Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1910-11-10

his college career had trotted over tie
cinder path ut phenomenal speed ana
so into the esteem Of his fellows, was
among the first TO yield. He had made
a practice of avoiding the society of
women. conscious Of his own short
comings in a social sense. Now that
it was forced upon him it was more
disconcerting even than If he had
sought it of his own free will.
The term was fully fortnight old
before Matthew began to note essen
tlal points Of difference. But the hab.
1t Of observation, once taken, grows
like a weed. and a week later, to his
own intense amazement, he found him
self watching at the semlweekly lee
ture on literature for the entrance
OF one particular aigret 1t was
black aiGret. spanCled with silver auI
perched cuqnet:shly on what Mattil""
somewhat iualequateiy described ,u
himself ~ ii hi; green hat" in h!ils
ful Ignorance OF the fact thar ther,. ..r
green's ana green's and that this ,,yg-
CiuI green was 4 soft dark eurra.I
which had nothing in common VII
the blatant gaudiucSs OF lighter tlu,,
and was. moreover. most dist"HcIiugiy
becoming To the fac" underneath ril
there was Nc doubt In Ills El:rl about
the face Itself Even his Gu'Ggor,'t
appreciation g-asped the fact that :wire
a week the most delicate complexion
and the browueSt eyes AMI III" Suri.6t
chestnut hair and the most bewi,i,r-
ing tip tilted nose aud the sweetest
mouth In two hemisrhercS wrra srpa-
rated from him. in fact. by the width
OF the class room aisle and me'aphar-
ically aS far distant us Venus from
earth.
Her name. Miss Ayrcs. came directly
before his Oh the roll.
When he discovered by accident one
day that she lived on Hamilton ave
nue. Matthew straightway and help
lessly chose that most inConvPn!pnt
and circuitous route to college. Once
only be saw her on the steps. and then
she was talking with another man.
and the stupidest man. at that. in ths
whole OF kentou City!
Things went on In this fashion un,.I
February. and then Matthew took i
resolution. In his mothers conserve.
tories the vioiets were already IA
bloom. They were fad OF Mrs. BG-
cons, those big double white ones. an!
not to be seen elsewhere In kentou.
and her keenest pleasure was fc'u3
In the half hour which she spent cGgG
morning in the violet house gathe"!GS
the new blown flowers for her table
But she was a woman Of perspicacity,
was Mrs. Bacon. and when. very res
In the face and stammering desperate.
ly, Matthew requested her one LlCrl
ing to leave the plants untouched untt
bis return from college that afterno1u
she contented herself with ca.I
Certainly. my son." which earned L.s
gratitude. while 1t excited his aston
ishment.
"The mater hasn't an atom OF curics
.ty." he said TO himself. "and thanA
goodness! But it's most surprising IN
a woman"
For how could he be expected to re-
member. occupied as he was With
weightier matters, that II was become
his custom to write Natalie on blts
Of paper, which he afterward carefully
destroyed. frst blotting them with ad-
mirable diAtinctness on the writing
pad In his study7
That afternoon he gathered every
white violet IN sight and. with some
thing akin to instinct laid them loose
ly together in q box with some maid
enhair fern instead of arranging them
In the inevitably depressing form of
masculine bouquet. Then he sat IN
his study for full hour, pen in hand
and sheet of paper before him. bit
ing his left thumb and staring at the
parcel be had made. Finally he wrote
seven words-"wiil you wear these at
lecture tomorrow1"