The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1906-03-07

I'D She wore a ridiculous little
apron (for nothing but
TX ri show, about the size Of a
- handkerchief, and a house
wifely expression that she always Ions
on such occasions. Suddenly she
looked up.
Look! Quick! Out of the window,
Jack. No, the other way. There she
goes"
"By Jove. what a pretty girl" I ex-
claimed. "Vho is she|
"But you We're looking the wrong
way" said Polly, land that'wasn't the
girl I meant"
II was looking at the girl across the
street." I said. land she was quite the
prettiest girl I have ever seen-except
one" 1 added. dutifully.
Polly set the kettle down with a
thump that Jared the teacups.
"Of course she was" she exclaimed.
"The girl across the street always is.
There isn't q man living who doesn't
worship some girl across the street.
She's like the girl you couldn't get, the
fish you didn't catch, and the cake you
didn't eat"
But that girl! Why, Polly. she was
Eitian-"
"Peroxidew.
"-and Gibson"
"Conceitedw
"-and Burne-Jones-"
"Loud!"
all in one"
! Polly sighed as she turned to put a
aight under the kettle. .
"Its always, that way" she said, re-
signedly. "The girl across the street,
like the girl he didn't get, always is q
mans ideal. If he never marries, he
carries her image about In his heart,
or her photograph about in his pocket,
and uses it for a standard with which
ito compare all the other women he
may meet. If he does marry somebody
else she becomes a sweet memory that
rises every time his wife burns the bis
cults or forgets to take her hair out of
curl papers. Why is it," and Polly
Tilted her little nose upward until she
looked almost digniied, "that the mere
fact that a girl doesn't want to marry
a man makes him wild to get her"
! "Polly," said I, "do you remember
when you were a very little girl how
you used to lie awake nights trying
ito catch Santa Claus? Do you recol-
aect how the-iam;o ION the top shelf was
always the kind you liked best? Did
you never long to see the other side
of the moon, or eat what wasn't good
flor you, or play with the naughty lit
tile girl whom you Eere forbidden to
speak to? It's human nature. The
ELUSIVE. the unattainabie, the thing we
cannot get always has been and always
will be the thing we want"
Polly pushed back a little curl that
will get into her eyes, and began cut
3tinc lemon, mcditatively.
[ eyes" she agreed. "but It's different
with a woman. She always feels a
sort of resentment toward the man who
won't fall in love with her, while a
man rather respects a woman for re-
fusjng him and admires her for snub-
Ding him. The longer she remains on
the other side of the street."
"That is it, 1 broke in. "the longer
she remains on the other side of the
street. But l have observed that it is
generally very easy to cross over your
self, and then"
:. "And then she is no longer the sir!
across the street," broke in Polly,
waving half a lemon triumphantly.
seThen she loses her illusion, her attrac-
tion. It is as if you had turned the
limelight off the leading lady in the
play. Her Titan hair becomes red;
you observe that her nose turns uD at
the end; her diamonds are only paste.
and her figure is nothing more nor less
than the result Of wearing a straight
front corset. The stock market falls,
and you are glad to sell out your in
terest in the girl at the very lowest
figure. The very fact that she has
succumbed to your entreaties OF your
nations, the very fact that she
you, or is willing to flirt with
kyou-'
Polly, will youput down that lemon?
} 1t is taking the color out Of me al
ready"
Polly subsidized.
LET me ask you," I went on. seri-
ously, "why, if you girls know all this,
do You so often cross the street your
selves?"
"What do you mean?" said Polly.
you send rs sofa pillows" l re-
forted.
Polly WINGED.
"And nccktie cases." went on, "and
invite us to violet teas"
"Mr. Heavyfeather," said Polly, will
sou kindly pass the sugar."