The midland journal., 1905-03-24


IL rather admire her myself, only"
"Mollie Richards?" / inquired, with
extreme innocence. "Who said any
thing about Mollie Richards?"
"Why, you did of course-that is
to say-yes-no, suppose you didn't,
then-why, did, suppose; but any
how, what's the good of cavilling
about her? 1t is Mollie Richards, isn't
it?"
'T wouldn't marry Mollie Richards"
I said, decisively, eff they shot me
for refusing"
tea, and-yes, it was not my imagina-
tion-her hand did shake, and she
looked as if it would have been re-
lief to her feelings to have launched
the teapot at my head.
Monty, you are trying" she ex-
claimed; upon my word you are!
You insist that you've come to tell
me as our oldest friend that you've
really found some one that you could
care for at last, and then you sit and
twist your mustache and make me
guess all the wrong people, and"
81 never made you guess any one,"
said, Indignantly, removing my
hand from my upper lip with jerk.
/ merely informed you that l fell in
love yesterday. 1 suppose there's %
objection to that? And when you sug-
gested that it happened at Lady Fol-
let's, I agreed"
"Well,," said Elva, in a judicial
tone, "you didn't stay more than
three-quarters of an hour. Directly
you arrived you took me to see the
aviary, and the rest of the time you
spent in the rosary with Mollie Rich.
ards"
eff I'd known you were watching
my movements so carefully" I be-
gan.
Elva blushed furiously.
when people make themselves
conspicuous" she said, frostily, their
doings are bound to form the subject
Of comment Mollie Richards always
persists in wearing maize with her
particular shade of red-auburn hair,
and-I could see her from all over the
garden"
Almost without looking?" I sug-
gested, carelessly.
Elva passed over this remark with
contempt, but l couldn't help MOTTO
ing that the flush deepened.
well, as it's not Mollie," she OBJ
served, with dignity, "and as you've
called on purpose, perhaps you'll be
obliging enough to tell me who it Is,
so that l may congratulate or condone
with you as the case may be-"
You'll condone," said l., with con.
viction.
''Why, please?"
Because. she-this girl, who isn't
Mollie Richards, you know, doesn't
care straw for me-in that way, and
and the whole thing is hopeless"
Elva softened instantly.
"How can you tell if you've never
asked her?" she demanded. "She
may be simply pining away for your
sake if you only knew'-her gaze
wandered through the window and
settled on bed of brilliant begonias
in the front garden-"girls don't al
ways wear their hearts on their
sleeves, even in these matter-of-fact
days, Monty
/ raised my eyes. They had been
busily engaged in tracing the pat
tern of the carpet.
do you think it's likely" I asked,
that any girl would really fall in love
with a man twice her age, if"
"Oh, she's young" interrupted FL
va, hastily. do you know, I'm rath-
er glad of that"
81 held up deprecating hand.
"Please let me finish." l implored.
Twice her age. when she's tyran-
nized over him, teased him and look
ed upon him as an old fogey for the
greater part of her natural life?"
Elva eyed me sharply. The color
came and went in her cheeks in way
that had never seen it come and go
before. l put my eyeglass in order to
better admire the effect.
"You said you'd only seen her once
or twice." she resumed, severely; but
the CULVER in her voice robbed the
severity of any sting.
| waved my hand.
Lovers license!" l said, airily. 81
couldn't divulge everything at once"
''If you've known her so long, how
comes it that you only-well-discov-
cred the state of your feelings yester-
day?"
8" There is tide in the affairs of
men," quoted. Likewise, there is
a psychological moment when a man
suddenly realizes a fact that may
have been staring him in the face
for years."
"And that psychological moment oc-
CURED at Lady Follet's?"
Occurred at Lady Follet's," I
echoed. And then there was long
silence.
let my eyes wander slowly round