Morris tribune., 1911-07-07

that | should appear thus rather than
in the shape of photograph. He
feared that If he should find me very
attractive looking he might be unduly
prejudiced in my favor and if lacked
! beauty he might not be impressed with
my evidences Of character.
corresponded for long time with
the name he gave me was Horace AL
lerton-but somehow we got no fur
ther than correspondence. Severa
months passed, and yet he expressed
no desire to see me. His letters were
eminently satisfactory, and I confess
I felt a keen desire to see what he
was like. So one day wrote him tina,
l would be pleased to receive his pho
tOgraph.
He replied that he had been dread
ing to be thus called on for some time;
inasmuch as he had no pretense what
ever to manly beauty. Indeed, he con.
sidered himself hOmely. But" he
said, Il am making some negotiations
which If successful will put me in
much better condition to marry than
now. They will be settled within a
week one way or the other If the is
sue is to my advantage I will be happy
to call upon you. l hope by seeing you
l may be able to do away with some
of the prejudice that would occur from
your seeing my picture unrelieved by
any personnel whatever"
1t was about this time that Tom
Baxter began to be more devoted to
me than he had ever been. Of course
there was no obligation on my part tC
my correspondent. That affair | some,
times thought was as much in the air
as Toms patents. But Tom really
seemed to have picked up the idea that
he was about to realize something re
markable Whether it was his conf.
dence or my desire that he should sue.
ceed don't know, but I found myself
wishing he would. And if he were go
ing to make strike I wished that he
would make it before my clover on
paper" as I considered him, should
call upon me. My necessities grew
greater every day. I felt it was due
to my family that l should not only
relieve mother of my support, but do
something for them all besides. |
feared that if Mr.. Allerton should turn
out to be a desirable party l might
find myself inclined to treat him cool
ly, having Tom in my thoughts-in
other words, by not encoura ging the
one available | might lose him.
But as bad luck would have it Mr..
Allerton wrote he was ready to call
upon me, and at the same time Tom
became positively aggressive. He said
nothing more about the folly of per-
sons marrying without an assured in
come and began in a halting kind Of
way to really make love to me. I put
him off, saying: Don't be silly, Tom.
You'll never be able to marry-that is,
there's not more than one chance in
ten thousand of your being so, for
that's all the chance there is for an
inventor.''
He looked very downcast at this
and said he believed that there was
some one who had first choice, as he
expressed it, l told him that l had
not yet seen the man 1 would marry
in preference to him.
ooh, cheer up,'' he said. "My case
isn't as bad as you think it is. I've
just succeeded in"-
| put my hands to my ears. l had
heard the words II have just succeed
ed" or II am just going to succeed"
T
tired of them, but, feeling toward
Tom as l did, they were a mockery
with me. He went away without a
word, and l went to my room and
cried.
The next day I wrote Mr.. Allerton
that I would be pleased to have him
call upon me at the home of my
cousin in the city, a girl about my
age, who knew would permit me to
receive any friend Of mine there 1
appointed that day week for what l
called a preliminary interview. There
was no warmth in my letter, but how
could l warm up for a man whom l
had never seen?
received note by return mail stat
ing that he would meet me on the date !
had appointed. "And nOw," he add |
ed, Il am much pleased to tell you
that fortune after many disappoint- |
ments has favored me. I am an in
ventOr'-
I threw the note on the floor "For
heavens sake, are the only men in the
world l have to choose from inven-
tors?" Then, after walking back and |
forth for awhile, exclaimed aloud:
''If I must wait for an inventor I'll !
wait for Tom.'
The door opened, and who should
come in but Tom himself. I blushed
for was sure he had heard
me.
The expression on his face was a
study. There was satisfaction and,
above all, amusement. His eyes fair
ly sparkled with mischief. They turn