The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1908-01-07
The Times
Evening
Story

hdu louT utTIihSedpie uaubh
tiers, Alice. Bertha, Susanna
and Claudia.
Bertha, Susanna and Claudia were
pretty, lively and fond OF dressing
well. and when one OF the three came
into her fathers office il was as IL a
tornado had burst into the rooms;
everybody was trying To wait on them.
But when Alice came TO see her
father. II was entirely different. Poor
Alice was ugly with her little deep set
eyes that looked like buttonholes in a
WORKOUT coat. her pug nose, which, as
rule, looked like rose hedge in
bloom, and her figure, which most OF
all. reminded you OF az bag of potatoes
tied together in the center
Unfortunately, Alice, who was the
ugly one, was the Oldest one of the
four girls, and for that reason she
must marry first, for M. Petitpont was
very old-fashioned in his ideas on this
point.
mo, no." he declared when Claudia,
or Susanna, or Bertha came 10 him
and told him that somebody had pro-
posed TO them and was ready TO marry
them any minute. Alice must have
husband first. When she Is well
married, then We can begin To think
OF you one after the other.
| But poor Alice had no suitors. II
was in vain that Nine. Petitpont gave
tsplendid dinners and balls every Sat
urday night, and spent hours praising
the good qualities of her Oldest daugh-
ter, and dressed her in the most ex-
pensive and fashionable dresses, while
the other three wore nothing but
cheap, simple gowns. It was In vain
that she always asked her TO play the
piano. which she played like an artist (;
that she made her read aloud from
Paul Veriaine, nobody looked at her
and every young man in the room had
eyes only for Bertha, Susanna or Clau-
dia. There were enough men who pro
posed. but the proposals were all for
the three younger daughters.
| II was no wonder. then, that these
girls were quite disguised in having
an older sister whom nobody would
marry, and who acted like red light
on a railroad track to their own ca
reer. Among themselves they never
called Alice anything else than the
danger signal"
One evening Nine. Petitpont said to
her husband
Charles, this can go on no more.
For more than ten years we have now
been waiting for a husband for poor
! Alice and nobody has ever volunteer
ed. Do you think it is right that her
sisters should suffer because of this
Bertha is now almost %, Susanna &c
and Clandia "A years old They may
be 80, 40. or even so years old before
Alice catches a husband. Must, then,
all four remain single? M. Jean would
be splendid husband tGEH BERTHA and
she loves him dearly"
or course, it could not go on like
this. But what would become OF his
principles? What would the world
say IL he should give up his firm
convictions and submit TO modern
ideas?
At last he found a remedy. Il have
an idea,' M Peitpont said one morn
ing at the breakfast table and asked
his eldest daughter to come with him
into the library.
Poor Alice he began you can't
imagine what | discovered among our
family papers last night 1t is ridicu-
4
believe | discovered that you. darl-
ing. are really not my oldest daughter
You know that you we're all born IN
Cambodia at the time when l still held
minor position. and there have been
so many changes and upheavals in our
lives that we have never noticed. We
have made a mistake, my child. and
have just found 1t out. We have got
you mixed with Bertha The result is
that you are not the oldest. That place
and honor belongs TO Bertha. Do you
know IL Is very easy to get mixed ur
when you have four daughters!
Bertha is then just 30 years old now
and you. little Alice. are only %. Are
you satisfied? After all IL must be
quite pleasant to find out that you are
1.-TWO years younger. Imagine, two
years youngerl But now the thing
is to get Bertha married on"
4 And thus il happened that Mile. Der
tina was married two months later
and her father did not have to give
up his principles
Susanna. however, was Just as impa
tent as Bertha To get pastthe dan
ger signal and she told her father
that unless she was allowed to marry
NJ. Jacques she would surely die.
What was to be done? M. and
Nine. Peutpont struggled with the
problem for whole week, then Nine
Pettipont made up her mind TO see
the thing through.
How are you, Alice, darling?" she
said TO her daughter one morning
How does 1t feel, my dear girl, to be
only 90 years old? How? No. 1t II
no mistake, II is absolutely sure tha
you are only rs years old. We have
made another mistake, darling, ant
got you mixed up with Susanna. Real
ly. you were so much alike when yoJ
were children II is fortunate. how
ever. That we found out the mistake
In time. or course, Susanna will fee
very unhappy when she is suddenly