Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1908-02-28
THE STAY-AT-H0ME
GIRL

The Stay-at-nOme girl EXTENDED
graceful hand to the last of her five
men callers and sank back into her
chair with the air of one who knows
her own powers.
eyes, it really does pay to spend the
summer in the city," she observed,
seemingly apropos of nothing at all.
With adroit questioning her reasons
began to be apparent. There are
great many men in this city whom
you never have an opportunity to talk
to or even see during the winter" she
said languidly, simply because they
are attached. One is appropriated by
your best friend and another by your
best enemy and so on down the list"
"Well?"
Well, In Summertime they become
detached, and then
Then you attach them?"
"Only for the summer" answered
the stay-at-home girl with touch of
hauteur. "It isn't my meter to under
cut the attractions of my friends. You
know how 1t is in this little old town."
she added frankly. eff a man is IN
love with a girl, or even supposed to
be in love with her, he's got to be
absolutely constant to that girl. He
is as much her property as if she
had bought him and paid for him and
tagged him Hands off, It's rather
hard on him, poor soul. She may have
as many adorers as she likes, but he
is looked upon by every one as her
especial property, and he had just as
well be married man for all the no
tice he gets from the other girls.
Sometimes he would dearly love to
see something of some one else be-
sides the girl who has attached him,
but it would simply be accounted
treason unless his visits were paid to
his owners best friend, and made with
the avowed intention of confiding in
her his devotion to his owner"
The stay-at-home girl lapsed into in
trospection for a moment. She was
probably reviewing the possibilities of
the five who had just left.
"And them" gently urged her inter
locutor.
"Oh!" She reused herself Il was
about to say that in summer the code
changes. Every mans best girl goes
out of town, and he becomes unat-
tached whether he wishes it or not.
By the time he has formed the habit
of being all things to one girl so with
the joy of a grass widower he turns
his attention to the nearest at hand"
who, in this case, happens to be
you"
"The nearest at hand" went on the
stay-at-home girl, without needing the
interruption, and reaps the benefits
of his winters instructions. For in
stance
Eyes, for instance. Let us par
ticularize, commented her companion.
Il was going to say that of the five
men who called this evening only one
is regular standby of my own. The
others are all detached for the sum-
mer months. There are half a dozen
others, too, who come at irregular in
tervals-you see 1 happen to be the
only one Of my particular set in town
this summer-and I'm a regular queen
bee among them. They can't do too
much for me. | have more engage
ments than l can possibly keep for the
afternoons and evenings. There is
even a sort of rivalry among them as
to which one will give me the best
time this summer. Its awfully jolly"
"It must be, but what about the heat
and noise and lack of vacation tan
that most girls long to accumulate in
summer"
"a very small matter compared with
the compensations," said the stay-at-
home girl wisely. 81 can get through
the days very comfortably when there
is always something pleasant to look
forward to in the evenings, and with
ten or eleven men struggling to pro-
vide you with entertainment there is
always something doing you know.
Besides"
"Well?"
Its rather interesting to have your
own little winter-long tete-a-tetes
broken in some such fashion The
man who is-er-especially nice to
you all winter thinks you just twice
as charming when the summer fur
nishes him with a dozen rivals to cope
with. It's a poor rule that doesn't
work both ways"
"But there seem to be other ways
for that rule to work Also" remarked
her companion dryly. What happens
when the act ial owners of the de
tached dozen come home again? Do
they accept the leading strings willing
ly orr"
The stay-at-home girl unclasped her
bracelet and clasped it on again With
snap. ooh, yes" she observed care
lessly.
81 don't believe it." answered her
in,erlocutor calmly. 81 remember to
have heard last autumn that you"
1--WE won't go into that, if you
please" murmurtd the stay-at-home
girl, rising from her chair 81 hate
inventories and post-mortems. Just
be content to take my word for it that
autumn is the actual vacation time
and summer is the time to stay at
home if you want to"
Gather you posy of other mems
fowers?" quoted her tormentor soft
ly.
"To enjoy yourself" said the stay