The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-10-25
THE ADVERTISERS
 DAILYSHORT STORY

My. Totol Is so fond of asparagus" and I boil thsm in salted water. and 1 put butter on them,--oh. l can't tell you when I fix 1t for him that way"
 She did not noticc the suppressed smiles on the faces of the merry Pres colt girls, who were her auditors; To. Q. was an all-absorbing topic. The Pres colt girls knew just how Totol wanted his shirts .'done up;' how many Jumps of sugar he took in his after-dinner coffee; how many minutes his eggs had to be boiled. and so forth, and so forth.
 If Totol ever becomes famous am in a position to write his biography. lery had gone home.
 And can illustrate it." added Helen, who had a talent for caricature-anc forthwith she produced a sketch of To- tol seated before a huge dish ok aspar-
 "But you forget" suggested mischiev- ous Georgina, that all this inside in formation may be useful to Marian
 Such jokes are in wretched taste cried Marian. blushing furiously. You know how I dislike them"
 slightest idea that she was making her idol ridiculous. Artlessly. she supposed that he must be as interesting to the rest of the world as to her. She was
 
 sons made it more convenient for her son to live in the uptown" American part of New Orleans. Her next-door ne,rhbors were the Prescotts; and with four pretty girls in one house, and q young mar in the ether, it would have been strfnge if love had not stolen into the t:me sphere. The PresGotts liked ciated the genuine goodness with which she had 'mothered' them on more than one occasion-for they were motherless girls; They would not nave ridiculea Ie,t tfey frequently laughed among them selves at her harmles foibles.
 M1ther's darlinggs ar, are often often sandy sandy but Anatoie-to give him his right name was we'll br.lt and handsome. with white teeth. silky, black moustache. and eloquent, brown eyes Like most this did not prevent him from being a good man of business. In short he was just the sort of young man to figure as the hero of girls dreams. Should en for sending such suitor across her path? But Madame Delery had unwit- tingly, placed Anatole in 2 ridiculous light before these gay girls; and 1t is not laughed at Still, in secret. and unac- knowledged even to herself. Marian's heart inclined toward Anatole; but she feared the gibes of her sisters; so she
  Madame Delery's absurd anecdotes about | her son. The others had really no in | tention of turning Marian against Ana | tole; in fact, they expected that the two l to tease, and had never learned the wis dom of bridling their tongues.
 | Anatole had a suspicion that Madame | Delery made the Prescott girls laugh at | him: but he was too good a son to hurt | his mothers feelings by letting her know this: and he did not even ask her to drop his foolish pet name. ,. Poor, dead mammal! he reflected. Tt | is just because she loves me so much. " But this did not heal the hurt of being ] fiouted by Marian. She was the most attractive of the four sisters. though her so, and considered that. to make | her face perfect there was only needed a kindly light beaming upon him out of | her dear, long-lashed eyes of blue.
 At first she and Anatole had often sung together, and her contralto voice accorded well with his pleasant tenor, ! In singing those charming songs, In which the modern music Of France IS rich.
 "Go on, my children, go on," Madame Delery would say, nodding her head in time to the music. 'T renew my youth But of late Marian had always some excuse: she was hoarse. or the piano was out of tune. or she was not in
 This did not prevent her from playing | accomra ninents for Haswell Peters, whose musical taste inclined toward popular ditties. As 1t was spring. and the windows were open. the Delerys had the benefit of hearing his loud. untrained voice.
 But, mon Dieu That young man doesn't sing; he brays," cried Madame Dclery "Tonr Mafannes ears must suffer"
 "Oh no doubt she likes it. replied Anatole, with a touch of bitterness. "Of course she doesn't enjoy it. said | Madame Deltry. How could she? But a well brought up young girl cannot say Saturdays story. HIS LITTLE WRETCH