Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1910-09-15

The Flower Widow.


Alicia SayIes was troubled. What
troubled her was her own secret and was
not suspected by any one. Indeed, ii
was not suspected at all that she was
troubled. Why should she be ? She
owned the finest farm in the county, was
a college graduate and comely. True she
was an orphan. but as far back as she
could remember she had always been an
orphan. Her home was with an uncle
and an aunt.
What troubled her was this: She had
nearly passed what might be considered
the best age for women to marry-she
was twenty y-seven-and was not married.
Had it not been for her property she
might have been married long ago. None
of the young men of her acquaintance
dared to aspire to the hand of the heireSS,
especially an heiress who was college
graduate. Nevertheless Alicia was a
country girl and desired to remain a coun-
try girl. II she married she would marry
farmer.
On her return from college she did not
think of marriage. She had resources
within herself which were greatly broad
ened by her education. For time she
read books on the line marked out for her
in college and was satisfied. But one
morning she awoke to the fact that she
was drifting into perpetual spinsterhood.
The prospect did not please her. In her
childhood and youth she had been de-
prived Of that affection which exists in
families and was averse to passing the
latter half of her life without husband and
children. She thought over the bachelors
of her acquaintance and after some de-
liberation settled on SilaS Blakely, a
young farmer with little on his farm ex-
cept mortgage. On him she resolved
to bestow her hand.
She did not know that Blakely would
care TO marry her, though she rather
thought he would. But, considering she
was well to do and he was poor, she
knew he would not have the assurance
to propose TO her. She must propose to
him. How should she propose ?
One evening Alicia saw Blakely COM
ing up the road, driving the stock from
pasture. Hurrying into the garden she
gathered bouquet and said TO it, 81 take
you beautiful flowers, with your pink and
| blue and crimson and white compilations,
to be my welded husband" Then, call
ing TO her aunt, she told her to take them
10 the well and throw them in as soon as
Blakely came opposite, making sure he
saw her doing so. The aunt took the
bouquet, went to the we'll and when the
young farmer passed acted as she had
been told.
"Why do you throw those beautiful
flowers away ?" called Silas.
"They are my husband" said Alicia
from the porch. "l'm widow"
"What do you mean by that ?'
"Have you ever heard of the proverb?"
"Go TO the ant, thou sluggard; con-
slider her ways and be wise ?'
yes"
"Well, if you wish to know the mean
ing of my being married to the flowers,
go to your books, and ifyou hunt patient
ly you will find out"
With this she went into the house.
Blakely hurried on to overtake the
stock which had passed during the brief
dialogue, but he knew not OF horses or
COWS the strange episode had got into
his head, and he was filled with wonder
as TO what it meant While Alicia had
been telling him that she was widow
she had looked upon him kindly, and her
voice, which was sweet, still sounded
pleasantly in his ears.
Now, Silas Blakely was no fool. His
education was good for countryman,
but he neither had the books nor the in
clination to hunt through them for any
Interpretation Of such an inane proceed
ing. One of his Schoolmates, however,
had gone to college and had become a
professor. To him Blakely wrote an ac-
count of the episode. asking for an inter-
probation.
Alicia possibly wished TO test Silas'
common sense. To hunt for the expla-
nation himself would have beenlike look
ing for needle in haystack and while