Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1902-06-05
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A Photographic Proposal |
BY ETHEL SON.
lcOpyrIrhtod By Daily story PUB CO..

! broad and liberal minded indeed wher
,; he told young Philip Maintenon that
he might call on his daughter Ger
! trude as often as he liked, provided
he spoke or wrote no word of love
TO the young woman. This embargo
was to last until Gertrude, who had
just passed her eighteenth birthday,
was 20 and Philip correspondence
older The young man accepted its
conditions unwillingly, but with a
moderate degree OF cheerfulness in
the beginning; he smarted under
them considerably as they become
more familiar.
II was delightful to see Gertrude
as often as he liked, certainly, es-
+ pecialiy after the long weeks in which
he had wondered how much longer
he would be a welcome visitor at the
I Brewer mansion, but he soon found
! that the permission to see her often
meant far less than it had appeared
I 20 do al first sight. He was not the
only young man who say her fire.
/ quently, to begin with. Gertrude was
a pretty girl, bright and popular in
the bargain; Philip began to live in
a chronic state of fear lest some
other fellow wise enough to speak
to the girl should step in ahead of
him. The girl herself did not seem,
TO his excited fancy, TO take nearly
so much interest in his attentions as
she had done heretofore. Sometimes
he was on the point of throwing up
the whole thing for a year or two
and going west. All Of which was
precisely what Mrs. Brewer had
counted upon when she had consult
ed her husband TO make terms.
Gertrude is both headstrong and
impressionablc, my dear" she had
said when Mr.. Brewer had spoken Of
forbidding Philip the house for the
time being. "and If you do that she
will Immediately fancy herself deep
ly in love with him, whether she is
or not. Merely tell Philip that she
Is altogether too incompletely edu-
Gated, as yet, to think Of such things,
and that he must not dream of tell
ing her that he loves her-or thinks
that he does-for some time. Ten
chances to one they'll both tire of
the fancy shortly, and II it's really
love between them the waiting will
do no HARM
After time, however, Philip be- /
came SO deadly tired of waiting that /
he gave up the idea Of going out (
west and decided TO change his tao 1
ties entirely. He had promised to (
write or speak no word of love to
Gertrude, certainly, but proposing .
had never been mentioned. Surely /
IL was possible to make a proposal Of I
without uttering love-sick
speeches! Yes, he would certainly
propose, and that as soon as the OPP
portunity offered.
But the opportunity was long in
coming. Mrs. Brewer had a nose for
news" which would have made the
fortune Of a metropolitan newspaper
and while she did not exact +
ly suspect Philip Of endeayoring to
break his compact. so she gave her
husband TO understand, still she
meant him to have no temptation OF
that order. The bones of her OPP
position were too nicely clothed N
The flesh of conventional courtesy for
Philip or any other man to discover I
them. but he strove against them N
vain. Never a moment alone with
Gertrude could he find or obtain.
Even when they went upon pnoto- /,
graphing expeditions together-hoth
being enthusiastic Photographic am
,teurs-they were invariably accom-
,onied bv Gertrude's brother Ben
amin. a spoiled youth Of "a, his
darling. and also badly ar
gicted with the picture-taking craze
,nd vet IL was through a photo-
yrsnbic process that Philip carried
,r+ his win in regard to his inamo- ,
80 and circumvented her mothers Z
ARE. +
The bright idea occurred to nm one
sunday afternoon, as he worked over ,
rs newest lens. and he lost no time IN
.,ying II. Carefully printing a certain
egend upon transparent white paper
- MINED the paper up against the J
vindow-pane and went over y asain' I
more boldly and on the wrong SIDE
With n charcoal crayon. Then he at
acbed the paper, still wrong side out
words 70 the wall and photographed
he Isgend backward. This he did !
,ecanse characters Of this kind pho q
ograDbed in the ordinary manner are
l,sa,s reversed upon the negative.
I is only in the printing that matters
.erome straight again. and it was IN
be NEGATIVE that Philip was particu- d
arlv interested.
He carried it with him when ne a
III ,,p,n Gertrude the following !