The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1904-01-28
A. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
THE Beautiful!
MISS MERRIAM
By HARRIET LUMMiS
Copyright, 1903, by t. c. Mcclure

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With Miss Merriam the Incredible
had happened. She was tired Of hear
ing that she was beautiful. From her
earliest recollections strangers had ex-
claimed over her pretty face, and her
lovers one after another had hung the
variations on the same theme. Miss
Merriam listened politely and found
herself extremely bored.
'"To be loved for your face is like
being loved for your fortune" Miss
Merriam confded to her journal.
Beauty has wings just as truly as
riches. If a man falls in love with
your complexion what is he going to
do when you come down with the
smallpox? If | were pretty fool |
might be perfectly satisfied with things
as they are, but know I'm worth low
ing for myself-if only they had the
sense to find it out"
Unfortunately for themselves Miss
Merriam's adOrers never suspected her
peculiar views. If there had been one
pliment her intellect instead of her
dimples and to have talked about her
sparkling wit rather than her spar
king eyes he would have found the
short cut to her heart. AS it was,
they were unanimous in deciding that
the aforementioned article had been
omitted from her composition. And
Miss Merriam expressed her displeas-
ure in the following paragraph in her
journal: Beauty, beauty, beauty! How
tiresome it all is! 1 wish | might
never hear | was beautiful again"
Rash prayers sometimes bring I'M
welcome answers. Not very many
days later the city was electrified by
the news that Miss Merriam had been
thrown from her automobile at a we'll
known watering place and seriously in
jured Pictures of the beauty appear
ed in all the leading newspapers OF
the country, with reference to her pos
sible Disagreement Miss Merriam's
relatives, when appealed to on this i'm
portant point refused to say anything
to relieve the suspense or to satisfy the
popular curiosity. And the eXplana-
ton of tI1eir reticence was apparent
when Miss Merriam made her appear
ance in society few weeks later.
Across the faultless curve of the girls
cheek ran an unsightly scar, scar so
aggressively prominent that it. held the
attention of the observer and made
him forgetful of all else. 1t seemed
likely that Miss Merriam was to have
her hearts desire and never again be
forced to hear that she was beautiful.
Lloyd HOLSTER saw her for the first
! time at one of the opening functions OF
the season, a few days after his re-
| turn from abroad. Notice that girl
over there a friend said, pulling his
sleeve Last spring she was the beau
tiful Miss Merriam and see her now.
Hard luck, isn't it?'
HOLSTER looked as directed. He saw
a small head regally carried mass
of dazzling hair and eyes that shot
violet lights from under their arched
brows. Then Miss Merriam turned
her head, and he saw the scar and
nothing else.
'I'd be sorrier for her." the man at
his elbow went on, ''if she hadn't turn
ed down half the fellows in her set.
guess she thought she was good for
duke with that face of hers. Introduce
you, did you say? Why, certainly, my
dear fellow
It was the innate chivalry of Hollis
ter's nature which had prompted him
to ask the honor of Miss MeTiamS
acquaintance. He was as sorry for the
girl as he was Disguised with the cold
blooded comments of the man who had
pointed her out to him. For the first
few moments of their conversation he
unscrupulously kept his eyes away
from her. He could not bear to wit
ness the beauty in eclipse, and he fan
cied that she who had been so used to
reading admiration in the eyes Of every
man must vince at the pity which tact
could not conceal.
Presently he found that admiration
was getting the better of his sympathy.
| This Quondam beauty, was not crushed
by her misfortune. She met this thun-
derbolt of fates spite with gallant
courage which quickened HOLSTERS
pulses. Her easy gayety, her apparent
Inconsistencies of the pathos of her
situation, appealed to him as no wom-
ans beauty had ever done. He made
the discovery that Miss Merriam was
brilliant if no longer beautiful, and
that her cleyerness, unlike that of
many of her sex, owed nothing to i'll
nature.
In the months that followed he saw
a great deal Of Miss Merriam It was
clear that the girls liking for social
pleasure remained unaltered by the
change in her circumstances. She went
everywhere and to all appearances en-
ioyed herself in spite of the sudden fall
ing off in the number Of her admirers
There had been a time when the mar
who wished a word with the beautiful
Miss Merriam was obliged to fight his
way through double ring of black
coats, but Hollister had no difficulty in
gaining her side whenever he went
Yet the deposed queen Of hearts seem