Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-03-07
How They Met.
[Original.1

newspaper at his club when his eye
lit upon the following death notice:
Observation-Disclosures c. Fairweather
Funeral from his late residence. "a Du
Pont avenue, at II a. m. Thursday, April
16.
Singular" unused Pemberton, "that
there is no age put in. suppose
must go. His mother would never
forgive me IL I stayed away"
!! He looked at his watch and, seeing
that he had just time to reach the
house before the ceremony, left the
club and proceeded thither, arriving as
. the obseQuies were beginning. Direct
; ~ opposite him sat a very pretty young
I woman, on whom his eyes were riveted
/ all through the services. When they
/ were over and the family and intimate
+; friends were entering the carriages to
follow the dead to the cemetery Penn
berton saw the lady who had caught
his fancy handed into the last carriage
; IN the train. He stepped to the car
riage, was ushered In by the attend
ant, the door was closed and the car
r1age driven away. There was no one
inside except the lady and Mr.. Pember-
ton.
/ 1t is not to be supposed that lady
/ and gentleman will drive several miles
alone together without a word. In
this instance it was incumbent on the
lady to speak first, and she did so.
/ II noticed" she said, that the age
of the deceased was omitted from the
death notice. Do you know how old
he WASP"
II noticed that myself" replied Penn
berton, bit fiustered. "Gus was al
ways sensitive about his age, and
dare say he left it out on purpose"
The lady looked at him wonderingly.
81 mean" added Pemberton hastily
II suppose that the family, knowing
Of his preference In the matter, omit
ted it,
Zone Of the Fairweathers wrote
delightful novel, believe, Her Con-
quest"
Martin Fairweather. He had great
talents. It's q pity he was cut of
while entering on a brilliant career"
WAS Her Conquest a posthumohs
work?'
mo" replied Pemberton; "he was
forming plans how to follow up the
situation. 81 think he wrote it before
he died."
Again the lady looked up suddenly,
and Pemberton explained that he
meant the book was published while
the author was yet living.
"Are you an intimate friend of the
family?" she asked.
mo, Gus mother and mine are very
dear friends. l have known Gus fairly
WELL but not intimately. And you,
suppose you are close to himY'
"a very distant relative, though 1
confess l scarcely know them"
On the way home Pemberton ven
tured to ask permission to call upon
the lady, which was granted. She in
troduced him to her family as an init
mate friend Of the Fairweathers whom
she had met at Augustus Fairweath-
er's funeral. 1t happened that several
friends who saw her with her new
devotee asked her where she had met
him. Stories grow by telling, and at
of her cousin, poor Gus Fairweather,
who had recently died.
But a few months had passed be-
fore there was an engagement between
Pemberton and Miss Anita Brown, the
lady he had met at the Fairweather
funeral The courtship being short
and Mr.. Pemberton being known to
very few Of Miss Browns friends, the
engagement occasioned great surprise
among them. The first question al
ways was where did she meet him?"
and the reply always was: "He was a
bosom friend Of Gus Fairweather, and
the Fairweathers, you know, are close
kin to the Browns. They first saw
each other while poor Gus was being
lowered in the grave. Wasn't it a
melancholy meeting to result in such a
happy eventT'
! One day some months later Pember-
ton and his wife were walking togeth-
er when suddenly the former stopped
and stood stock STILL He was white as
a sheet and trembled ali over, looking
straight before him.
"Edwardv' gasped his bride. what
is it?''
/ Pemberton put his hand to his brow.
Gam 1 all right? Do dream"
'Oh, EdwardY'
Meanwhile young man approached
and called: Hello, Pemberton! How
are you? This is the lady, suppose.
I've heard all about it. Met at my I'M
cle's funeral. Am glad the old duffer
brought some happiness before he died
j He never did while he lived"
"W-where were you when-your un-
cle-died?' stammered Pemberton.
SIN Europe. Didn't know anything
J about it till got home. And how do
you suppose first heard it? Why, at
being told Of the romantic attachment
that had been started between Ned
Pemberton and Miss Anita Brown
while weeping over the old fellows
gravew
There was no age mentioned in the