Connecticut western news., 1911-08-24

telephone or telegraph wire. There Is fascination in operating from be hind a shield rendering one invisible. A girl will delight to say things to a man who can't see her and doesn't know who she is. I was a telegraph operator when a young man, and l noticed this disposition in many q girl operator with whom I talked over the wire. l am a matter of fact sort of a fellow myself and doubt if it would ever have occurred to me to bamboo. gle a girl in this fashion had not the girl shown disposition to bamboozle me.
 She who first tried 1t was an oper- ator at a station about twenty miles away from me. I was in the town of M., while the girl was out at C., way. station some twenty miles dis taRt in the country. She had more lime on her hands than I, and I SUD- pose this is what set her on to quizzing me. She started in one night about 8 o'clock after having taken a message from me, beginning by asking me what was going on in town; how liked NJ; if there was any fun going on there and expressing her dislike at being compelled to live in little way station like c. From this we fell to talking about ourselves and naturally, as persons Of opposite sex at that age invariably do, finally drifted on to love and marriage. From love and mar riage in general we dropped Into spe- cialties, at last narrowing the topic down to ourselves.
 The girl led me along in the channel she laid out herself till l admitted that, marriage being a lottery, would about as lief marry girl had no knowledge of as one I had met and loved. All I, required was to know that the girl I was to marry pos sessed a fair amount of good looks. One thing led to another till 1t was arranged that she should mail me her photograph and I should send her mine. Then If we were mutually pleased we might proceed further to- ward forming m acquaintance with a view to matrimony. The next day I looked over my stock of photographs-not of myself, but my friends-and, selecting one of Sam Atkins, the best looking fellow in the lot, I sent 1t to the girl. Sam was off at the Spanish-American war at. the time, and I trusted to his get ting shot or dying of disease so that I might not get into trouble by pass ing him off for myself. In return I received a picture of rather pretty girl, who I judged from her features was full of the Old Nick, the very one to get up just such complication as we were entering upon. On her lips was an engaging smile and in her eyes very saucy look.
 After that the wires began to warm up with our conversations, till at last they came to white heat with love passages. When we had fired lot of such missiles at each other we began to talk about meeting. At my pro- posaI to go to see her she cooled down bit, and 1t was easy to see that her exuberance was the result of fighting behind a masked battery. made sev- eral propositions. to go to see her on a certain day and hour, but for every time I set she gave some reason why 1t would be inconvenient or impossi- ble for her to receive me. At last it occurred to me to go up and look her over without an appointment. Never having seen me, she wouldn't know me.
 So one day, having secured q leave, started to see my charmer On ar- rival I walked up into the village and on the street met my girl, whom recognized at once by her photograph. I followed her into several shops and finally to a yellow house that stood back from the street. She went into the house, aud having waited half an hour for her to come out concluded sue lived there.
 knew a man in the place, Tom Poster, and, hunting him up, told him that there was q girl in he town l wished to know. He satG there was going to be a dance that evening and ult the girls in the place would be there. He would take me with him nnd If he knew the girl I wished to meet he would introduce me. l thought that an excellent plan, since 1t would give me the advantage of keeping my affairs to myself. I could obtain an introduction to different girls without my introducer knowing Inc one I was especially interested in.
 That evening I went with Foster to the hall where the dance was to take place. He asked about the girl I wished to know and why wished to know her, and all that, but l evaded his questions. I didn't propose to let the girl herself know that I was the fellow she had been making love to over the wire-at least till I had learn. ed all about her.
 She was there sure enough, looking as pretty as a picture-a brunette, with a profusion of jet black hair, a stately figure and as mischievous an eye as ever I saw in a woman. When first saw her she was talking with another girl about her own age and that might not give myself away to Foster I asked him to introduce me to the other girl