The daily Alaskan., 1912-12-23

plishments, and paused in what 1 was explaining to say that Ned was the most modest man In the world and would never admit that he was either a scholar or an athlete. He might have granted the latter accusa. ton truthfully. To have granted the former would have been a frlghtful lie, for he had only scraped through college.
 We'll, put Nell or as to his foiblo for a while longer, then sadly and sym pathetically tapped my forehead with my finger
 You don't mean she said and stopped,
 "Only In one particular"
 What Is it2"
 "He has a mania for proposing mar. riage"
 "Wen, declarel What a singular weakhessl Proposes to any girl he hap pens to meety'
 Not on your Iifel have known the girls he has proposed to. and they're ali belles."
 But how does he get out of his pro. posGls? He can't marry all the girls he asks"
 "Oh, Ned's a diplomat at that He does it very skillfully. They never blame him. They can't"
 "H'ml I'd blame him."
 You might not have a chance"
 Thank you very much"
 "What forY
 "Inumating that he wouldn't be Ike. ly Co practice his foible on me. But I'm glad you warned me. If he should I'll give him a piece of my mind, you can just depend upon that"
 He won't bother you. You see, there's to be a lot of girls with us, and you being the hOstess"-
 "Oh, don't talk any more about 1t. understand why you have told me. If he should yield to his mania while here"-
 "One thing I wish you to promise me. Don't breathe a word of 1t to any of the other girl guests"
 She gave me the promise, and I left her, satisfied that l had done all could do in the matter. If she didn't make Ned Culberton propose to her then | didn't know anything about feminine human nature. And if be did I knew he would stand by his proposal.
 We had a merry time of it with our sleighing partics-that was before au. tomobiles put an end to sleighing-our coasung and skating parties, besides meeting at dinner every evening and dancing or playing games afterward. We had the house nicely decorated with evergreens and a big Christmas tree on which was a gift for every guest. During the festivities l kept my eve on Nell, and 1t wasn't long before I saw that she was going for Culberton like a yacht with all its sails set. ar gucd that if he didn't propose to her Of his own accord and because he really wanted her she would get him into a position wherein his mania would be sure Co show ltself-in other words, she would set a trap for him. Doubt less, if she succeeded in drawing him into it, she would refuse his offer, but then I had wits, and it would be time enough to exercise them when advised of the situation.
 The holidays were not more than half over when one morning I noticed at breakfast a terrible c0nstraint be- tween Ned and Nell. The meal was scarcely finished when Ned came to me and said he had been suddenly called away; must leave on the first train; awfully sorry, but the matter was imperative. Fortunately the last train tin noon had gone, and that gave me time to get hold of Nen and find out what had happened. She told me that Ned had been overcome by hls mania and added
 "I was surprised, because yol told me it only affected him in the case of