The Opelousas courier., 1901-10-12
An Early Bird.

my nerves almost to the point Of put
ting the question, and SO settling m
fate one way or the other, here b
must come and upset everything wit
his confounded Our dance, Miss Be
linger, I believer Deuce take tn
man and his dance, tool"
My gaze followed the pair as the,
passed between the double row Q
palms toward the ballroom. For
moment the music swelled higher, anC
mingling with it in my Ears came tn
silvery ripple of Joan's laughter4 Con
fusion seize the clown!-he seeh he'd t.
have tho knack of amusing her, i
nothing else. Then the door of tn
conservatory swung to behind them.
FArose from the s~ettee, frowned with
3 erihgly at a big ~hydrangea bloom ant
thought things not to be found in thu
categdqy of Polite proverbs. From
this genial mood l was reused by thu
frou-frsu OF a woman's dress and
tripping football which caused me tx
glance roEnd quickly, half-expectant
ly. But it was merely my sister Der
tina.
"What's amiss, Tom?" asked she
merrily. "You don't look extrava'
gantly amiable tonight"
"Don't I, indeed? Well, I fee
even less cheerful than I look"
"You couldn't, Tom, DEAR" Bertha
protested, fippantly. "Come, now,
what is it? Anxiety about Aunt James
health?"
sob, hang Aunt Janet"
"Tom-Tom!" and Bertha's hands
went up in simulated horror. "Your
w blood relation, too. How utterly
deprayed of you !"
AS a matter of confession I never
could bring myself to a due state of
honest sympathy where Aunt James
n~eurotic ailments were concerned.
True, they were the only only relax
ations the poor old soul allowed her.
self, but then she ever and ~inexorably
worked them for all they were worth.
Among other instances, whenever she
felt one of her attacks" coming on,
nothing would do but that she must
have her fayorite niece to wait upon her,
hand and foot, from morning till
night. It was precious hard lines on
Bertha, maybe; yet it is the penalty a
girl has to pay for being o gentler
nurse than sister.
"Not Aunt janet" Bertha went on,
fter a pause. "Then it must be
an. That was she I saw Just now
With Captain Moston, wasn't it ?
Have you and she been falling out or
what?'
"Quite the contrary. We were
getting on famously together until
that conceited jackanapes thrust him.
self forward and carried her of.
"Why, what can you complain of in
that? I suppose he simply claimed
The waltz she had promised him.
What are parties and dances for?"
"The only rational use of them is to
keep people out of the way of those
who don't want to dance. Otherwise,
they're nothing but stupid circuses, in
my opinion"
"Tom, you're a grumpy bear "a
downright morose, irritable, surly, rude
person!-and I'm sorry uncle ave in
vited you down here at all. You've
scarcely been "a hours in the house
yet, and already you show a temper
-that-that- There, Joan must
be on angel to have tolerated you for
i've minutesi"
I did not feel called upon to find
with the classification. NY
quarrel was not with Miss Bellinger-
nor yet with Bertha.
Well" said I, quickly, "this
swash-buckler fellow this army
bounder-who is he, anyway"
captain Moston is nothing more
than q gentleman" retorted Bertha,
with what she considered an air of
delicate irony. HE isn't one of your
sort at all, Tom."
whoever he may be, he needs a
lesson in manners" I rejoined holly.
''The way in which he has been hang
ing round Miss Bellinger ever sine
I've been here is absolutely insuffer-
able OF course you haven't noticed
It; you've been upstairs with Aunt
Jane all the time. But I have, and
by Joyei there'll be ructions soon if
aOh, 10Y / begin to understands"
lnterposed my sister, amusedly.
''That's how the wind blows, is it?
jealous, Tom. Gracious me.
It's clear you don't know Captain Mos
ION since You wonder at that. just
wait until You see him flirting with
me. You forget you haven't had an
opportunity of witnessing that yet"
81 don't care tworence whom he
airts with, so long as it isn't Miss Bel
replied I. Besides, it isn't
lair to her. No man has a right to
nonopolize any girl as he does, unless
esseriously thinks about-means to
-to-o
"And how do you know Captain
Moston doesn't?" Bertha put in, hur.
"Oh, I've come across the type be-
irresistible, self-complacent.
protested gallant, who never
Flushing scarlet, Bertha stamped
her foot angfily.
II won't listen to you. It's dis
GRACEFUL He is-he is At all
I know Joan likes him-is
rery fond of him, in fact. She told
ne so herself. And if she lhad.to
between you and him, I'm per-
.ectly certain which she would favor"
Here Bertha broke out into another
aigh-pitched giggle. REALLY, Tom,
I'm almost sorry for you. If you wish
20 GUST CAPTAIN MnsKnn I can asanra