Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1900-05-18
REGGIE'S LOVE LETTER.

Reginald Trevor took up the letter with
a lovers thrill, kissing the pretty blue
monogram and, although there was no
one to see, blushed as be did so. When
In love for the fourth or fifth time, one
becomes more careless about such tri6es,
but Reggie had never-well, hardly ever
been in love before, so naturally he
was anxious to comply strictly with all
the orthodox forms.
He opened the envelope very carefully,
cutting it with a paper knife along the
top so as to leave intact the pretty blue
monogram. The letter ran as follows:
Dear Mr.. Trevor-we are inviting a few friend,
to go with us to Henley on Wednesday next, and
II will give US much pleasure II you will be one
Of the party. | hope you are disengaged and will
be able to come. Yours sincerely,
MARY CHICHESTER.
To any one else the letter would have
seemed prosaic enough, but to Reggie
there was a wealth Of new meaning in
the customary dear" and poetry in ev-
cry word II hope you are dsengaged
and will be able to come" He empha-
sized the 81" with delight and rapturous.
y kissed the signature. He had under
stood that lovers usually lost their APP
petites, but he was not going to follow
tradition blindly, SO he proceeded to eat
his breakfast. After all, one must eat to
live, and was not life now doubly worth
living2
Before he had finished breakfast he
knew the letter by heart This should
not have been a great strain on his
memory, but he looked at the note sew
eral times during the day in order to be
quite sure he remembered il correctly.
The yours sincerely" depressed him
little at first he could have wished it had
been yours very sincerely" Then he re-
Elected that he had often heard that
girls feelings were in inverse ratio to
the warmth of their expressions, so that
yours sincerely" obviously meant more
than yours very sincerely"-Q. Il. d.
He called on the Chichesters the next
day and accepted the invitation in per-
son. Mary looked more charming than
ever, and he felt a glow of proud salts
faction as he thought OF her dear little
letter nesting in his breast coat pocket
When a man is in love, he is an easy prey
TO superstition. and Reggie cultivated a
habit OF carrying the note about with
him, as if it were species Of talisman.
Love flies fast when on golden wings,
and Reggie. being a man of means, for
tune smiled upon his suit, so that it was
not long before he found an opportunity
Of putting the momentous question.
Is il not strange how fate throws peo-
Pile together and gives them that needful
opportunity? Quite by chance mamma
happens TO suggest that Edwin might
like to look at the currant bushes or the
rabbit hutch or the new garden roller or
anything, in fact, that most people would
lind thoroughly unintercsting, and off he
goes with Angelina. and when they come
back, looking dreadfully shy, and Ange-
lima confesses that Edwin has told her
how much he adores her could any one
be more surprised than dear mamma :
But, between you and me. should they
come back looking dreadfully bored and
nothing to confess but their admiration
of the currant bushes or whatever it was
they went out to inspect, mamma is more
surprised still, only she succeeds in dis
guising her feelings a good deal better.
BY just such n happy chance Reggie
and Mary went out one afternoon to look
at n wonderful well that had lately been
sunk in the garden, but, oddly enough,
they got no farther than a particularly
shady summer house, where they looked
into each others eyes instead. and there
| they made the remarkable discovery that
they were both exceedingly fond OF one
another.
when did you first know you cared
for me?" asked Mary.
The moment | first saw YOU" said he
boldly.
That's not true. You first saw me al
the Fosters ball. and you danced nearly
| the whole evening with that tall Miss
| Johnson"
| Reggie could not very well deny the i'm
| putation, but he protested vehemently
| that he could not imagine how he had
ever been so blind as TO prefer the un'
| calmly Miss Johnson 10 the lovely Miss
| Chichester.
Anyhow" he said, Il fell in love with
you very soon afterward."
But now, how am to believe you?r
why" he cried exultingly, recollectinG
his precious letter, do you remember the
letter you wrote TO me last July|'
"What letter. she asked.
"Why, surely you remember asking me
to 80 to Henley"
| 81 remember you coming with us. so
suppose We asked you"
Reggie was seized with 4 momentarJ
panic lest he should have forgotten to put
the note in his pocket, but he drew it ou
triumphantly.
There" he cried, kissing the note
once more. I've carried that dear little
letter about with me ever since | got it.
He had looked forward to this moment
he had pictured the sweet wonder in hel
pretty eyes as she would glance up a
him and murmur, "Oh, Reggie, all this
time" But, to his great CONSERVATION
she did nothing of the kind. On the con
trary, directly she saw the letter sh'
burst out laughing. Reggie was dismay
ed. Such conduct showed an utter wan
of proper feeling.
We'll" he said reproachfully, II don
see what there is to laugh at"
Mary took the letter out of the en-
velope and laughed still more. Reggi
remembered how sacred that letter ha'
been to him and how often he had press
ed it to his lips, and began to grow angr'
at her frivolity.
"Well?" he said again.
why" she cried as soon as she coulI
speak for laughing, you poor, dear boy
don't you see, this is mammals writing
her names Mary too"
And little Tommy Chichester, who wa
out of earshot, but who had watched tn
whole affair with breathless interest froI
the shelter of a neighboring holly tree
has never understood to this day why hi
sister should have laughed so much an