Payette enterprise. (Payette, Canyon Co., Idaho) 1909-1935, 1910-09-01
Retribution
BY BERTHA D. ALsOP
Copyright. 1910 by American Press
Association.

Z en- the little girls Of his arquaintanc
flowers and invited them to have ice
with him They were NOT old enoug
20 quurrel about him. bur they dote
: on him all the same. As youth h
resembled a young Byron with hi
large blue eyes. his negigee fiaxen hal
and round white throat. Then cam,
young manhood. by this time b,
found more zest In his attentions t,
girls. though fewer pleased him. FL,
and they were still young enough tt
feel the sweetness Of Irritation. anC
occasionally when the denUupmeni
came lie was obliged to admit TO him
self that he had been sineed.
He had no thought Of marriage. a
home. children. He didn't consider
himself old enough for that. When he
reached twpnty-seyen he began 10 look
forward TO II as something that would
naturally come about. At thirty-tive
he wished that IL would come about
AT forty ne began TO fear that IL wOnld
never come. Then ii occurred to him
that he had better try TO bring il about
| But by tI.is time young girls had be-
| gun to c, slider him an elderly man
And. as for those near his own age, he
had no use for them. He knew that
men of forty have ON rare occasions
married girls half their age and both
husband and wife been very happy in
each other. Why not he? He re-
solved 10 make an effort.
An effort In love! He had gided
naturally into so many affairs Of the
heart that TO try to get into one seem
ed repugnant 10 him. Why had he not
taken advantage of some one of these
affairs TO preclude the possibility of
the lonely old age that was Overshad-
owing him why? He knew well
enough why. He had always consid-
cred the game, not the reality. To
have taken one Of the girls he might
have had would have been to give up
a conquest Al least so he bad regard
ed 1t AT the time
Having lost his position at home of
young man and consequently not
being thrown in with young girls. he
htANA hiiuNh W NO flNfN ut-It. IL WIS
the season of outing. and he determin.
ed 10 go wife hunting by the sea. He
had made many cOnquPsts there. Moon
light shimmering ON the dancing waves
had called out that which had moved
many girl 10 love him. True. now
there were gray hairs 10 his mOustarhe.
and his Byronic forehead was higher
than il had been. but he thought with
the same surroundings he might do the
trick ms he had often done II before.
= sewas sad to see young girl pass
without looking al him. whereas
~ years agOne anOther of her age
her not have refrainPd from
ierDe. He became acquainted with
2 gu0l of them. but somehow there
rtaind g~lf between him and them
lyingie could not cross These were
muser less than half his age. Finally
,o at one between twenty Eve and
-. who caught his fancy. There
his. too. about her that he did
uio ind in the younger ones they
her'ised him by acting and talking in
red Y that seemed childish to him e
hey seemed 10 him to have grown L
carer the nursery than their prOtu. e
vpes. Surely the girls he had asSo
lated with when he was under TWEEN. L
g-tive were not ms frivolous rs these U
Kisses. The older girl. on the contrary. v
liked and acted like woman. She II
Duld be companion to him.
He made up his mind that If be G
)uld win her he would do so. He IL
AIDE a few ahnrtive efforts to make U
We as he would have made It fifteen
: twenty years before. What he II
ould have said and looked and acted n
zen now seemed insipid to him. He I'll
sisted, contenting himself with the
rls companionship and showing her OF
tie attentions. n'
One thing troubled him. Though she
cepted his attentions and listened to
5 chat. she did not seem 10 be i'm II
essed with his superior wisdom. He 81
Il that. while she attended To what he NJ
Id, she occasionally let II be known
at she knew more of the subject he
rs talking about than he knew him. co
II. Surely there was nothing near GO
2 nursery here. He was uncOmfort-
lie at the thought that this young
man felt him intellectually beneath as
r II was rather that he felt her to l
his superior us
When the season was drawing to Nv
Sc he wished to bring matters to VI
us. This used TO be easy enough l.
len he WAS youngster playing a
me. But now that he was a middle WI
"a man. intending to tell u mature wv
lng woman that he loved her and th'
, her TO be his wife. Il seemed that cal
many times he had done the same WI
ng came up to mock him. my
However, he got Il out. th'
How times change u.s." she said SUI
dozen years ago. when | was six We
n. YOU proposed TO me. and you did Th
Then thought you a frs
. Now. being older. know you air
very admirable and pleasant gen. tat
nan. thank you for the honor on