The Paducah evening sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1906-1929, 1910-11-26
The Story Of a Rose
BY MARY A. BOWERS
Copyright. 1870 by American Press
Association.

IL all the old books In the world
could be opened at once and the arti-
Giles found between their pages dis
played to the world they would ill a
museum. These Enclosures would be
made up of faded flowers. memoranda.
bits of lace and occasionally a letter.
And among those letters there would
be found some that would wreck the
peace OF families. librarian once
told me that every book returned TO
the library was shaken and almost al
ways something would drop out. How
many of these articles could tell love
story7
Here Is one of a rose:
| amor was-a white rosebud
When l was born / don't remember
any better than people remember when
| they were born. / was very young
when | was plucked. and that is the
earliest event In my life that recall
| IL was a June morning. June 10 Q'll
tell later why know this. and most
of the dewdrops on me had been alb
sorbed by the air. A young man came
into the garden. He was barely nine
teen and as handsome as a picture
lie wore no hat, and the sunshine
poured in and out Of his tumbled hair
He looked about among US flowers as
| II searching for one he especially
wanted. Then his eyes lit on me. ]
was the only bud just opened IL
i nj int h
house. After breakfast he put me II
his buttonhole and. calling his dog
set out dawn the road. Presently b,
| stopped before n house, on the piaZza
OF which stood n girl. She. too, wa
very young-only seventeen, l fancy
and was dressed In pure white. not 1
bit Of color about her The young MAJ
turned in at the gate and Joined her.
III have come TO say goodby." he said
81 am going away this afternoon t.
take the position that has been Offered
TO me-"
saw the girl change countenance. J
/ don't think he noticed 1t, but you
know a man has not the delicate per
| ceptiye faculties OF white rose. They
sat down together on wicker chair
and chatted for a long while 1t seem
| ed to me that he would have liked [,
tell her that he loved her. but som,
reason interposed. probably the fac
that he was just starting in life anC
both were very young. At any rate, b,
rose TO go without having done so
! But he did the next best thing. III,
offered me TO her and told her that u
she would keep me TIL he came again
he would have a secret to tell her.
She tried to look Indifferent when b.
called his dog and started back home
But as soon as he was well down the
road she ran into the house. taking me
with her. and up 10 her room, where
she wept long while. Then she no
ticed me GU her bureau, where she had
placed me. and put me I'm water
There remained till she went to bed
Just before doing SO she placed me IL
a book OF poems.
In the morning as soon as she awokt
she opened the book and kissed me
Then. lest should fall from between
the leaves. she pinned my stem to the
| leaf. Under me she wrote June 10.
This book Of poems was TO be my
permanent home a very fit dwelling
place for white rose The girl read
the book very often and always caress
ed me when she did so. A year pass
ed, and when the next summer hao
gone she wrote under me on the mar
/ gin of the page:
"Will he never conner
Years passed. don't know how
many. perhaps i've or six-and he did
not come. Then the girl went away
leaving me with her other favorites
More years passed. One day a man
came into the room where l was and
packed all the books, the one l was IN
among the number, and they were
carted away. When the box contain
ing me was opened man took out my
book dwelling and placed 1t on shell
Of a shop with other books.
must have been by this time eigh
or ten years old At any rate. my
leaves were yellow and brittle, though
my stem was still firm. One day o
man came into the bookshop and
asked if they had certain book OF
poems. / was taken down and handed
TO him. He opened the cover, and
when he saw the name written on the
| fyleaf felt his hand tremble. Then
he turned over the leaves till he came
to the page to which had been pin
ned Ills fingers clutched the book In
| sort of spasm.
How muchY' he asked the shop
keeper
"Oh. you can have that for 10 cents"
The purchaser tossed a bill on the
counter and, forgetting his change.
hurried away. The shopman called
after him. but he did not hear.
I didn't recognize the purchaser TIL
he saw me in the shop and what was
written under me. Then I knew him
despite a full beard he wore. He tooa
the book and me to his room In bach
elor quarters, and there l remained a
week. Then one day he wrapped us
carefully in paper and took us 20 an
other city ON train. We there entered