Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1908-06-05

possessed one single roseate ray Of
hope for my future in this world or the
next, it was due to those precious,
those unselfish, those unconscious mo-
ments of her friendship to which, l
vowed, owed life, love and the pu>-
suit of happiness.
She listened, dumb. And when |
stopped it was difficult and awkward
for her, | suppose (now that | recall
the details of the AFFAIR.", for after all
my talking it may have seemed to her,
In her natural confusion, as think you
will admit, that l had spoken at times
somewhat mysteriously; that my dis
course, beautiful though it sounded to
her beyond a doubt. nevertheless
doomed vague and shadowy in outline.
or as if, perchance, l had omitted
mething-something important, 1t
may be-from my argument; some
link, perhaps, seemed to her missing
from my golden chain of fine words,
and so failed to give her when | placed
my fair tribute on the altar of Platonic
love.
BE that as it may, Marcia was
troubled in her utterance Zone could
hear that and somehow, for me as
well, the wohle enterprise had ended
l had hoped vaguely
that it would lead to something. 1t
did not. When l had finished l was
still in the self same spot on the lich-
ened rock, and Marcia was as lonely
and unapproachable as ever.
So tried again.
This time | called her attention to
the beauty of the universe; to the love-
illness of Nature, wherein all things.
great and small, as l pointed out, had
their appointed usages-even the sail
ing clouds, the soft-spoken winds and
leaves, the wild, sweet-throated birds
and harp-playing brooks-aye, and the
silent stars and flowers and the Lord
knows what. All, all. l told her,
were given a poetic service.
Then the spirit of poesy descended
upon me, and l said boldly, fairly
chanting it, that lovely woman was
the flower of flowers, cloud of clouds,
most musical and choice of brooks
nay, very bird of birds, and darling
At which Marcia started and looked
scared.
of Natures darlings, I declared pas
And at that Marcia lowered her eyes
and resumed her nibbling.
Then | was silent while, and gaz-
ing at the brook, it came to me that,
unlike the water, had babbled and
babbled without getting anywhere.
Not only that, but Romance, if one
might Judge by her niece's nibbling,
was still in chains. l reused myself,
but could find no utterance for my val
Or, so | unused of Marcia, who seemed
to be waiting-waiting for something.
knew not what, but which l, appar-
emily, was expected to purvey. spoke
again, but now more tenderly, my voice
softened, its cadence a mere gentle,
refrain. Such moments, l
odlu, WOulu ntN-Ci, hCN-OA NOhC
One had just Northumberland yet
another, while we idly sat there upon
the rock. Alas, Alas, l said, that
youth should be so blind, so needless,
so prodigal of its opportunities-of the.
beauties within its reach
Marcia nodded.
beauties that soon would fade
Marcia looked hurt.
soon fade away into the past. only
to be regretted, alas, too late. | sighed
that such hours as this one, such hap
py, happy hours. sunlit, brook musical,
should ever pass, or passing, be forgot
ten.
Marcia said, "Yes, that is all quite
true-oh, quite, quite true" And she
looked so sad that my heart reproached
me. So | spoke less mournfully.
spoke hopefully, in fact-of the fut-
ure, saying that I, for one, was deter
mined henceforth to seize such hours
and make the most of them. At this
Marcia, / thought, looked greatly in
terested.
Eyes, that is the way to do" she
said.
Then I waxed more valorous. She
need not be surprised, | said darkly,
Il she found me very, very selfsh-al-
most brutal-in the matter of seizing
hours. She laughed.
They would vanish in your hands,
she said. -.
Bit, k.ppy hours, hours like this one
by the brook, | urged. Surely She
shook her head.
This one, too, she reminded me, was
even then slipping from our grasp for
ever. She said this sadly, but ended
with a blush, laughing to
hide it, and declaring that of all the
nonsense in the world
Whereupon my heart ieaped. 1t real
ly seemed as If Romance were about
to be liberated at last.
But why? | asked. Why nonsense?
Was Il nonsense, | protested, and with
all the eloquence at my command
was it nonsense that we should stop in
the very flower Of our youth to ponder
and realize that one by one its petals
were slowly dropping-no. net that
exactly; rather, would be dropping
soon-if we did not-that IL, to put
the matter in another way. was 1t nom
sense for her and me-for she and me
her and Tor whatever, whichever
Here Marcia fell to laughing SO, that
between mirth and pronouns L was