Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1900-10-31
LOVE = EYES.

constance was pouring the tea. IN
sumner we commonly spend a good deal
OF time over our tea. Constance and |,
for the windows of our dining room look
cut upon 4 bit Of ocean beach. at whose
edge we may see the green water crink-
ling and folding in the afternoon sun, or
further out the white wings OF the ships
that go down to the sea- We sit and
gossip to each other across the table I
suppose We talk good deal about our
selves and a little about our nelgnbors,
VINO occupy the score OF summer cot
-tages on the bluff. whose boats bob at
anchor little of snore, and whose chill
dren race bacelegged over our beach
many times IN the day. But L am sure
that the neighbors talked as much as We
do about them, SO, in the end | fancy
matters are about even.
Constance was pouring the tea, and SO
far she had been unusually silent. L
watched her hands move swiftly among
the fragile blue cups. The breeze played
with Il strand of her hair, which 1t had
tugged at till it got loose. Constance
was very sober, and presently l noticed
that the little dart-like wrinkle in her
forehead grew deeper, as II something
troubled or perplexed her and she was
not quite sure how to tell about II. |
put two Jumps Of sugar in my cup and
watched the bubbles rise and trouble the
surface; then [ looked out to where the
water was changing from green to purple
and from purple to green again, and l
said, by way of breaking the ice:
Its always different, isn't it? As if
We had a marine hanging on our wall
which was changed for Us every minute
OF the day
Constance looked out quickly and
smiled: then she said: Il had a note
from Helen Dorr this morning. She's
coming up to spend Sunday with US
That's good'' | yentured.
''She's going to be married. They We
decided on the 18th Of October. It's her
birthday
I carefully helped Constance to a bit of
bluetsh. ITS come, has it, I said.
Yes burst out Constance, ''it has
come AS long as they didn't get mar
ried I was in hopes that something would
come up TO break it off, l didn't THINK
that Helen would really marry him Wnen
it came to the final step. | don't like
4Ir Wemyss. He isn't good enough for
Helen Honestly, now, do you think
that by any possibility he can make her
happy, ..,r
the chap to make anybody happy except
himself, and for my part | cant under
stand Why Helen marries him. That is.
can understand, but [ should think She
have sense.
II suppose she loves him.
'.She thinks she loves him. She's get,
ting tired of being the only unmarried
one Of her sex All the rest Of you are
married, and she has been bridesmaid
now six times and has stood at the foot
Of the stairs and caught the roses that
the brides tossed to her until it must
have got a trihe monotonous. How old
is HelenT
s.Shes a year older than [ am
And how old are you
'.You know we'll enough. II, two more
years I shall be 80. Think of it,
'.Yes: think of it for Helen. Thirty is 4
terrible age for an unmarried woman.
It locks the door on girlhood, and Helen
must have felt that the years We're going
by pretty fast. Perhaps she found q
white hair She thought that pretty soon
people would begin to call her an old
maid. She wanted to get away from the
possibility of that. She also wanted to
he loved. Then Wemyss came along
with his good looks. his nice manners
and his quiet. careful way with the
women It was natural that Helen
should think she loved Wemyss.
4 don't believe she'd marry him q
keep from being an old maid. | know bei
better
she wouldn't reason it out, my dear.
She isn't the kind of girl to do that. II
she'd reasoned she'd have gone further
and told herself that it was good deai
better to be what people call an OLD maid
than to marry un-1appilE
Her father ought to have known more
about Alr. Wemyss before he consented.
Its the people VINO are most concerned
who know the least. Besides, my mem