The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-06-08

Her lover was of an exactly opposite type. He was a matter Of fact, ievel- headed fellow. too busy with the anairs of the world to pry into his own soul, so he really did not know what the object of his affections was talking about when she expressed her doubts. He wanted the
 wedding day set but she shook her head pensively end confessed her fear that after the wedding she might regret 1t and discover that mistake had been made. He reasoned with her, pleaded with her, and argued, but all to DO ef- feet. She still questioned herself and the result was that the engagement was
 broken of and the young man married another girl. When it was too late she discovered that she was desperately in love with the man and when she saw him the husband of another woman she be- came almost insane with jealousy.
 Years passed and she recovered some-
 what from the direct shock of the mar
 ricge but her face has always retained the sad, pensive expression 1t bore during the first three or four years of the mans married life. She confessed to me once that she ulade TO pretensc of being true to tho memory of her first love. never think of it, she said, except as pretty
 book I seem to have read But I feel all alone in the world and the thought of
 remaining lonely as long as I live terri fies me. You don't know how awful 1t Is. There seems to be a gulf between me and my most intimate friends. l long for some one who will make this gulf im- possible
 "I was interested in this proud, super sensitive creature, ana l drew from her promise that she would marry any
 ma n whom I might find who could make
 her happy. I did my best, but my ef- forts were not crowned with success.
 The men I knew all shrank from her. They all admitted that she was beautiful,
 but characte erized her beauty as the sort
 men like to admire but not to marry.
 Still I did not give up all hopes of ind
 ing the right man, until some time later she took sick and died. This was one of tho most pathetic cases that ever
 came under my notice.
 But In spite of the sad fate of the friend I have just mentioned there Is a
 good deal of truth in the stat tement that
 woman's face Is her fortune. And 1t
 doesn't necessarily follow that It must
 be pretty face, either. The face fre-
 quently possesses other attractive quail
 ifications besides beauty. found an ex- ample of this sort in one of the old maids I married off at the age of s6. captured a well-to-do German who for many years
 had been taking all of his meals at restaurant, and after I introduced him to the woman in question he remarked:
 |" This womans lace speaks to me of homemade coffee cake and homemade everything; just what I am longing for.
 There Is another type of woman whose good looks improve with age, and this is no small consideration when it comes to finding husbands for old maids Frequently a girl who is generally con- sioered homely ceases to be looked upon in this light when she becomes an old maid. There are faces which seem suited to no other status of life. As an illus tration, I once knew a girl of 20 who had the features of an unmarried woman of 40. Naturally, she did not attract young men. At 25 she still looked 40, and did not seem to be getting old at all. Now
 when this girl really reaches 40 she prob ally will be accounted a good looking
 woman of middle age, and no doubt she
 will be much sought after by bachelors ten or twenty years her senior.
 Frequently girl does not marry be-