ranged a conversation which I intended to use and which I hoped would last at least half an hour. To fix this in my memory I had put the various topics on a slip of pa- per, somewhat as a minister makes a sym opsis of his sermon and this paper I carried with me up my sleeve It was very small and arranged so that in of an emer- gency l could draw it down into my hand and read it without 1t being seen by anyone else. While sitting on the sofa in the par for waiting for the girl to come down. stairs I mentally ran over my prearranged conversation and found that I remembered 1t all and was feeling somewhat reassured and with some degree of confidence was looking forward to a pleasant visit, when there was the rustic of a dress and she came in the room looking prettier than I had ever seen her. At the sight of her ev- cry idea in my head vanished and after shaking hands we sat like two dummies with nothing to say. I grew more embar- rassed with each moments silence and finally in desperation I felt up my sleeve for my synopsis of conversation.
 "I suppose 1 was rattled,' for in pulling it out it dropped on the floor. The girl saw it and naturally wanted to know what .t
  flture and I have very dim and vague recollection to how 1 got out of the house. The strange thing about it all as l afterwards learned, that the girl was equally in love with me, and had given my rival at the hotel the marble heart on my account"
 q was very bashful myself, as a boy" said distinguished looking man with white hair, who was a prominent banker, "and I suppose I was 21 years old before I ever ventured to make a call on a girl I was very much in love with d little blue eyed maiden and finally I mustered suf- fo.ent courage to ask her to go to Sunday school. I don't know whether the girl was in love with me or not, but she was equal ly as bashful, and q painful silence en- veloped us as we walked to the Sunday school. It a silence that could be felt, and 1 made desperate efforts to say some thing, just as in a nightmare when some horrible beast is about to seize you you vainly struggle to cry out. I kept churn- ing my brains in the endeavor to evolveea . thought, but it was like churning skinned milk-nothing came. The girl seemed equally embarrassed and said nothing. Finally when l was in cold precipitation with the agony of the situation I happened to see some hogs in lot which we were passing, and 1 exclaimed, Look at those hogs This remark did not relieve the situation to any extent the girl said noth- ing, and we walked on until we reached the Sunday school. We remained silent during the service, but as this was ex- pected felt temporary relief When tha service was over and we started home all the horrors of the situation broke out afresh, and again walked along in silence until we reached the lot where ] had made my brilliant effort at conversa, ton, when the girl exclaimed, There's those hogs yet This was the entire con yersation of the afternoon
 That reminds me- said another listen, CT, "of my first visit to a sweetheart. l remarked that thought it was a pleasant day. The girl said she also thought it was a pleasant day. Then after pause during which we both tried to think of something else to say, we simultaneously remarked that it was very pleasant day This added to our embarrassment, for il demonstrated that we were two souls with but a single thought, and that one about the weather. After mutually agreeing sev. eral times that it was a fine day, l made my adieux, mentally resolving that would, for the sake of variety in the con versation. choose a bad day for my next visit'