The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1906-01-25
7 Unconditional
Surrender
BY CECILIA A. L0lZEAUx

| Copyright. 1905. bp Homer Sprd0,e
The window curtains of the tiny 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 as
she poked rather gingerly at the bloz
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
err? The Duluth man was a dear and
awfully in love with you" Alicia ehuc-
killed..
We'll. 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
a funny mixture of you and me. With
all your height and BROWNIES and top
loftlness. you're meek as kitten at
heart, and all any man will have TO do
to get you will be to Kill garter snake
before your admlring gaze or save You
from drowning in two feet of water
But l, with my yellow mop and dimples
Vi ri evir RI m
be taken by any tricks masculine.
want a man. such a one as we read OF
and seldom see"
well, wasn't that Duluth mortal a
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 you?" she
asked suddenly.
NO. | was at Pratts that winter
But Polly told me about it. She said
you'd turned him down
Il 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 We're living out on the cleo
trio line between st. Pau, and Mime
apolis after our house was sold. 1t was
a cunning little place, but horrld to get
to- We hadn't any horse and went back
and forth on the trolleys. | must say
he-the man--was 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 awfuly rich but he never made
the mistake OF acting "a II things were
well. different. You see, he met me
while we were still in the big house. be-
fore wheat took 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 -everywhere. oh, 1t
was a dream" She sighed and was 81
lent a moment. But toward spring he
got to be a sort of sentimental Tommy,
and 1t took all my native wit and my
girlish gullelessness to staye him off.
But what did you want to stave
him off for?"
II 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-wel wanted him to show
fo n IN
ward the last | was under fire all the
time. There was simply nothing that
man didn't do for me and all so dell
cately that l simply couldn't help my
self. Finally newell, he did the usual
thing. He asked me in a manly, point
blank way to marry him." Marian
stirred the fire vigorously. hoping to
attempt was futile.
81 kind of wanted to take him up,
but you see 1t was largely pride with
J me at first. And papa and mamma.
bless their scheming, wanted me to be
safely settled. He seemed to he Just
the right one. But l knew that every
old gossip, like Polly, would say it was
DttduSt uS was lltu, anu Lutn fcdify
didn't love him, though at that time |
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.
80 | told him | wanted him to prove
his love some way. to perform some
valorous feat or other something to
make me love him. Perfectly silly. of
course! But he WAS just that kind-he
was sure he could do mira ces-for me.
And he actually bought and showed me
ring which he carried around OH 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
his very nose and swan away under
water.
And there seemed to be no bears in
the woods. no rattlesnakes in the fields
where we pcnlcked. He was getting
desperate poor man. leased him and
trembled inwardly, because | knew
that some time something was going to