The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1906-12-04
AN ILLUSION
Ioriginal.I

ttve, imaginative, romantic. My moth
er was very much troubled for fear I
would marry some girl with nothing to
recommend her but a pretty face. I
used to think that she wished me to-
marry Margaret Deane, Who knew how
70 sew and coo and do a lot of practi-
cal things In which I hook no interest.
| rather admired GwendOlin German.
was a tender flower, Just
SUCH a girl as a man ike to AXE I'm
der his protection. Her cheek was not
round and rosy, but there was a little
| pale red in its center like a rosebud
| painted on a china cup, with lips of the
| same hue.
| The time came when I made up my
mind that unless / could win Gwendo-
lin my life would be q failure. I was
but twenty, and that's very young for
q man to feel hat his happiness is
bound up for life in n person. How
ever, l proved my constancy by years
of devotion to the image I had set up
in my heart. Fearing hat I oould not
express myself with sufficient delicacy
to Impress one SO young, Sc modest, so
tender, l wrote my proposal in a letter.
I was several days composing 1t, aud
when finished / left it for another day
IN my desk in order to read it once
more before posting 1t.
l was suddenly called away, and
when | returned the letter was gone.
l asked my mother what had become
of it, and she said that it had been
posted with a batch of letters that had
been sent to the mail while I was
away from home. With this / was
content and confident that Gwendolin
had received it and waited aaxiously
for a reply.
When I met my love again l was
much embarrassed My Imagination
made her seem to me cold. even Of
Tended, and as she made no reference
to my letter it occurred to me that for
some reasoa-I imagined a dozen-she
was displeased with my proposal. l re-
manned with her but a few moments
vainly voring to converse ON tri-
6es, then left her.
did not call again, and within a year
her family left the place where l lived,
and h went with them. My heart
went with her. i we'd on a bachelor.
My mother frequently invited Mar
garet Deane to our house, and 1 could
see that she was Intentionally placing
her in my way. Margaret accepted
whatever attention 1 gave her, which
was not much, but when | was I'M
mindful of her she did not seem to
notice it. AS the yea passed l made
a friend of her, but it did not occur to
me to make love to her.
When l was thirty my mother died.
Before her death she made me a con-
feSsion.
my dearest boy" she said, before
I die | wish you forgiveness. Ten
years ago i saw that you We're about
10 choose a companion for life who
would not make you happy. l kept the
letter you wrote to Gwendolin- Ger
main. hoping to gain time to direct
your attention to Margaret Deane. Ten
years have passed, and every year I
have intended to send your letter to
G~wendolin. l have never done SO till
today. BY tomorrow morning she will
know for the first tnse of your pro-
posal. but by that time shall have
left you free to choose for yours, ="
And so my mother, to whom | was
SO devoted, had caused me ten years Of
misery. l forgave her and did not
utter a word of complaint. Indeed the
pain | suffered at her loss neutraliZed
any feeling Of regret for my long suf-
fering.
The day after l aid her in the grave
| took up a number of letters that had
accumulated-mOstly of coincidence
and among them was one from Gwen
dolin. 1t brought the first of different
| sensations from what l had experienced
since the beginning of my mothers
Illness. But with 1t came the remem-
brance of what my mother must have
endured from her distaste for my
choice. Margaret had been with her
| constantly In her last days and had
| comforted her as if she had been her
own daughter.
l felt an inclination to complete the
sacrifice my mother had brought about
by acceding to her wishes and giving
Margaret the option of being my wife.
But I was belnd in honor to Gwendo-
Liz as well as by love. In her letter she
asked me to come and see her if | felt
30 inclined, since she would talk to me
rather than write.
A few days later l went to see her.
She still lived with her family, who
were wealthy-more SO han when /
| had parted from her-in a statel5 man
sion. 1t was evening wheQ-l called,
u l was uShered mo q prlVare-paF-
lor. In a few minutes a bony, saIlow,
scrawny came Into the room,
| dressed in the height of fashion, be-
decked with jewels, her hands covered
with rings. l barely recognized Gwen
| dolin and would not have done SO had
| she not preserved the rosebud In her
cheek by a touch of paint.
so your poo mother has gone" h
said. what a silly thing to keep your