Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1911-08-31
"What do you mean ?"

"What do you meanw
How can | know anything about
TT Go on with your story"
when she met me on the road she
said good mornin' and went by with
out another word. lf she had missed
me she'd a said. why don't you 60
fishin' any moreT or somep'n like
that. Instead she TUX mp with a mis-
able galoot OF a boy that went to the
same school as her. He was knock
kneed. slabsided. freckled, and his
teeth was black as Goals. 1t made me
mad to see him a-carryin' her books
for her. she a-lookin' sideways at him.
And the meanesr part OF II was her
takin' particular pains 10 look pleas
ant at him just when ! met 'em, to
show me she didn't care nothin' about
me and hadn't all along. If that
wasn't consarnedness | don't know
what consarnedness is"
There wasn't anything consumed
about you. was there?" | suggested.
Not bit. | was as innocent as n
dove; got roped in just to be made
guy of. | was stupid lunkhead
then. Now know better'n 10 trust
one of the vipers tell you. know
all about 'em now; cant any on em
fool me. ="
Didn't you fall into any other
traps?"
ayes. ouct, he replied haltingly
Tel me about chat one.
1T was the same cal, Mary owen.
She weul away 10 bourdin' school. and
when she came back she was kind
cityhed BUT she was purity tell
YOU she was purity as Il new painted
mowin' machine when she met me
she talked about when we was boy
and gal and our fshin together and
all that, not sayin' anything about that
slabsided boy she was leadin' on as
she did me- She asked me to go with
her to see the place where she got the
fshhook into her finger Like fool,
fell into the trap again | went with
her to the bank OF the creek. and we
stood lookin' down on the water. There
had been a turrabe lot Of rain. and
the creek was. high. Mary was laugh
in and gigglin as though she was
mighty pleased about somep'n. She
walked right up TO the edge of the
bank The current had washed 1t
away underneath, the piece she was
standiD' on broke off, and down she
went with "a splash into the water.
"Of course ! jumped i'm. too; got her
arm around my neck. SWAN with her
TO a place below whore the bank
sloped and put her drippin' ON the
grass What did she do bur just what
she'd done when she rammcd the fish
hook into her hand So she could make
nc cut Z ont She r0rtended 70 faint.
"Wbat did YOU doT'
"Oh, ! made a fool of myself just as
/ done before | kissed her"
He looked very much ashamed at
having been obliged to confess that
this imp of darkness had entrapped
him d second time
What happened then?' | asked
What happened then? Why, | talk
ed no end of soft stuff to her. and she
shed some crockodile tears and all that,
and when we parted we was engaged
to be married But when | got home
and got TO thinkin how many times
I'd been fooled and was gittin' deeper
and deeper into the pit she was diggin'
for me | jist sot down and swore.
Then | went to see her again and told
her that what I'd been talkin to her
was all rot.
"She jist looked at me kind Gurus
for awhile, and then she up and con-
fessed she'd been foolin' me all along"
The farmer paused, evidently having
finished his story, the conclusion Of
which he seemed to consider bore him
out in all his assumptions as to the
wickedness of Mary Owen.
How long ago did this last parting
take placer | asked
"Oh. that was only three months
ago"
MARY hasn't married" | said. land,
what's more. she won't marry unless
she marries you. Please excuse me for
telling you the truth; but, though I've
seen many big fools. never before
saw so big a one as you"
w ny, SlldHSeI, WHAT w yOu Luedh
II mean that from the first the girl
fancied you. and since you wouldn't
show any interest in her she practiced
Il feminine plan to make you do so.
Then you dropped her, expecting her
to show how she took the slight as
you thought she should show 1t. She
wouldn't have been a real girl if she
had Since then she has been giving
you chances to stop making fool of
yourself. which you have been too stu
pid to take advantage of. It's quite
possible that you've made such blum
der of the whole thing that you'll never
be able to straighten it cut with her.
You have probably committed the I'M
pardonable"-
BY this time he was looking at me
wildly out of his eyes, his color all
gone from his face. apparently con-
science stricken at what he had done.
AT the mention of the objectionable