New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1903-06-10

may not care TO be after you have
heard the story, but don't want to
hold you by false pretenses. So hear
me, Brenda"
1T will not excite you? It will not
make you i'll again?"
1T would excite and worry me ff j
should stop now after have made ND
my mind" said Elsie. ''Listen. You
shall know everything but name.
can't tell you that"
Brenda was silent She was saving
to he:self: II am afraid. NV beart is
trembling for this girl
1T doesn't matter when, it doesn't
mattes where" continued Elsie. "abut
when and where fate pleased l meta
man who took a great liking to me-
know little now, and I knew far less 4
then. though it wasn't so long ago.
He was an educated man, and l was
not an educated girl. but wished that
was. We met in merry party. and
l expected him to talk frivolity. He
didn't. His conversation was very i'm
proving. Oh. he took a deep interest
in my mind. 49,
what idiots girls are! Why, this
man read me like book He saw that
was full Of yellow covered ambitions
and ten cent aspirations. He had prob
ably seen a great many girls equally
deserving of encouragement. l thought
he was splendid. l put my hand in his
and prepared to ascend the. hill OF,
learning.
1T was a supper after the theater,
and we rode to my house together il,
hanson afterWard at 2 o'clock in the
morning, and the chaperon of our
supper PARTY rode in another direction
IN anotE.e.' hanson with another man.
My escort talked about the 'Rubaiyat'
OF Omar khayyam, and l then first
appreciated the beauties of that sub.
lime composition. Afterward he spoke
OF my work in a very earnest and Ell.
couraging way. He let me know that
he had been quite a student of the
drama and that his criticism and adj
vice would be of the greatest assist,
ance. That, at least. was the infer.
ence. Finally he babe me good night
on the doorsteps, with a gentle sadness
In his manner which let me know that
there was a romance in his life. That
made me feel safe, for at that time I
surely did not want him to fall in love
with me, and l still retained the dell-
sion of my earlier years that romances
in a persons life acted like vaccina-
| ton.
''The gentleman called upon me the
next afternoon, and he was very enter.
| tanning as we'll as instructive He
brought me a large book. l forget
what it was about. The next day he
| took me out to dinner and l remember
that he gave me some very shrewd and
helpful criticism about my work.
| Then 1 didn't see him for two whole
days, and l began to miss him very
| much. At that time l was lonely. My
| girl friends in the profession were all
| out of town. and some Of the men in
| the company who wished to be kind
| to me were rough in their ways-not
| at all like the cultured gentleman
whose acquaintance 1 had been so
| fortunate as to make"
But didn't you ask about him?'' said
Brenda. Didn't you find out how he
| stood ,socially?"
Elsie laughed.
"How was I to find out any of those
things?" she said. 1.-THE world is big
| place, in the midst Of which is society
as you know it, a little mutual insur-
ance company for the purpose of pro-
tecting it's members, especially the
younger ones. against accidents. l only
knew that liked this man and that I've
seemed to be true friend to me. What
other guide was to have except my
own beautiful ignorance"
II don't know" said Brenda aloud,
but to herself she was saying: ''The
more wrong she has suffered the moro
I want to help her. l won't let any
thing take her away from me-"
| presently heard the story Of the
romance in his life," continued Elsie.
"It appeared that the gentleman was
married-most unhappily. Where was
his wife? He had permitted her to OBJ
tain a divorce. This was pure generos-
ity on his part. He would rather suf-
fer an injustice than attack in the
courts the woman he had sworn to love
and cherish. He mentioned several
high society presidents for this con-
duct. In fact, he convinced me that
divorce was, upon the whole, mark
of distinction in these days. 1t ap-
peared that his was a sort Of limited
divorce which did not permit him to
remarry, but after this aspect Of it
had been presented to me on several
occasions he discovered that he could
marry under certain conditions with
the full sanction of the law and heav-
en-. .'---t1r...,.
'tWell, Brenda let's be fair. want
ed to marry the man. l persuaded my
self that was in love with him.
| wasn't. can see that now. wasn't
within million miles Of loving him,
but l was ready to be loved, Brenda;
i that's the truth about it. Ny heart
was full Of tenderness. and 1 saw the
| whole world rose tinted in the light of
/ the dawn Of love. That's poetical. But
wait minute. l am coming to some