The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1906-02-06

Inc WINDOW curtains OF Lne Liny SIT
ting room were close drawn. A tiny
fire cracked and burned in the CRATE.
The glow from red shaded lamp min
gled with the freight and showed to
the best advantage the very different
types Of beauty belonging to the two
girls who were waiting for callers.
You see," said Marian Wilding az
she poked rather glngerly at the blax-
ing sticks, you've never really told
me why you turned down that Duluth
man. Why did you? And why are
you engaged to an unknown New York
er? The Duluth man was dear and
awfully in love with you" Alicia chuc-
killed..
well, it's quite a tale. / guess /
will tell you" She looked contempla-
lively at Marian. you see, Mrs. Fate,
the 'bounteous blind dame did might
lily displace her gifts to US. She made
funny mixture Of you and me- With
all your height and provinces and top
loftiness, you're meek as a kitten at
heart, and all any man will have to do
to get you will be to kill garter snake
before your admiring gaze or save you
from drowning in two feet of water.
But 1, with my yellow mop and dimples
and girly-girly appearance, am not to
be taken by any tricks masculine.
nj n MO ~
and seldom See"
"Well, wasn't that Duluth mortal q
man? He was six feet tall, and his
shoulders were immense"
"a proper mans figure, grant, and
really thought I'd found the man till
that night Well, turn down the light.
I'll get it over with" She drew both
feet up into the big leather chair,
leaned her head into the shadow and
thought awhile.
you really knew him, did your she
asked suddenly.
mo. l was at Pratt's that winter.
But Polly told me about it. She said
you'd turned him down."
II thought SO, and Polly ought to
know. She knew more about his down
sittings and his uprisings than he did
himself But-well that was the first
winter after papa lost his money, you
know. We were living out on the cleo
trio line between st. Paul and Mime
apolis after our house was sold. 1t was
a cunning little place, but horrid to get
to. We hadn't any horse and went back
and forth on the trolleys. / must say
he-the man-was a trump about such
things. He never rubbed things In the
least bit. He was establishing a side
branch for his company in the city and
was awfully rich, but he never made
the mistake Of acting as IL things were
well, different. You see, he met me
while we were still in the big house, be-
fore wheat took a flop at the wrong
time. had all my clothes left, and
looked nice that winter. He took me
anywhere there was to go-theaters,
concerts, skating Oh, it
was dreamp' She sighed and was 81
lent a moment "But toward spring he
got to be a sort of sentimental Tommy,
and it took all my native wit and my
girlish guilelessness to stave him of"
"But what did you want to stave
him of forY'
81 didn't know any better. He was
big and strong and brave, and felt
that I'd have to give in to him sooner or
later, but-well, wanted him to show
me. His siege was perfectly awful to-
ward the last l was under fire all the
time. There was simply nothing that
man didn't do for me and all SO deli
cately that 1 simply couldn't help my
self. Finally newell, he did the usual
thing. He asked me in manly, point
blank way to marry him." Marian
stirred the fire vigorously, hoping to
catch a glimpse of Alicia's face The
attempt was futile
81 kind of wanted to take him I'D,
but you see it was largely pride with
me at first And papa and mamma,
bless their scheming. wanted me to be
safely settled. He seemed to be just
the right one. But l knew that every
old gossip, like Polly, would say it was
because he was rich, and then really
didn't love him, though at that time l
didn't know enough to know the diff
ference. Now She extended pref
ty left hand and let diamond sparkle
in the freight. Then she went on
$50 / told him / wanted him to prove
his love some way, to perform some
valorous feat OF other something to
make me love him. Perfectly silly, Of
course! But he was just that kind-he
was sure he could do miracles-for me.
And he actually bought and showed me
a ring which he carried around on his
watch chain, he was so confident. But,
do you know, the whole spring and
summer went by and nothing thrilling
would happen! / refused to drown, alb
solutely. 1t took some time to convince
him that could swim like a mermaid.
He was wild to teach me, so let him
try. After had been hopelessly clum-
sy for six weeks dived one day under
bis very nose and swan away under
water.
And there seemed to be no bears in
the woods, no rattlesnakes in the fields
where we picnicked He was getting
desperate, poor man. leased him and
trembled inwardly, because / knew
that some time something was going to
happen, and was beginning to believe
myself really in love with him. But
still, where we two were concerned, ev-
erything was plain prose. Others were
tipped into the lake, dumped over stone
walls by bucking autos, killed while
coasting. but not l. And the mamie
got to proposing every time we went
anywhere, and l got so used to it that
I'd refuse as internationally as would
an Ice cream soda in December. Then
one dark night we were coming home
from little restaurant dinner a crowd
of us had had at Green's-you remem-
Der the Greens, don't your"
Marian nodded.
"Well, it was pitch dark. l felt posi-
lively spooky when stepped of the
car. We had to pass little strip Of
woods. l think I'll never get that out
Of my mind" She sat upright, her
hands clasped tightly in her lap. You
know that little nearsighted trick the
man had of holding his chin down a.
be talked : boyish little mannerism r
Marian never had even seen him, but
she made no sign. well. we walked
along, chatting. When we reached
about the middle Of that stretch of
woods l saw two men standing rather
queerly, one In front of the other at
the edge Of the sidewalk. 1 kind Of
grabbed the mans arm, and he thought
I wanted him to speak to some one he
hadn't seen and took on his hat. It
was funny, because they stepped up in
front of us and answered his polite
bow by showing gun In his face and
telling him to hold up his hands"
She stopped, and after waiting awhile