The Meeker herald., 1909-01-16
THE MERRY WIDOW
Copyright. BY short.tory Pub. Coz
Bv FRANK H. MELOON

stuck to the Merry Widow like 4
dock-burr. She followed her upstai0 |
and she trotted after her down. Blise |
fully unconscious, as 1t seemed, of o,s
alteration. the widow made no ATTEMPT |
to rid herself OF the incubus. The ons
consolation attending the Merry
Widows proposed departure would be
that she would take Pickles along with |
her.
That night the Merry Widow was at
her best. Never had her blue eyes
flashed with 80 much happiness. We
felt actually jealous of Yaleville, Wis.
Was 1t possible she was glad she was
going home? No. that could not be.
There must be some other reason for
the Merry Widows glee. Could 1t
chance she had left lover behind her
in the far away town? Not likely, be.
cause all the mail which had come to
her had been addressed in a feminine
hand. So much we forced Jake to
tell US to set our minds at rest on
that score.
Never was there the like of that
night In Jake Mann's. Pickles played
the plano tuned for the occasion, and
the Merry Widow sang Believe Me-"
THE Rocky Road to Dublin" and all
the old songs 1t does our heart good
to hear. Jake wanted to send the
champagne around, but the old aunt
objected. She said that as chaperone
she could stand for nothing stronger
than coffee. The Merry Widow hest
/ kot no,
scented. but we all felt that the yoke
of propriety in this Instance weighed
heavily on her. Still. we would have
been gladly willing for her sake to
drink dishwater.
Pickles, too, could certainly touch up
the piano. think Jake felt little
bit ashamed Of certain things he had
said about the old lady behind her
back. when she struck up the tune
of Watch on Rhine" while the Merry
Widow announced she would sing
some verses her aunt had composed on
Jake Mann and German hospitality In
general.
Following this, Pickles announced
that as 1t was getting late. she would
go to bed, but her niece. she added,
could stay up while longer. The
Merry Widows blue eyes included US
all in their flash Of appreciation, yet
every man felt it was intended most
particularly for himself.
The Merry Widow stayed. We con-
versed with her by turns. Part of the
conversation was aloud. part whis-
rered. The widow was dazzling. but
no man dared overstay his limit. We
all said our little say, each after his
own fashion, and the widow was game
to the finish. At the stroke OF II, she
begged to be excused for the night.
Strange to say, not one of us ad.
journed to the bar after she had
gone.
For while we INDUCED in our
usual game Of forty-fves, then one by
one the members OF the Fourteen club
stole away. know that l left, os.
tensiby for my room, but in reality to
keep date with the Merry Widow.
1t was only f1ve-minute chat in the
hallway, but l held her in my arms.
kissed her again and again. saw the
lovelight burning in her eyes of blue,
1
and went my way.
The next morning at breakfast time,
the Merry Widow and Pickles were
still In their rooms, but Jake Mann,
excusing their absence, called on US
10 congratulate him. He announced
his engagement to the Merry Widow.
Amid the chorus Of voices raised In
surprised protest, l detected the note
of anger. Otherwise would have
laughed at the preposterousness of the
idea. Then. great heavens! you
should have heard the rest of us claim
ing the honor! Did the Merry Widow
propose to marry us all? Impossible.
| | think l was the first to examine
my roll When flush, which was sell
dom, usually carried about thou
sand dollars. breathed with relief as
| felt 1t all there But on opening the
bill-book. found only a wad of brown
paper inside. held 1t aloft. shook
It. We Investigated in turn. Every
man of US had been "stung." We
rushed hastily upstairs. There was no
sign that either the Merry Widow or
Pickles had occupied the beds the
previous night.
After all, am not sure but what
that five minutes with the Merry
Widow was worth a thousand dollars.
Jake Mann thinks his money was we'll
spent SO far as I can ind out. the
other members Of the Fourteen club
are inclined to make the best of 1t. II
there was such place as Yalevills.
Wis I would certainly On there