Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-01-24
The Argus Daily Short Story
The Kiss-By Theodore Brown.
Copyrighted. 1910, by Associated Literary Press

at his head" but he would have none
of them. One day while riding on
horseback, with a couple Of orderlies
behind him, he passed lady In car
rage who especially attracted his ia
vorable attention. She was at an age
| just before women usually pass from
youth to middle age.
General Lovenorn returned to his
| quarters to dream of the lady who had
| thus impressed him. Courted though
| he was. a trusted servant Of the king,
admired for his ability and courage,
yet there was a void in his heart that
needs to be filed in the heart Of every
man and every woman. For the first
| time in his life he had seen one whom
he thought capable of filing that void.
The next day he rode over the
| ground he had traversed before and at
the same hour, hoping that he might
again meet her. But he was disap-
pointed He would have sought her
! out, but there was no distinguishing
| mark by which he could describe her.
| La vain he looked for her in the gay
! throngs Of young people in the parks,
| at the theaters, at balls. Months
passed, during which he treasured a
vision he had seen but once. Instead
of diminishing, his monomania, as he
called It, increased. Beautiful women
not knowing OF his predisposition, con.
tinued to try to charm him, but he lis.
tened to what they said without hear
ing and to their efforts gave no re-
| Spouse.
Finally at a social meeting of a sci
entific association while strolling with
lady on his arm he came face to face
with the subject of his dreams. He
would have left his companion to fol
low the unknown had that been adj
missible, but since it was not he was
obliged to content himself by asking
who she was. He learned that her
name was Ingeborg Winding; that she
was not known in society. her family
not being noble; that she had a fine
mind, but, owing TO a retiring dis
position, did not assume that promi-
uence to which her endowments emit
tied her.
General Lovenorn as soon as he was
free from attendance upon the lady
who gave him this information lost no
time in securing an Introduction to
Ingeborg Winding. He passed the rest
of the evening with her and received
permission to call upon her
There was curiosity on the part OF
several women who had each set her
cap for General Lovenorn when he
was conspicuous for his absence from
the next notable social function When
two or three of such affairs had passed
without his being present curiosity
had grown into alarm. When it finally
began to be whispered that the gen
eral was devoting himself to a lady to
whom royalty had not given ticket
TO the court circle alarm gave way to
CONSERVATION. When he was seen at
the opera with the lady who had IN
consciously Occasioned this disquietude
necks were craned and lorgnettes were
leveled at the couple from the circle
where sat the arlstocracy of Copenba-
gen.
General Lovenorn asked Ingeborg
Winding to be his wife. The manner
with which she received his decIara-
ton was Il puzzle TO him There was
not that heartiness in her reply which
he had hoped fore He felt toward her
n certainty Of his own feelings which
did not meet with n response. He
knew that she was the only woman he
had ever wished to marry and was
disappointed that she should have