Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-31
Copyright. 1907. by Thomas Il. McKee)


Fanny and Fritz, When one is-or rather
when two are frank and twenty and at the
same time complacently and conspicuousiy
In love with each other I am not aware that
it is a condition In which excuses are prop
erly made. PROFESSIONALLY they would
themselves, dare say, rudely resent any
extenuation Of their conduct. And any one
else, as matters ultimately turned out, Will
not greatly be inclined to lay at their doors
the obsolescent charge Of indelicacy. &C.
celia-Cecelia Francesca Purvis-and Lucius
Prettyman did not.
To elaborate q bit--Fanny Denton and
Cecilia Francesca shared together bat
tered apartment on the roof OF great,
gloomy, rambling structure devoted to the
housing Of courageously impecunious art
students. ] say on the roof, since the case
was just that; they lived in an insecure
looking story which the thrifty owners OF
the building had hastily constructed on the
top Of everything to contain new lot more
outrageous and more impecunious than the
rest. Somewhere down the canal-like halls
Fritz Allen also had studio and Lucius
Prettyman another.
In the day time the four Of them worked
at an art school nearby. Cecilia did NINA
lures in very ladylike and miniature way;
Fanny inclined to conventional Designing
and as for Denton and Lucius, the former
dashed out fictitious illustrations for his
fictitious imagnings, while Lucius toiled
worrisomely along in the life class and
brooded deeply over the possibilities Of
large depressing canvases devoted to the
depicting Of death scenes of famous gen.
erals and like inspiring subjects.
OF truth 1t cannot be said Of Cecilia and
Lucius that they were in the bloom of their
youth, though, to be sure, Cecelias spirit
was innocently inexperienced to an appall-
ing degree. and she was wont to clothe her
self in garments of Imply artistic
drapery, suggesting in hue at least. the i'm
mortal, blithe Botticelli maidens. At any
rate, her soul was youthful and her nature
unselfsh and beautiful.
Lucius probably never was young. The
| unpliable strands Of his nature seemed
| never to loosen. His high, pale brow be-
tokened, in it's concentrated little knot Of
lines above the nose a spirit furrowed with
the plowshare of Serious Effort He
moved In and out among his fellows, a gen.
tie, shabby, good-tempered, abnormally shy
creature whom all loved when they were
not consumed with helpless rage at the
ponderous precision of his mental and
physical workings.
1t was natural enough that the four Of
them, living together in the "Roost'-so
they called the parous top story-should be
much In each others company. Youthful
art Is not peculiarly solitary profession;
and, moreover, their frank poverty and the
franker attachment of Fritz to Fanny gave
additional strength to their bond.
To Cecilia, the wooing of her roommate
afforded frst-hand observation of what
to her was the most thrillngly beautiful
and complex emotion of the world. Fanny
herself, being somewhat practical even il
the affairs Of her heart, did not encourage
Cecelia's sentimental out breathings So it
happened that Cecilia fell into the habit
of confiding the progress of the delicate
footsteps of love to Lucus Prettyman.
The two men, of an evening, would drop
into the studio of the girls-a very proper
apartment, to be sure, with the beds con-
verted artlessly into divans and all the
feminine evidences hid in the closet. Lucius
really was brought in the beginning by
Fritz to divert Cecilia from the fascina
ton of his methods with Fanny. And it
generally turned out the two serious ones
would early retire to the kitchen-an elias
tic apartment made by the folu.ng Of
screen about little >gas-stove-there to
whisper and to cook up indigestible messes
for refreshments while Fritz and Fanny
well, it really Is not our province to dis
close the sweet story of their affections.
1t was in late October when Fanny briefly
appraised Cecilia that she engaged to
Fritz. Cecilia kissed her rapturously. My
dear, my dear" she cried softly. Isn't 1t
wonderful
"Oh, l don't know remarked her friend,
sharpening lead pencil judiciously.
'Fritze is a nice boy. And / m sure he's
very lucky to get me.
Cecilia was staggered. "Oh. Fanny!
How can you. Oh, 1t seems to me love is
I he most beautiful-h
"Oh, yes, everybody gets it sooner or later,
they say broke in Fanny prosaically. 1t
takes an awful lot of your time, though.
Heavens. / haven't done a thing in
month"
Dear, how can you joke about it?"
sighed Cecilia.
Fanny looked up in surprise Mercy,
Cecilia. it's no joke Lend me your gam
boge, will your
Poor Cecilia, she was too bewldered to
reply.
tymans room. Lucius was brooding SOL
Well Lucy" Fritz let fall casually, 1.-THE
little girl and have hit it off:
II beg your pardon" said Lucius uncer-
tainly. ,
true love, undying, grinned Fritz with APP
probation -
Lucius rose with grave ceremony and put
out his hand. ALLEN, II congratulate
you, sir; she's splendid woman You are
a fortunate man..
Sure, Lucy, that's the eye. She's lit
tie peach Guess we'll do the trick all
right"
Prettyman sat down heavily. He could
not grasp the insouciant Fritz's attitude.
But he hesitated laboriously.
you aren't going to cry about 1t, are
you?" said his friend briskly, lighting
fmcius seemed about to reply; instead he
lapsed into a mood of impressive thought
fuIness. After long silence he stam-
mered blushingly, "Ah-Allen.ah-did-y
MahNif You don't mind my asking-was it
ah-hard to dor
s.Was what hard?"
"Why. the-the-the asking her, Allen?"
Aliens eyes twinkled. We'll. old boy 1t
1T was harder not to. you know
"Ah," calculated Lucius incompetence
ingly. .,,, ,eaont,o,v remarked
Fritz. .>,
"Ii's great said Allen, as he departed
"von never can tell till you try.
ymcius Prettyman sat for hours that nlgns
clone in his room, scarcely conscious o.
the chilling atmosphere, musing mooestiy
IN the strange maddening ways OF ioVe.
The result of his cogitations amounted 70
this. II couldn't do 1t, l Couldn't oont
nee how they do"
The next day he overlook Cecilia on her
vav home from the art school: For SOME