Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1910-04-21
ENTIRELY
IMPERSONAL

Inc young man with the maroon
aecktie was absentmindedly thought
Jul amid the idle chatter. Suddenly
he spoke.
Its queer how time changes fell
ow," he said. 1--WE noticed it in lots
Of my friends. They change their
Ideas, you know. I've noticed that If
they don't get married ridiculously
early they generally wait till it is
ridiculously late.'
What great TRUTH" cried the
young man with the gray tie. "If it
Isn't dark it is sure to be light! Even
SOL"
Let him alone!" ordered the
hostess. But why matrimony?" she.
inquired Of the young man with the
maroon tie. I'VE were talking OF golf,
you know!"
Were we?" asked the absentminded
one. II don't believe a man really
falls in love after he is 80, say. Do
you? Lose his head and all that, you
know-or be willing to fly to the end
of the earth, regardless of his next
weeks business engagements. He
uses sense. And you can't use sense
about falling in love!"
Few people do" observed the hos
tess. look at the individuals they
pick out to fall in love with! You
aren't doing it. are you, Richard?"
"Of course not" said the young man
| with the maroon tie, gruffly. How
| absurd! l was just speaking general
| ly. l observe things, you know. And
fellow doesn't feel sure he's got the
right girl unless he does lose his head
bit, does he?"
| why, l can remember" went on
| the young man with the maroon tie,
when 1 was 10 or 20 of two love af-
fairs, in both of which was clean
crazy. was so desperately mad over
those girls-at separate times, of
course-that life absolutely was not
Sorth living contemplated apart from
| them! l remember I wanted to die
and so avoid the dark and dreary fu-
ture stretching before me when Eve
Ign turned me down. And it was ac-
tual anguish. too! Now, if 1 can laugh
at anything as real as that just be-
cause few years have interviewed,
how the dickens could l ever be sure
any infatuation l might tumble into
now wasn't just as ephemeral?"
II thought" observed the young
man with the maroon tie, you said
you weren't personally interested in
the subject. 1t begins to look to
| me-
Rubbish" interrupted the young
man with the maroon tie. It's far
thest from my thoughts don't know
anybody l care particularly about,
though do know some mighty nice
4 girls! You just change, that's all! 1t
becomes matter of calm judgment
and-er-all that. You stop to
think whether the girl is really suited
to you and consider her disposition
and tastes, and her mother. and wheth-
| er you like her brother.
Now, that destroys all the romance,
doesn't it? 1t makes the whole affair
humdrum and casual. There's abso-
lutely nothing spontaneous about it.
why, remember when Evelyn was
the light of the world to me
wouldn't have cared if her mother had
smoked pipe or made platform
speeches, and as for Evelyn's tastes
well, to this day know not whether
she inclined to Wagner or ragtime, or
preferred Shakespeare to Laura Jean
point. | would care now You
couldn't consider a wife without CON
sidering what your friends would think
of her. And you want to be sure too,
that you really care!''
This sounds suspicious" observed
the hostess
mot at ALL" protested the young
| man with the maroon tie Not at
all! just got started on this subject,
that's all! No. / don't think shall
ever marry. In the first place, I'm
not in love, and l don't think | ever
shall be.
Il really can't take such an absorb
ing interest in any girl nowadays that
l miss my meals in my abstraction.
And, somehow, | wouldn't die for any
OF them Yet | know two or three
fascinating girls. | don't think it
would be wise to run the chance of
making yourself and the girl miser-
able when you weren't quite sure. Do
you think there is anything in this
theory of learning to care more after
you are married? 1t doesn't seem ra-
tional to me. | suppose the only real
! ly happy man is the one who marries
i Evelyn when he is 20 years old and
too young to know BETTER"
But consider what Evelyn might be
when you were 3O!" suggested the
hostess. Probably not at all con-
] genial person or the one you would
| then pick out!"
/ That makes it all the more compli-
Gated, doesn't it?" said the young man
in the maroon tie, mournfully. "A
fellow doesn't stand much show any
way you put it. This falling in love
lis all nonsense, anyway! I'm glad I've
Apt out of it,"
Are here" said the hostess, don't
| hi