The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-09-26
A Slip of the Imagination.


happy face looked I'D slowly. lot OF
the girls had been iunching together in
the big storeroom at the top of the
| warehouse, and they had been regaiing
| themselves and each other by telling
love stories. real and imaginary. 1t had
been particularly stipulated by the
brown-eyed maiden that all proposals
mentioned should be wholly imaginary
and such as could never possibly have
come TO pass. And now that 1t was her
turn TO tell story she began in a way
which promised a close adherence to this
stipulation
Once upon a time" she commenced.
$50 long ago that all the men were so
gallant and all the women 50 lovely and
so charming that girls never had TO
stand I'D in street cars, and were al
ways paid Just as much money for DO
ing the same work as men were, there
lived young man. He was so brave
and so knightly that everybody admired
and loved him-because they couldn't
help it--and 1 don't suppose he was call
ed by his formal title more than once "a
year or two. Sir Galahad' seemed, TO
suit him so much better than pain
Phil
She stopped hurriedly, her cheeks red,
and the other girls exchanged anus FL
glances. But they were kind and con-
siderate enough-and also wise enough
not TO do SO until after she had turned
her happy eyes from their impressive
faces up to the dingy old roof again,
and so she went on innocently:
Now, in the village where this chiv-
alrous knight had been born, and where
he went back on a visit once in while,
there lived a young woman who loved
him dearly and whom he loved just as
much, although they neither of them
knew it for a long, long time. A grim
and ugly ogre, the ogre Of dire neces-
sity, had forced him away from the viii
lage 10 the great seething city when he
was little more than a boy, long, long
before he had proved his right to his
knightly plume and spurs. The frst time
he went back on a visit-the ugly ogre
wouldn't allow him TO do this for ever
so long, and he only let him stay just a
week and a day when he did get back
the young woman found out that she
loved him, although she wouldn't admit
this, even to herself, for nearly seven
years afterward. Not until she was get
ting to be a sedate middle-aged woman
of so. and the chivalrous, lovely knight
was nearly So. But she couldn't help
wishing and owning up TO herself that
she wished she might see more of the
handsome knight-you see the knight had
gone to school with her. in her child
hood, and had been her own special and
particular knight and protector in those
days-and by and by the ugly ogre, with
out in the least meaning it, served her
a good turn. He turned her out of the
village and sent her hurrying off TO The
great city, alone and lonely. and with
her own bread and butter TO earn. or
go hungry. 1t was some time before
the chivalrous knight found her, but af-
ter that the great city, which had SEEM
ed so dreary, and gloomy, and lonesome
to her at first. didn't seem half so bad
with friend, and such a friend as :he
chivalrous knight, in it."
The other girls exchanged rlances
stealthily again at this point, but the
happy-fdced girl with the brown eyes
never noticed it. With her eyes still
fixed upon the dusty roof she was in
tent upon her story. And the little smile
which crept from these eyes TO the hap
Ply mouth and back again was so sweet
with happiness that 1t made her beau
tiful. One or two of the more magma
tive girls were beginning to wonder il
the chivalrous knights fair maiden had
looked like that. The brown-eyed girl
sighed a little. as happy children sigh
in their play and their sleep, before she
went on.
SO the young woman was happy in
the friendship. and she never thought of
anything else" she said, the soft voice
a little tremulous now. And then, all
suddenly, the chivalrous knight sought
her out one evening and asked her to
be his Wife,
I have longed to say this to you for
months and months. darling he said.
but I have not dared, and for two rea-
sons. But now that have been pro-
NOTED and am to have money enough to
make home for you, if you will only
say yes, I have plucked up courage to
ask-nay, to implore-you to say tt
And So" but the brown-eyed girl
was so full OF blissful joy and glory
now that the other girls could be silent
no longer.
"And so they were married and lived
happily ever after" they cried in cho-
rus rushing upon and covering her with
caresses, and we're all ever so glad for
you both,'
''Why-why" exclaimed the girl with
brown eyes amazedly. what's the mat
ter with you all? o." and she broke off
to blush so divinely that If Philip, the
chivalrous knight, had been present he
would surely have insisted upon her
marrying him then and there instead Of
waiting three weeks longer "Ive given
myself away, haven't I? And after all
1 said about not telling things that had
actually happened Well" laughing IS
only happy creatures can laugh. mo
special harm has been done, I suppose
after all. I'm going to leave the firm
on Saturday, so I should have told you
ali this week anyway. And as I didn't
quite know how TO do II gracefully I'm
not going TO say anything cross about
my little slip Of the Imagination. Chi
cago Tribune.