The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-07-31

MATCH
With a Singular
Result
By JULIUS WILSON.


John Dexter and 1 were schoolmates.
chums in college and always intimate
friends. John, who inherited a fortune,
went abroad for awhile after gradual.
ing, and l went into the law. As soon
as | was ready for business John
turned over 10 me the care Of his es-
tate.
John was in every sense a bachelor.
He was devoted to bachelor life and
showed no disposition to become a hus-
| band
"What-tie myself up to WON.
am he would say. do you realize
what that means? Slavery-absolute
slavery. And, more, you are mixed up
with another family that you have no
interest in whatever. The first time
you meet them-after your marriage
they call you by your first name, and
you are expected to do the same by
them, familiarity that doesn't exist
between you and some of your life
long friends. How can a man endure
way Of getting away from her?
There's nine chances in ten against his
ever having any comfort after he's
been chained"
Then he quoted some doggerel on the
subject:
There's many q man when the key has
been turned
In the wedlock for which he has ardently
| yearned
Would give all the wealth in his bank
and his pocket
| And borrow besides, for a key to unlock
it"
Now, this aversion to matrimony on
Johns part was unfortunate. l hap
pened to have a client, a young lady,
Margaret Storms, whose property was
very much tangled up with the estate
of John Dexter, and l could see no
such advantageous way of straighten-
ing it out except by their uniting their
interests in marriage. There was a
double reason why this was extremely
difficult. Miss Storms was or pretend
ed to be as adverse to marriage as
Dexter. But / have never had any
faith in this antagonism between the
sexes except in special cases, and in this
| case the two had never seen each
other.
/ resolved to beard the lion and
the liOness in their respective dens and
make one supreme effort to unite them
and their estates.
Woman, Notwithstanding her bitter,
ness when prejudiced, may be more
I Oh hnY Io1 IN nfrf,R ,tnl
ter than man. She naturally seeks her
| sphere-the home and children-earlier
than man. | therefore resolved to be-
gin my attack on Miss Storms. went
to see her and opened up the object
of my visit by telling her of the diff
culties in the way of making her estate
pay the income it should because of
the antagonistic interests in the prop
erty of another person. Then l went
on 10 say that $4,000 a year income
might be more desirable with a hus-
band than nothing year without one.
mot in my case was her quick re-
ply. Il am satisfied that I couldn't
be tied up with any man for a month
without hating him"
This was not encouraging, but pur-
sued the argument, while she, though
she said nothing. shifted the air like
a war horse bearing the boom of dis
tant cannon When came to pause
she asked the name Of the man pro-
posed she should wed. told her, and
her ire burst forth.
"Oh, yes. l know all about him.
He's the man who hates women so
and goes about spouting those satirical
lines he has either omposed-though
l don't believe he's smart enough-or
borrowed"
And she spouted the rimes John had
given me on the subject of marriage.
you go back" she continued, land
give him this answer to his borrowed
doggerel:
There's many a girl when embarked on
the wave
OF iife's ocean with him who has sworn
he's her slave
Will find to her cost when nothing can
That the captains brute and the vessels
| a SLAYER"
That's unfortunate" said. Johns
very unwise to be getting Off such
| SIuu. BuI NE ruOeSuJ mean IL any
more than you mean your rimes. Nev-
ertheless l expect had better stick TO
the law without trying to do outside
work. But if your estate eventually
passes into the hands of this man Dex-
ter don't blame me-"
"Oh, bring him along. I'm not afraid
of him. II he bites me can stick
| pin in him"
l said nothing to Dexter about my
unfortunate opening of the subject of
his marriage, but when / saw him
again / told him that the probabilities
were his estate would soon be absorbed
| by that of Miss Storms. Had IL not
been for this card that Lplayed to both
of the parties concerned might have
waited TIL they were both in their