The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-12-16
5 2 K {
tl" HEN l am to understand" said
 MT. Carling sadly, that you de- cline to marry me because 1 am


 a Bostonian?'
 No" replied Miss Chester, resting her large, gray eyes upon him with an eX- pression of polite regret. "It is because you can never for one second forget that you are Bostonian"
 Ut is precisely the same thing sighed MT. Carlng.
 Also" pursued Miss Chester remorse- lessly, you seem 10 feel 1t a pleasant duty to keep reminding the rest ol us that we are NOT Bostonians."
 "Quite superfuous, l admit" said MT Carling.
 'Then YOU are such a soft pedal to the enthusiasm of youth. Although we have taken this club house for a fortnight for a Christmas house party. and filled il up with jolly crowd of young people, one would think that you were attending a synod! You can ride and golf and shoot ducks and play bridge all night, and lots of things-and yet you stalk around Ike the family spook-'
 That's because I'm in love-" explained MT. Carlng calmly
 "It's because you are lazy,' retorted Miss Chester indignantly. Besides" she continued with feminine irrelevanee, T don't like yonr methods. The idea of go- ing to papa and asking his consent to pay your addresses to his daughter be- fore you had scarcely spoken to me alone! 1t gives me the creeps"
 "A tribute to your charms began MT. Carling.
 "A tribute to your own powers of fasci- nationr' retorted Miss Chester. It's so absolutely un-American!'
 A faint color crept into MT. Carilns lean, arstocratic cheek, but his manner lost none of it's gentleness.
 "It struck me as being rather decent, Doris" he protested. You see, If l had your parents consent and then failed to secure yours l would be the only one to be unhappy, whereas if l was to se- cure yours and then find your parents opposed you would be unhappy also.
 Miss Chester threw up her pretty hands with a gesture of despair
 '"That is just it. Your reasons are al ways so infalliby and wearisomely eX- cellent Are you never angry, nor excited Tor foolish"
 There was a modest rap at the door, and at Miss Chester's reply the steward of the Poecamaw Fishing club entered. Carlng arose.
 q presume that you and Chapin must discuss ways and means" he remarked
 
 main hall, which n group of men and girls were busily engaged in decorating with holly and mistletoe While Carling was cautonlng. them against fall from the stepladders Miss Chester entered.
 ''The plans for tomorrow are these, she announced to her chattering guests; .'The men are going out at o'clock to- morrow morning to shoot ducks
 "Handy hour; We can go right out after bridge; saves the trouble of going to bed at all," murmured one of the gentlemen "Plesse don't interrupt. The automobile launch will tow them to their stations In the afternoon papa is going to take the girls out in the steam launch, and if the water is still, they will sail around and break up the duck rafts so that the men will get some shooting. After luncheon l must go over to town after our supplies, or we will have a very incomplete Christ mas dinner"
 But who's going to run the bubble-boat 1T the captain is away on the launch" The ruddy hue of the ire was reflected from Miss Chesters pretty face.
 'T had counted on Jones, but Jones has