The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-10-24
TEE EVENING STORY
Helping Out a Lover.
(By Lawrence Alfred Clay.)


at the age of twenty-five, and though
he was no sissy he was spoken of as
bashful, modest and retiring. He
could not help it. 1t was something
he had inherited from his father, who
was a wholesale merchant, and too
modest to make more than so per cent
profit.
Burt Enright was heart free when
he was formally introduced to Ethel
Garrison at a summer hotel. Any
other young man would have been
wandering around the paths and
glens with her in less than an hour.
Mr.. Burt stood aloof. His bashful-
ness kept him in the background until
a dozen hints were thrown out. Then.
| he wandered, but he did not take
much comfort and he did not talk
much. His mother had warned him
not to. She said that the young man
that talked too much found himself
engaged without knowing how he got
there.
The young man ought to have real
| lied that Irritation was on. A f1irt-
alton at the seashore or the mountains
| is part of the program. 1t belongs
to the scenery. 1t is paid for in the
hotel bill. 1t reaches it's climax the
middle of August, and is frost-bitten
the last of September. 1t began with
1 a as ne COulQ not keep
| his end up it degenerated into a real
love affair after fortnight That is,
Miss Ethel thought him a nice boy
a good boy-a boy to be very nice and
sweet to.
| 1t is doubtful if he would have
noticed the simmer of the moon
light on the lake If she had not called
his attention to it. Moonlight SHIN
mers bring sentiments.
There were grottoes. He had not
even peered into one until Miss Ethel
said she was tired and begged him to
sit down in one. Grottoes are insep-
arably connected with loving hearts.
| There were cooling doves. Mr.. En-
right had not decided whether they
were doves or crows when the brand
of bird was explained to him and he
was told that they cooed their love
as twilight came down-just the
time he wasn't cooling his.
! He was encouraged to talk and to
sigh and to, start to say something
and then stop and blush. In the
three weeks he was led on and on
until at the close of the season he
almost asked the privilege of calling
on Miss Ethel at her home in the city
later on. Almost means that he said
he knew her fathers house and often
passed it and hoped to again some
time He was straightway invited to
call.
In the course of time things had
reached that pass where papa must
be asked If he could spare his charm
ing young daughter.
The usual course is to walk in on
the old gentleman with a readymade
speech, and the old gentleman is pre-
pared with another, but in this case
there was lion in the path. Mr..
Garrison wasn't very old, but he had
been blown up on an occasion by a
barrel of gunpowder and was as deaf
as a post.
BY yelling through a trumpet plac
ed at his ear he could catch now and
then a word, but to make an i'm
passioned appeal to him was out of
the question. Miss Ethel had fore
seen the difficulty and was ready with
suggestion. It was gratefully
adopted.
Young Mr.. Burt wrote a letter to
the father, saying all that could be
said, and ten times more than he
could have said with his tongue. Mr..
Garrison was tinkering with his ear
trumpet when the letter arrived, and
he placed it on a shelf in the library
and forgot all about 1t.
Mr.. Enright had asked for an in
terview, but he didn't get it. week
went past and no word came from
him. Then Miss Ethel came to the
front again. AS matter of fact papa
didn't even know Mr.. Enright by sight.
They had been introduced, but he
paid no attention to callers. He
might have taken the letter as hoax
or a piece of impudence. She would
descend on the parent and announce
that the young man wished a word
with him, and thus pave the way.
The father was found in his usual
corner and the announcement was
made.
what does he want? 1 knew an En-
right once, but he went into bank
ruptcy and hung himself"
Five minutes later the young man
stood in the awful presence, and was
received with:
IF you are a collector or book
agent it will be useless"
1T have called, sir have called"
was shouted in the trumpet.
Louder"
The words were shouted again.
"Yes, I know you've called, but
what of it? If you have scheme to
work it won't go here"
at is about your daughter"
Eyes, have a daughter somewhere
and does she want to take lessons of
you?"
At this juncture the ear-trumpet
fell apart. 1t was of two pieces and
held by a clasp. The clasp had brok-
en-. Mr.. Garrison swore. Then he
kicked the two sections across the
room and continued to swear. Then
he made a trumpet of his hand and
said to his caller:
state your business in a loud,
clear voice. can sometimes hear this
way"
Was the request for his daughters
hand ever yelled into a fathers ear?
Neveri The lover stood there red-fac-
ed and weak -kneed. The fathers back
was to the door, and at this juncture
the daughter opened it and panto-
mined for the lover to go ahead and
yell. She was worth yelling for. No
yell, no consent; no consent no bride.
He braced and yelled:
ST have called to ask for your
daughteri"
Louder, please.
II want to marry your daughter"
You seem to have a wonderfully
weak voice. Perhaps you have q