The Central Nevadan. [volume] (Battle Mountain, Nev.) 1885-1907, 1905-08-17
A Realistic Picture
foriKinaL.l

had q violent quarrel. Never In my
life had I been 80 shocked, SO Mortified.
We had known each other ten years
with nothing more serious between Us
than a few lovers spats, and now that
we we're united for life W. had made
the discovery that we were incom-
patible. I saw In store for u . series
OF outbursts lasting through . lifetime.
I fastened to my friend Merriam-a
singular friend for . man OF twenty.
five. since he wal seventy-to pour my
trouble in his ear.
what lie it. BIllyr' he asked sym
patheticaily.
1--WE have quarreled." I replied. al.
most In tears.
"well," he said, with q smile. "dld
you expect to go through life billing
and cooingf"
mo. but I have always been used
after a quarrel with any friend to be
the first to offer my hand and make II
all up. would have desplsed the man
who would refuse to meet me half.
way. 81
The man yes. but did you always
meet with such response from wo-
mann
81 never had such Quarrels with
women. I was not sufficiently Init
mate with any Of them"
"Ah, there's the difference. A man
never becomes as intimate with anoth-
er man as with q woman. Besides, a
woman is not q man. Sit down. light
your pipe. and I'll tell you what l have
never conhded to any one before.
MY marriage. like yours. was a love
match. I had had a great many men
| friends and one man chum. TIE night
after our return from wedding trip
I took up my hat to go out. Where
are you goingr asked my wife. I'm
going round to Tom Noyes' for q few
minutes Just to say How d'you dor
after my absence And you expect me
to spend the evening here alone on the
| first night after u return? II Tom is
to take you SO early. what Will be the
result after you have begun to get tired
Of mey I didn't suppose marriage
meant giving up my best friend But
nat uccu " kAsc " aA0to6uS eo1e W.
up to a violent quarrel?
sit was very plain to me that II I
had tried to find the most unreasonable
woman In the world I could not have
better succeeded. At first after our
Quarrels we made q great ado about
making up. but pretty soon we sulked
after the paroxysn,s. growing less and
less sulky every hour till tranquility
was restored. At times I would apollo
gize for what I had done and occasion.
ally for what I had not done, but after
awhile I discovered that the best way
was to ignore the causss Of our difficult
ties entirely. They were oil shocks re-
sulting from the efforts Of two currents
| to blend.
II did not spring from the grub bach
eior into the butterfly married q
1t took q long while to change me. Al
the years went by I let 90 more and
more my bachelor instincts and devei-
oped those Of a husband and father.
A new world was growing into exist
ence for me. For q time l did not re-
alize how fully l had become a part Of
1t. and at times cast longing eyes back
to my bachelor independence. But the
day came at last when I looked upon
my bachelorhood As an ~undeveloped ex-
istence In which the heart had no part
and my own sweet will was the current
In which I drifted aimiessly.
"Then came children to live and chill
dren to lose. Each child was like q
tender shoot springing from my heart.
Those who passed from " are as dear
today 40 those who lived. In the fam.
lily. with all its cares. its responsible
ties. Its griefs. we found the only hap
piness that never died.
And now that those of our children
who have lived have left US to form
their own worlds we are alone to-
gether. a. We were when the current
Of our lives FIRST met and mingled.
Do you suppose we never quarrel? II
you do. you are mistaken. But we
know that our quarrels are Q part OF
our imperfect natures. and We acceps
them al we accept Dur other Ills. Thus
we do not magnify the evil they do.
which Is in itself Insignificant"
Prank" called q sharp. q~ueruious
voice from another room. ARE you 60
ing to talk all day7"
'TWhat do you want. deaxf"
"You know very well that I have
been wanting to speak to you about
something Of Importance Tor half an
hour"
"r'ii be with you In q moment. Don't
get Into q stew about nothing"
pressed the old mans hand and
withdrew. It seemed to M that In his
brief story and the bit Of sequel con-
tanned In the few words had heard
no had given me . picture Of what my
life would likely be. The romances I
had read Of the happy period OF young
love. the beautiful drifting together OF
two souls. q gradual decline without
chatting. all seemed to me to be incom-
patible with d imperfect natures.
Beautiful examples there doubtless are.