Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-08-31
PANSY, TIE MILL GEL

II wonder" unused willful Pansy, the NAL
maiden. "if he will notice mel"
And the most beautiful gel Of all the
thousands Of female employees OF the vast
carpet works tossed her pretty head and
felt Of her immense vampire shaped black
hair ribbons IN an arch sort of way as she
bent over her loom.
They say" she went on musing, despite
the fact that the bare armed and scar-faced
foreman was looking at her disapprovingly
from the nearby doorway in which he stood
framed in all his ugifness-"they say that
he IS very handsome-like Greek god.
Oh, isn't that lovely-'iike Greek god!'
Now. isn't that original! I really wonder,
though. If it is original whether I made
1t up myself"
Pleased at her little fancy. the dainty
Pansy-dainty despite the fact that her
shoes looked to be three sizes too large for
her and Topped around and ran over the
heels in way that was exceedingly morti-
flying to the poor. sad-souled gel-the dainty
Pansy, called "willful' by all of her COM
panons at the mill because Of her pretty.
poutish ways smiled to herself
Handsome" she continued musng. land
they say. too. that he has been hawbly dis
sipated abroad. Oh these gay, care-free.
debonair men-how little do they under
stand the souls OF We women and she
sighed a little sigh. But he is so young
only twenty-four-and they say that young
men must their wild oats. And yet, if
gels attempt to sow any wild oats"
And again the hapless mill gel. saddened
and sobered before her time-she was only
eighteen. but both her father and mother
We're village drunkards, and were doing
thirty day bits in the workhouse most of
the tme-again she gave little sigh
'Oh. it is foolish" she went on. reflect
ing, after that last sigh. Ito suppose that
he would deign to so much as notice such
glance upon poor lite Willful Pansy. the
loom gel. The ely ge,s with the fine
clothes. and educated at Vassar and all
like that. I'D at the old manor house where
he will live with his people, they will at
tract all his attention. and he will never
so much as see poor me-
She dabbed at her eyes with her cheap
little handkerchief a realization of the
her.
He will be home tomorrow" she went
on saying to herself. "and he win be feted
for days. and all of the tenants Of the old
honor. and he will made his fine and
pretty speeches to the ge's visiting his SIS
tiers up yonder on the HILL and then-per-
haps not until two or three days have
to take charge-and here I am off in
corner. put here a-purpose by that moan
old foreman the hateful thing. that
none of the many visitors who come here
much see ma at all!' and the
downtrodden mill gel, feeling the rebellion
rising within her pretty bosom, took an
air Of pouting that was exceedingly be-
coming to her.
And yet" she went on. after a little
while. eff he could only see Newell. they
do say that I have pretty skin. and nice
eyes, AMI that my figser is as good as
anybody's--i not better-I wish I could
Ing here at the mill, but of course can't
ard I guess my hair is nice to look at, even
if it isn't Marcel waved. and-but how
perfectly silly l am. There isn't a chance
in the whole wide world. I suppose. that
the dear. handsome. Gissipatad thing will
SO much as see me. and here l am building
castles in Spain-but how beautiful them
castles are--how bee-yu-ti-ful.'
The reader will have apprehended long
b fore this that our heroine. the pretty,
pouting Willful Pansy. was cogitatng to
herself over the expected arrival home that
day. from the University of Heidelberg,
where he had been studyirg-of young
Ralph Ray Gitkale. the reckless. spend
thrift yet handsome and lovabla scion Of
the house of Gitkale. who despite al of his
youthful viii mess at the various European
universities to which he had been sent. was
fairly idolized by his father, and who was
still rem smbered by all of the older tenants
on the manor estate as 4 handsome. roll
licking. te'il-may-care lad whose antics in
the village We're never at an end.
And now. today. that same gay Ralph
Ray, now grown to manhood. and with the
appealing record of having been chucSed
out of three European universities for his
rol ickingnsss, was returning to the old
manor, there to be weconled by his father
and mother and sisters and. in a day or so,
to take complete charge Of the immense
carpet works, his old father having made
that announcement to the head of the de-
partments only a short time before.
On the following forenoon our beautiful
young heroine, Willful Pansy, her heart
filed with some ineXplicable joy. was bend
ing over her loom. when there strollet up
to the railing behind which she worked
tai brOad-Should2red. rather good look
ing young chap. with the exception that his
eyes We're some blocdshot and that he had
other Indications about him of beng good
deal Of a rummy.
after all. Kismet and Nilvana and I<harnla
haven't a great deal to do with our little
affairs here on earth?
With trcmulous heart and trembling
hands Wiilful PanSy bent over her work
at the loom. What hal brought him there
so soon? What wild. impossible whmsy
of the god of good for-chune had brought
him straight as if he were being guided
there by some unseen hand, right up to her
very loom. and at moment too when she
was conscious of looking her very tidest,
for hadn't she. that morning. spent a full
hour. by the light Of the little lamp in her
room.for 1t was before daylight-fxing
her hair and arranging the big black vam-
pire-shaped black ribbons In her back hair
SO as to get the most winsome effect out of
them? She sure had.
And there he was, standing at the little
rail. just gazing and gazing and gazing at
her as she bent over the loom-and the
whole world decked in rose. swan before
her,
II wonder what he is thinking" she said
to herself as her heart went pit-a-pat II
wonder If he Is noticing that dimple on the
right-han side of my FACET must smile,
as if to myself. SO that he will see that"
and as If swept by SOM tender humorous
thought. the beautiful young mill gel
smiled until she knew that the Gimple
ought to he showing up fine.
II mustn't let him me looking at
him." she said to herself. her heart beating
faster and faster. land yet. If I could only
catch another glance at his face and,
stealthily, she shot quick glance at him
out of the corner of her eye.
And when she did that he caught her at
it. and he actually smiled back at her.
MY heaven, he is going to say some
thing to me-" she said to herself then. ooh,
dear. if he should ask for the honor of see
ing me homa from the mill-Fve read
stories just like that-and then make me
some compliment about my hair, 1 know
chaI1 ing arfS frnn