Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-19
CHAPTER XII.
The Results of . Knockout

TT is wrong no doubt, to undignify chapter
by such heading; but what if the caption
fits! Various women, since this funny old
world began, have lost their hearts to men in
ways too strange and manifold to classify or
count Some have lost their hearts in the
flick of lash, as it were. while Others required
a score of years to i've their all. Some have
divided out Dan Cupids merchandise to as
many as four husbands in quick succession :
others, less enterprising, have remained single
and eaten their hearts out. Many have
had their hearts worn out, worked out nagged
out; but few, it is pleasant to state, have had
them knocked out.
At any rate. the losing of Miss Valda's
rare exception; though, to her credit be it
said, she did not know it. Moreover, she re-
fused pointblank to admit the faintest posi-
bility of such a loss, even to herself, and
especially to Morson-Brown
When that man delivered his unfortunate
remark relative to loving her in other circum
stances she had crushed him with a glance
and turned on her heel, or, to be more exact,
she had tried to crush him with glance, and
turned on her heel. This difference is occa-
stoned by the fact that he possessed peculiar
disposition which positively refused to be
crushed under any condition, no matter what
weight Of dignity and scorn was brought to
bear. In this instance, he returned to his
burdensome task of holystoning the Spitfre's
decks, and enlivened his labors by beginning
ling! Valda heard him! Therefore, with the
vindictive intention of interfering with his
absurd happiness, she gave orders that the
privilege Of holystoning should be taken away
from him Immediately.
She neither saw nor spoke to him throughout
the entire day. and for two reasons. First,
she did not intend to see or speak to him ever
again as long as she lived; second, she
deeply, most sincerely mortified. Naturally,
Morson-Brown, in his propensity for fighting
people on her yacht, had brought about this
distressing state of mind
NOV that the excitement of battle was over,
= she had time to think, and her thoughts
were not pleasant ones; indeed, they were
quite the reverse, falling little short of perfect
disgust. 1t was all very well for ladies of
ancient Rome, or other untaught barbarians,
to sit calmly down, expressing approval with
their thumbs, while men made brutes Of them
selves; but this was different. These anti
quated ladies most probably enjoyed fight
from an innocent and purely artistic point of
view. They lived according to their lights;
but their lights were not electric. What, then,
OF a lady of the twentieth century, born and
that not only watched a brutal fight but had
practically started it by giving her sanction
to the pugilists? Yes, that was different
matter
In vain she strove to excuse her act on the
grounds of justice, on the grounds of Christian
sympathy for a man that had subdued his
own proud spirit because of her. The fact
remained that she had forgotten her duty to
society at large by failing to uphold its prin-
ciples of morality and peace. She had winked
at rowdyism! She had become pdrtieeps