Bisbee daily review., 1908-07-21
BLUE
 ROSES - - By cRITTEspEN MARRIOTT
(Copyright. by Daily. Story Pub. co-)

never found to whom she owed them. The first, a lovely cluster of rosy crimson buds, of texture as soft and fine as her own cheeks, had reached her on her sixteenth birthday without sign to show their giver. Some mis- take" she thought Time will show" But time did not show.
 The second came the next Christ mas--rich, creamy. fragrant; but again without a card. Delighted, with the frank delight of schoolgirl who found herself suddenly a-tiptoe on the edge of romance. she tried to find the sender. In vaini A dozen suspected friends to whom she displayed the flowers, watching the while for some tell-tale movement. listened or sym pathized without sign of self-betrayaL
 And still the roses came. Up to her coming out they came spasmodical- ly, usually at birthdays or holidays, or whenever some special occasion seemed to call them forth: later they came almost continually Like many American girls, she had friends from Maine to California, and visited in a SSOIC OI EO4utSs anu NACiN'Si oAaS went the roses followed-always anonymously.
 At first their coming was a recur. rent wonder-something to be spoken of between girl and girl in romantic confidence; later it became a hushed secret to be held close in her own heart. With time she learned to parry the curious questionings of her friends so deftly that even those who had known of the mystery in early years did not suspect that the veil had never been lifted.
 For it had never been. The most she learned was that the giver must know her well, and while clinging to his anonymity. must wish, paradoXically, 10 make his gifts as conspicuous as possible. Let her leave home to visit a friend, and she would find the roses awaiting her; let her give an enter tainment, and in the thick of it the roses would arrive; let her start home from a trip, and among those who saw the inevitable bouquet At times the thing grew positively eerie.
 Largely in consequence of these flowers she became a social success. Men-young men, especially-are like sheep: where one leads, the whole flock will follow To be admired is to win admiration: to have "beaux' is to gain 'beaux." to succeed is to tri- umph The young men who saw her receive flowers counted her worthy of other flowers. and when a young man makes gift 10 a girl he is compelled, ir self-iustihcation. to seek her com. pany How much Virginia owed to the aura Of admiration the roses created around her. and how much to her own good looks and IoyabIeness. it would be hard [" say. Al least the roses led the young men to discover how gen. eralIy desirable she was She counted her "scaIps" by dozens.
 Counted her scalps-yes-but she did not marry Twenty-eight, twenty
 nine. thirty-one by one she saw the milestones slip by her, each a memo 1 rial to the passing of one or more | young men, each or whom moped | sulked. or smiled while, according | to his nature. and tben went off and married some one else
 It was not that she did not like | them. She did. many of them. But whenever one grew pressing, between him and her would rise the specter 1 of her unknown admirer-he whc
 might some day come to ask the re ward of his long constancy. Concern l ing him she knew uothing-nothing | except what might be expressed in his repetitional offerings. He might be | old or young, tall or short. handsome l or homeIy-she knew nothing. Yet
 from this very ignorance she built uI
 his complete portrait As a romantic
 schoolgirl she painted him with dash ing strokes and great splotches ot
 color-if not quite a cavalier witf flashing eyes. yet very nearly as that
 ideal: as a woman grown. she drew
 him with strong. clear-cut jaw ana
 powerful frame: as an old maid. sh.
 nmned him of the Douglas. Douglas
 tender and true" type. So gradually
 the mental portrait changed-growinl
 with her growth-that 1t seemed un
 changed In time its original becam,
 as real tc her as anyone whom sht
 had known. so real, in fact. that tangi
 ble admirers seemed misty and waver
 ing And as she saw them one by ont settle down with other women. sh, turned with ever stronger romantic devotion 10 her faithful visionary ad mirer By and by she came to live fl dream-a dream a deuX
 Only once had she been reused. ant that was when Paul came a-wooing Again and again she sent him away
 but ever he returned. until persistenc, had won him a place in her thoughts almost equal to that of her drean , lover. She began to question whethe
 1t was well to longer wait for one wh,
 showed no signs of coming forward.
 This change of heart coincided witt
 a change in her home life. This hat 7 always been singularly happy. He
 mother had died years before, bu
 when time had softened the pang sh - had found content in the love of he father. Never was another man lik him. she thought, so kind. so generous } so loving; even her dream friend di not measure up to his standard. SC [ when he fell. one day, stricken wit paralysis and was brought home {