The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1900-04-27
|HIS USEFUL EVENING
BY W. r. ROSE.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Durham Greer looked out through the
big windows of the hotel reading room.
Night was coming on, a thousand lights
twinkled in the store fronts, the forms of
the passers were growing blurred and in
distinct. Durham yawncd. He was at
q loss how to kill time. He had just fin
| ishcd his dinner, and the evening was be-
| fore him. There were great houses up
town where he would be cordially well
come, but Durham had no desire to make
| an evening call. He fancied he would
| like something new, some novelty in the
form of entertainment. There were the
theatcrs, but no true New Yorker ever
| goes to the theaters away from home. He
remembered being in Cleveland the pre-
| ceding summer and how he had enjoyed
| himself at picnic to which he was self
| invited. He laughed at the remembrance
and picked up the evening paper again.
And then his glancing eye caught this
item:
1.-The ladies of the Barclay Avenue Free
church will give n progressive euchre par
ty this evening at the home Of Mrs.
James Lemmers. GO Scroop court, for the
benefit of the Sunday school library fund.
Friends of the church are invited to be
present and are assured of n good time.
| Take the Rockport car from the square
| at 1875"
Durham went to the fair. As he en-
tered tall young man in long Prince
! Albert, a pale young man with thick,
black hair, looked around ut Durham and
gave him pleasant smile and nod. Dun
ham nodded back and then went up the
Il ,ko:, - ia .rhk 60
| young woman's instructions to leave his
hat and coat. AS he came down the
stairs again he heard q whir Of feminine
| drapery behind him, little shrek, and
| young woman was precipitated against
him with considerable violence. Dun
ham was quick witted, and his muscles
were tense. Something prompted him to
| brace himself suddenly, and the shock Of
| contact did not overthrow him.
Dear me-" murmured voice over his
| shoulder, but that was stupid. l must
l have caught my heel on the upper step.
| New shoes, you know. 1t was awfully
| good of you to be in the way. might
have progressed down every step to the
| bottom. It's Mr.. Blossom, isn't it?"
Durham looked around. A pretty girl
/ with glowing cheeks, a pretty girl in q
| pretty light dress, was looking down on
him from an upper step.
"No," he said, "it isn't Mr.. Blossom;
/ it's Mr.. Greer, and Mr.. Greer is very
glad that he could be of some assistance
I to you during the recent rush"
"Oh," said the pretty girl, Il thought
1t was the minister's friend from the
west. l am May Fleming. You know
! Mr.. Chandos. don't you"
Durham shook his head.
1.-THE fact is" he said, "I'm almost IN
l entire stranger"
He put in the almost because he felt
that lie had SONY slight acquaintance
with young lady by the name of Flem-
ing.
81 will introduce you," she said, and
drawing him to the tall young man pre-
scented him in due form and then slipped
away.
Dunham's heart warmed to the young
minister at He looked earnest,
SO kindly. so good.
Il do not remember to have seen you
among us before" he said.
NO." said Durham. otis the first
time I've been in this part of the city.
I'm an eastern man, a New Yorker"
Some Freemasonry of instinct prompted
him to add, Harvard, '96."
princeton, '91," cried the minister,
and then they shook hands again. Your
name" said the young shepherd as he
beamed down on Durham, sis quite n IA
miIiar one. At least it would be esteemed
so by most readers Of the daily press"
Eyes" said Durham shortly. And he
frowned.
He was about to add something when
his attention was drawn away by the
pretty girl whom he met on the stairway.
She held n salver to him, and from it he
drew card. 1t bore the name Jack"
Durham showed it to the minister.
81 fancy" laughed the latter, that you
are expected to look up a Jill" So
Durham passed about the somewhat
crowded rooms, and, 10, when he found
his "JilP' it was the heroine of the stair
case againi
'And Jill came stumbling after" he
merrily quoted as he thrust his card be-
fore her. And presently they found
themselves at one Of the little tables scat
tered about the room, and when a bell
tangled the playing commenced. Durham
had never played in just this fashion be-
fore, but he quickly caught the fashion
Of it and entered into the spirit Of the
business as II he had found the one occu-
pdtlOu IudI plGdSSu uO5t. cOk ~
was business, and q serious business at
that. They played In a grave and quiet
fashion, broken in upon only by the jan
Cling bell, the swish of garments as the
players progressed and by the coming of
an active small boy who hustled about
with a railway ticket punch puncturing
the progression on the players score
/ cards. There We're 20 Of these tables,
| and it seemed to Durham as IL he would
surely visit them all with his astonishing
run of luck.
SLOW is the climbing, Jack" inquired
| Jill when he passed her for the second
| time. Durham held up his card. "Oh,"
| she cried, its like porous plaster"
At just 10 o'clock the playing stopped,
and the score cards were all gathered up
| by the active small boy, and then Dun
ham understood that this meant prizes.
| He fancied he had discovered why the
| playing was carried on in such q grave
| and quiet manner.
There were light refreshments served
by the young women, and Durham found
| them good. He strove to interest the
| people at the table with him and soon
| had them in jolly mood. He told funny
stories and hummed the latest popular
song for tie young woman who sang and
| did q clever trick with the cards for the
| young man who wondered how profess
SIGNALS could become SO expert in han
| ding the magic pasteboards. When the
| refreshments were cleared away, every
| body was expected to join in social con-
verse, and Durham sought his new
| friend, the minister.
! "You seem to be having merry time"
said the latter.
THAT is what endeavor to do wherev-
er l CO." said Durham, with smile,
"and it has required no effort whatever
on the present occasion. This is all de-
lightful novelty to me-"
You have happy disposition" said
the young minister.
Not always" said Durham. 81 do a
great many things that are distasteful to
me. l am not cut out for financier nor
even for an ordinerT business man.
really don't know what l am fitted for
| My great ambition is to spend money.
THAT seems little singular" said the
minister mildly.
"Yes," said Durham, "but you mustn't
understand that l have n spendthrifts
tastes. No, 1 want to put the money
! where it will do the most good-where it
will make the greatest number happy. l
have a strong affection for the old caliph
who went around on the quiet roofing out
injustice and rewarding the worthy. Not
very practical, is it? At the same time.
don't set me down as an idle dreamer. l
look after my fathers business interests
in way that l have reason to believe
meets with his entire approval. oh, can
make myself do whatever occasion re-
quircs to be done. How is it with your
"This Is the work love and am fitted