The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-02-15
ARCHIBALD'S MISTAKE.

The girl in the chinchilla furs, says
and inquired of the girl in the oppo-
site chair: How are you getting on
with Archibald?"
The young woman with the white os-
trich plume on her hat turned pale
"Oh, Louise" she said. don't! Just
when l had forgotten it all for a mo-
ment! How could your"
Mercy" cried Louise. "Is it as bad
as that? Did you have a tragic scene?
Tell me about it. Did you cast him
off and he seized his hat and swore he
would go straight to ruin now he had
lost you?"
Good gracious, no." objected the
girl with the ostrich plume. Archibald
is too serious minded for that. In fact,
it he were little less serious minded he
might have found some humor in the
situation instead of acting as he did
It's mistake for man always to keep
his intellect on dress parade and insist
on every one saluting it sixty minutes
out of every hour.
You see." she continued, with a
pensive droop of her pretty lips, man.
ma is so nervous and afraid of house
breakers that we live in a regular forth
fed castle. Every window has bells and
things to it and the latest appliance
she had put in is the electrical door,
mat. If any one steps on it and stands
there it rings a bell in the upper hall,
and then, you know, there's a burglar
at hand"
Then what do you do?" queried the
girl in chinchilla furs.
I'm sure don't know" said the girl
with the plume. IT had never got that
far. was always SO interested lis
tening for the burglar. The coachman
has his room on the third floor and
mama told him when the doormat was
installed that if he heard the bell ring
in the night he was to take his re-
volver and investigate, while she te1e-
phoned for the police. He demanded SIS
more a month for thus living in con-
slant risk of his life. but she said it
was worth it. And then the last time
Archibald called-he stayed quite late.
too"
"Oh, I've seen how devoted he was,"
commented her friend.
Was is good" agreed the girl with
the plume, sadly. I'VE were discussing
something quite seriously and when he
got to the door we-er-continued the
discussion"
ITO be sure, agreed the girl in the
chinchi1la furs. II hope you didn't let
him hold your hand-I read to-day that
you could acquire over a million germs
in simple handshake two seconds in
length"
The girl with the plume blushed and
looked confused LAS l was saying,
we stood at the door. Did you ever no.
tice what remarkably clear gray eyes
Archibald has? You can read his whole
nature in them"
Really" said her friend. 81 must
ask him to call, so can find out about
that; it sounds interesting"
Don't be fiippant! Well, he had Just
told me some really beautiful things
about how 1 touched the depths of his
soul and that life took on new aspects
when he was near me-and goodness
knows what else he would have said,
when-when-"
Eyes. yes!"
There came yell like a Comanche
from the hall, and the most terrible fig
ure dashed out upon us. waving a gun
as big as a telegraph pole. The crea-
ture grabbed poor Archibald by the
nape of the neck and simply hurled him
down the steps. l shrieked madly, Of
course, for 1 thought an escaped luna
tic was upon us. Then the fiend gave
a blood-curd1ing yell and sunk at my
feet, gibbering incoherently. 1t was the
faithful coachman. who was only doing
his IS worth of duty. / rushed to pick
up Archibald and just then the patrol
wagon galloped around the corner and
ten policemen poured out and surround