Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-09-05
His Wasted
COurtShip&

nSE winter afternoon after DR.. Ar
V)nold Scherner had come home
from his desk in the Bureau of
finance, eaten his dinner, and
stretched himself on the sofa to en-
JOY a cigar and French novel, his
young brother Hans burst into the
room and said:
"Alma Holdesheim asked me to re-
turn this book with Adrienne's
thanks"
"Why didn't you give it to me at
once?"
what was the hurry?"
THAT is my affair. Now get QUIT"
Hans got out" and banged the
door. Arnold opened the book at
page ten and copied on a piece of
paper certain letters which he found
marked by almost imperceptible PEN
ell dots. The transcription read:
Il must see you tomorrow. Meet
me at Haller's at four"
The Scherners were family of Of
ficials. The father was bureau
chief, the Oldest son, Gustav, n provin-
cial governor in Dalmatia; Arnold
was in the ministry of finance, and
Hans was preparing for a govern
ment position. The only daughter
had married an official.
Arnold was very ambitious. Social
rank and consideration he had, what
he wanted was money. 1t had never
been too abundant with the Scher-
ners, and Arnold fully realized it's
power. Hence, he had resolved to
marry it. AS his friend Rudolf used
to say: ut is possible to love girl,
even if she is rich"
He had the entree to the best fam
| lilies in Vienna, but if he should go
to rich man and demand his dCugh-
ter's hand, it was doubtful whether
his own prospects of official advance
ment would counterbalance the lack
Of present fortune. Clearly, then. the
thing to do was to capture the heart
of a rich girl, preferably very
| young one, and so enlist the aid of
love in overcoming parental opposi-
| ton.
His first budding sweetheart was
carried off by predestined cousin,
the second was dazzled by lieuten-
| ants epaulets. Then, on the ice
everybody skates in Vienna-he met
| Alma Holdesheim, and on his first
visit to her house he met her 16-
year-old sister Adrienne, and marked
her for his own. Pretty modest, we'll
bred, and, most important of all, I'M
sophisticated, and not yet "out," she
seemed the very girl for him. In
the Vienna equivalent of Bradstree t,
old Holdeshein was thus labeled:
Gowns a large spinning mill, an es-
tate in Bohemia, and town house
in Vienna. Estimated to be worth
600,0 900 gulden; income, $1s,00O."
This was satisfactory. There were
three children, and Adrienne's
gulden. Arnold's wooing began on
the ice. Hitherto Adrienne had
skated only with girl friends, and a
few of their young-very young
brothers, who didn't count"
And as he was handsome, witty and
well-bred, it was no wonder that cit
tie Adrienne" fell in love with him
| y
kept green by the IT'S souvenir post
cards which he sent her.
The ensuing summer strength.
ened the bond between the lovers
Arnold had induced his father to
spend the vacation in the vicinity OF
the Holdesheims. The young man
might have done so alone, but he
was unwilling to attract the atten-
ton of Adrienne's parents too strong
| ly until he had made sure of heI
| love.
This certainly came in the course OF
the summer. and the first vows of love
were exchanged. THE third day
comes a frost. a killing frost" and
the third winter Adrienne caught cold
and was not allowed to skate or dance
The lovers met rarely, and hence the
device of borrowed books and marked
letters.
But this was not the first frost
Early in the season Adrienne had dis
covered that DR.. Scherner was not
the only young man who cared for her
society, and social success made hel