The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1909-10-14
DOLLY AND THE FOOL.

it ran as follows:
young and attractive lady Of title
most urgently requires 910. No secur-
that the loan will be repaid within three
weeks. Please help.-Address, Flavia,
care of Sunday Times"
l sat up, all my latest sense of curios-
ity-I mean chivalry- aroused. To think
that lady If title, young and attrac-
tive, should be in want of EIG while /
I mean we--had so much. Personally
/ don't ever remember not being in want
of f1O, but / will say this for Dolly she
always is the soul of generosity. Only
last week on my birthday she gave me a
ee-fgure check as well as-why 60
into details?
Dolly 1 said, "what do you think d
this ?" and read it out to her.
Dolly did not quite catch it. read it
again. Why L should have blushed
hanged if / know. She always looks at
you as if she could turn your thoughts
inside out. l felt as if I'd been lending
| f10 notes to distressed ladies of title all
my life.
Rubbish" said Dolly.
That's Dolly all over. No romance; no
interesting surmises as to why a titled
lady should be in such need. In my own
mind I have woven 1000 theories, sur
rounding the fair Flavia with crippled
| fathers or widowed mothers or younger
sisters depending on her. Flavia as their
sole support-a brave, lion hearted girl
facing the world alone retired into my
shell at the rebuff, but l could not dis
miss the subject from my mind. The
idea of that poor girl haunted me all
day In the afternoon Dolly went paying
calls. / went to the club. Women" l
moralized as | threw myself into an
easy chair, ''are always hard on their
own sex; all the more then ought we
men to stretch helping hand-sDo good
by stealth and blush to find it fame"
1 quoted. I was ever poetical Poesy
and romance have ever found friend
in me. / hesitated no longer. Striding
to her writing table I indited the fol-
lowing note:
s'To FIavia If Flavia will be outside
IPiccadilly Tube station at 4:3O p. m. to-
morrow (donday) one who has known
poverty himself will endeavor to help
her in her need. He will wear brown
| tie and carnation in his coat, and
trusts F1avia will wear violets.-Coeur
de Lion"
I liked my pseudonym. "When she
| knows my name is Richard l thought,
''she will understand the significance.
How / got through the intervening time
/ don't know Philanthropy makes one
lfidgety. Dolly remarked on the effect
without knowing the cause. In the
| morning | went to the bank and drew
| two f5 notes. In the afternoon at 4
o'clock precisely | was waiting outside
the Tube station in a. condition of sup
pressed excitement A visit to my tailor
and haircut had provided my excuse
to Dolly. In another minute we had
met. | had vision OF large black
hat. languishing eyes, a pretty face
with a high color, a tall, svelte figure,
with the most clinging of clingy gowns,
and huge bunch of Parme violets in
her bosom. / took off my hat; she
bowed We murmured our respective
pseudonyms, and in another minute we
were stroling up Regent street on the
way to tea shop. We did not speak
until we were seated at the table.
remember wishing the titled classes were
better linglists. 1 didn't like leon pro-
nounced anglice. But after all, l
thought, it Is only the lower classes who
are educated nowadays. I ordered tea.
We had pleasant time and dalIied
over it till nearly 6 o'clock.
BY that time [ had heard all the cir.
cumstances which had led up to her
financial stress-how devoted she had
been all her life to art in general and
the theater in particular; what sue
cess she had been in any theatricals in
which she had taken part; how she de-
termined to go on the stage; how her
father, the noble viscount, had sternly
forbidden it, threatening to cut her off
with less than the proverbial shilling;
how in spite of that she, the Hon. Flavia
Forsythe, had run away from home, and
how in next to no time a leading man
ager had offered her an important part
in his next play at splendid salary
how she had run away with quite enough
money to keep her until the play was
produced; the only thing was and here
her eyes filled with tears and her hand
appealingly touched mine, she had no
money to buy the necessary dresses for
the part, so she had ventured to appeal
for just f10-she thought e1O would
be enough, although, of course
At this moment her umbrella fell
down. picked it up. / pressed her
hand reassuringly. / slipped the two
bank notes into her yielding palm. Over
whelmed by her agitation promised her
as much more next day and she could
repay me when she liked. But she was
firm on that point. The play would be
produced in ten days. time, she pointed
out, and she could repay the ego out
of her first two weeks salary. We ar
ranged to meet the following day
It was late when got back. "Dick,' .
said Dolly suddenly during the evening,
why, you never had your hair cut after
ALL
"N-no," I said from behind my paper.
couldn't get near the place, it was SO
beastly FULL
The next afternoon I met Flavia
again. had difficulty in doing it. Dol
ly's manner made me nervous; she is SO
Internally cute. I thought after the Sec
ond meeting that I had better not see
Flavia again for little time, so gave
her my club address, explained that
was called out of town for a week on
urgent business, and parted somewhat
tenderly from her.
For the next few days I danced at
tendance on Dolly. I love her devotedly.
If it wasn't that she is so jealous /
should be content to remain by her side
forever. But she is iealous-very jeal-
Gus. She hates to see me take any par