The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-06-17

These space writers-aren't they alb
surd?' cried the girl in the hammock,
| throwing a big bundle of Sunday news
papers from her. There's a long ar
ticle in that paper, written in the most
serious vein, to prove that men no
longer propose. Isn't that ridiculous 2"
Why, but how does it account for
the marriages, then?" demanded the
debutante sitting up on the grass, very
round-eyed and interested.
They just happen, according to this
writer" replied the girl in the ham
mock Just the result of a mutual
understanding, you know"
Yes, misunderstanding. How does
one understand? There must be some
thing said-something definite" contin-
ued the debutante in growing wonder.
20, yes. But what this writer means
Is that there are no formal proposals,
no VIII you be mine2' and This Is 50
sudden But of course it's ridiculous
nonsense. Simply written to fill space.
Not that I imagine modern proposals
are like the old ones that we read about
in the Children of the Abbey and novels
of that time. I suppose that no man
nowadays kneels to a girl when he asks
her to marry him, though one sees II
done now and then, on the stage in
highly emotional scenes, and it doesn't
appear so incOngruOus. But proposals
haven't gone out, by any means and
even the custom of the lover asking
the fathers permission to offer his .ad-
dresses. mas never D66u dl4OWGQ u Vie
in really good society where the
conventionalities are regarded with pro-
per respect"
Il knew a girl once. who had that
sort of proposal" said the girl with the
red hair who was lolling in the lawn
swing pretending to work on lingerie
waist THE man was a friend OF her
father's-an old bachelor whom she had
known since she was baby-sat on MS
lap. and all that. When she was about
- -, In Troy n
and she didn't get home again for six
years. When she did the bachelor
friend was still hanging around-he
had been consoling her father for her
mothers absence during the two years
that the mother and the daughter had
been running around Europe but or
course there were lots of young fellows
too and they kept her very busy the
old bachelor friend was always there
however but she regarded him as a
member of the fanily-a sort OF uncle
| Imagine her establishment, then, when
her father came to her one day ana
broke it to her as gently as he could
! that his old friend wanted to marry her
that he had asked the fathers consent
to propose"
butante. breathless.
seVhy she married him, of course,
said the girl with the red hair. What
does a girl always do when she gets
such an opportunity? But I neglected
to say. didn't I. that he was worth two
or three millions?
ruth Baxter, who used to visit me
so often had a proposal from a man
she had only known two hours" said
| the girl in the lavender suspender
suit s'It was a bona hde proposal
too, made with all seriousness ana IN
! due form. But il her mother knew
] about it she'd faint because Ruth met
/ him on the train going from Louis
Vile to Chicago and they were never
/ introduced and there was no chaperon
or anything. But it was awfully ro-
mantle.
II don't know how they got to talk
| ing-he had the section right across
from hers=but they had dinner to-
| eether and sat out in the observation
/ car afterwards and watched the stars
+ and the 6rehies and the lights in the
! houses flash by, and all that sort OF
| thing And they found out that they
| knew the same people IN LoulsVllIe
| and Chicago and Baltimore ana Sl.
/ Louis and San Francisco, and that
/ thew had the same tastes and were
/ just terribly congenial about every
/ thing from politics to salad dressings.
1 Ruth said she never knew so taclnat-
ing a man in her Iife-so quick and
/ clever. and we'll informed, and inter-
| esting and chivalrous and tender IN
| his manner, and all that. He was a
southerner, Virginia born, and had kin
/ all over the SOUTH as tney all nave,
but he had lived in Texas for good
many years where he had big ranch
/ and I suppose that accounts for his
| inapetuositv. Anyway, they had known
each other just about two hours and
she had told him the story Of her life
and he had told her all of his that
was fit for publication, and their
/ chairs had drawn closer and closer,
and It had grown darker and darker
and there was no one else in the OBJ
servation end. and he leaned over sud
denly and took her hand and said, Is
/ If was and she was just returning
from visit to Charles people and if
any one had asked her two hours be-
fore what mattered most in all the
world to her, she would nave sac,
Texan asked that, looking straight into
her eyes-he had grand dark violet