The Ronan pioneer. [volume] (Ronan, Mont.) 1910-1970, 1912-03-29
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| LUCKY Thirteenth
The Situation Was Severe,
but Dorothy Was Game.
BY INA WRIGHT HANSON,
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES

ana DOFOtnNS eyes the IalfeSt blue OF
all. The sand was white, the breeze
caressng, and Dorothy seemed unusu-
ally susceptible. / judged it to be an
suspicious time to declare my feelings,
so I began:
"Dorothy, DEAR have wealth
through no fault of my own. social
status ditto and moderately good dis
position. love you. Will you mar"-
To my surprise, Mistress Dorothy
sprang to her knees, crying, Don't.
don't" and clapped her small hand
over my mouth.
every we'll, then, WON'T said
ooh. but l want you to- was the
next astounding development, while
she dropped down on the sand again,
bowed her head and wept.
thought 1 was used to Dorotlys
moods. but l realized then that my
knowledge concerning them was small
AS | didn't know what else to do,
just sat still Finally she raised her
and looked at me reproachfully.
ooh, George, I've been waiting a
whole year to hear you say it, and
now why couldn't you have said it diff
ferently?"
sat up little straighter. GLOW
should you wish me to approach the
subject?" l inquired coldly.
"Of course you don't understand,
poor boy" she sighed, poEing back be-
hind her pink ear a little damp brown
curl II have a chum at. home, and
we We're always thinking Of something
that no one else would. One day she
said. Lets; make vows So we each
a VOW which We were bound to keep
If we we're hanged for it. Nell's
VOW was'
Never mind Nells vow,' I said.
"What was yours?''
II vowed wouldn't marry man
who didn't propose to me in a way no
other man ever did"
ever proposed to your" ! asked
iealously.
mo, no! Ever proposed to anybody.
I vowed, so | have to keep it. Oh,
George. I've just lived to have you say
it il, some strange way!
"Theres no law against a fellows
proposing twice. is there?" l asked.
She looked up eagerly. "Oh, you
haven't said it yet, you know! l stop
ped you. DO you suppose you could
think of some original way?"
"Well, I'll try mighty hard. But
what fool thing for you to do any.
way"
II know it," she acknowledged, with
unusual meelness.
AS our afternoons at Santa Monica
We're devoted to the surf, we met again
in front of the bathhouse and, hand in
hand, walked toward the seethng
breakers She looked more charming
than ever in her black suit, banded
with scarlet, and scarlet handker-
chief knotted about her small head.
"Heavens, Dorothy, how love you"
l exclaimed as we emerged from our
plunge through the first swell.
"And l love you, too, dear" she muir
INJURED, cO!Oi1nS Il llttlc. YOU VIII Tllu
some way, won't you"
Eyes, if have to pick you up some
day and run off with you"
"That wouldn't do. Some of the say
ages behave that way. 1t isn't the do
ing anyway; it's the asking
dorothy Allen, see that swell COM
ing? When it gets here I'll hold you
under it till there isn't breath left in
your body if you don't say you'll mar
ry me-
SIT isn't original" she persisted
1.-THE man Nell's engaged to said al
most that
Darn the man, and Nell, too!' said
viciously under my breath. didn't
try any more that day, but she allowed
that was something.
1t would be wearisome task to re-
late all the ways in which ! tried to
propose to Dorothy that summer. !
lay awake nights trying to think Of
some wild and woolly way to ask her
to marry me, only to face bitter defeat
by being told that some other John
had said the same to his JOAN Doro-
thy's knowledge on the subject seemed
prodigious. 1t would have looked sus
picious to me had she not really felt
as bad as 1 did over my inability to be
original.
The summer was almost gone A
certain Thursday was to mark Doro.
thy's departure for her New York
home. On the Tuesday before we.
with gay party, were to visit Mount
Lowe.
Dorothy's pretty lips read the de-
scription from the guidebook as we
left Los Angeles and were borne swift
~ through suburban places toward the
fog wreathed mountains. The rest of
the crowd was considerably oblivious
of us two, so finally made bold to in
terrupt.
Dorothy, this has got to end. I am