Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1912-11-15
She Had the
/. Habit

. I'm dreadluly worried, SAID, the
girl in the white serge suit to her
friend on the opposite side of the
little table. 81 don't know whether
can explain it to. you because it is
kind of involved"
'Tll have to 60 back to the time
when l was fourteen and Willie had.
just looked upon My horizon i
thought he was the handsomest boy
the beneficent powers above had ever
permitted to glorify the earth. Fife
Snow, who was in love with the boy
ewho delivered groceries, and l used
to quarrel for hours at time, each
Q trying to convince the other Of the
superior attractions Of her beloved.
Il remember pointing out to Fife
% the glorious sweep of Willie's raven
chair above his noble brow and the
falcon fire Of his flashing black eye.
Il said it,showed that he was hero
9 destined to do noble deeds and that
o she was a horrid thing to say he was
/, homely.' 1t was, just because she was
Jealous.
Years later I came across a pic
, ture of a Sunday school picnic with
Willie in the front row and l took a
good look at him. He was boy who
vas exaggerated at all points. His
8 bristly hair stood straight up like a
shoe brush nd he had pop eyes. He
just queer looking and it seems to.
me that l have heard rumors from
esome one that he is running a livery
Q stable in his home town.
well, when I was seventeen my
heart belonged to Richard. l thought
that of all the grand men on earth he
was the grandest and used to sit at
emy window at night when I should
have been getting my beauty sleep and
look at the moon and dream of him.
Noble was the adjective | ap-
piled to Richard. l meditated upon
his serene brow his poetic face and
his wonderful profile. l likened it
to a cameo and sighed to think that
all the men IN the world could not
be like him and so redeem 1t from
+, Its prosaic ugliness. said that Just
to look at him one would know he
was filed with splendid aspirations
and was far, far above sordid thoughts
OF gain that made most men. selfish
and grasping. l rember mother sigh
ing at the time and l1urmuring that
sordid gain was mighty nice thing
to have around when the grocery and
milk bills came due
81 saw Richard not long ago, and
of all the lank, slipshod, weak faced,
nooaccOunt creatures he is the worst!
/ think he sells woodenware and takes
his meals at a fifteen-cent restaurant.
There wasn't a. single, solitary thing
about him to admire or look up to-
and how had raved about him once!"
when was eighteen I thought the
sun rose and set in Mr.. Judkins, who
was a friend of fathers and bache-
Tor. l said his face showed that he
had fought with the world and had
been victor in his battles and the
marks of his struggles only added to
the strength of his countenance. I
said that after knowing him the
younger men bored me with their
greenness, and inexperience and that
1t was such a comfort to be able to
: rest on Mr.. Judkins' superior judg-
ment and know whatever he said was
right. g.
my family were terribly wrought
up about the matter and father used
regularly to explode when I spoke of
Mr. Judkins' wisdom and stability.
Mother would dissolve into tears and
beg me not to ruin my life by marry
ing an old man. Well, that's five
years ago-and today Mr.. Jqdkins
looks to me like fat, weatherBeaten,
elderly man and if there was law
compelling me to marry him I'd never
obey the law if they put me into
prison for life.
There were several after Mr.. Jud-
kins. And every one at the time
Q considered the best looking man on
earth. The attractive features could
dig up in those men would have been
sufficient to make perpetual beauty
show Of the masculine population Of
this big town we live in.
"And after We had our falling out
every time L blinked my eyes and
took another look l saw their thin
hair and watery eyes, their crooked
nosesoaAd awful ears.
at never failed.
Nov what is worrying me" the
girl Inc white serge made marks on
the doilies with her spoon, "is wheth-
err
you see, of course, 1 don't mean
there is anything serious between
Harry and myself, but-well, am l
going to wake up and find out that
ne is homely and commonplace, too?
That would be awful after was mar
ried 'and-yet, l might as we'll tell
you that I'm engaged to him! What