El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-08-22

ing loved. Many a girl has mis-
= taken the emotion aroused by a
mans devotion to her for love Of him.
[ Mary DanfOruh made no such mistake,
} but, so weary and spent was she that
I she experienced a feeling almost like
( pIeasurable relief now that she was
engaged to Herbert Fletcher He had
not asked her If she loved him, indeed
! told her frankly that he could not ex-
pect her TO care for him at first, but
that he hoped she would learn to do so
I later Was she willing to trust her
dear" ne had pleaded.
She had told him that she appreci-
ated how good he was, how kind, and
that she would try to make him happy.
Perhaps / may never love you as
some girls say they love the men they
marry" she had faItered- 1t hurt her
I to feel that she was accepting this
return. She did not let herself think
that she was taking a step down in
marrying man OF different bOrth.
( breeding and traditions from hers
I'm satisfied" he had declared
stOutly. I've known all along that
you weren't happy, and perhaps you're
about ready TO have some one look
after you. When I first saw you. Pear
son tOld me that he'd heard in a kind
gagged, but L guess he was wrong,
The girl flushed hotIy. Yes she
stammered, he was mistaken-at least
there was a man I once knew to
whom I might have been engaged If
we had not changed our minds: but
no, was never engaged"
The man looked at her pityingly and
patted her hand
7 did not mean to embarrass you L
knew you were free, dear girl for no
man would nave let you work the way
you've been doing And I'm not asking
you any questions, not even'-pausing
and laughing aWkwardly-'if you ever
wish you had decided TO marry that
other man.
Mary looked at him calmly. Her face
had grown pale again, and her manner
You are not asking me any cues
tiOns," she said in a firm voice, but I
want to tell you here and now that
would not marry that other man OF
whom you spoke-no, not If my life de-
pended upon iti'
She believed her own statement Just
as surely as she believed she had
spoken the truth when she made q sim
liar assertion to her mother early in
Mary Danforth did not tell her
mother Of her engagement to Her
had accepted him. Then, the evening
meal over, she made her announcement
using no s!ubterfuges,
Fletcher asked me last night to marry
him, I said I would"
readyl' she excIaimedf aOh, Mary,
isn't that too sudden? was sure that
y
told me-out dear, you scarcely
know him, do your
The girl smiled daintily- II have
known him for months" she replied.
and have known that he loved me
l have said nothing to you about 1t,
for I have not wanted to Worry you
The elderly woman held out her
arms Come and kiss me, dear" she
said. You were right not TO tell me
of this until il was settled. And to
think that 1t has been going on all
these weeks, and all the while think
ing II was craig that you cared for,
and never suspectfng that everything
between you and him was overt You
surely have kept your own counsel.
child. But I am not a bit vexed with
you, honey. for not telling me the
truth. If you found Won did not love
Craig. you were right TO tell him so.
and to follow what your heart told
you to do AlPs well that ends well.
yes" agreed the girl. "Alrs well
Fletcher declared that he liked "the
old lady" from the first she must live
with US, Of course" he said to Mary.
You viii want her with you, won't
your
Il could not marry any one who
would not let her live with me" Mary
replied quickly. She is all I have"
So the matter Of Mrs. DanfOrth's fu-
ture was settled When Mary told her
OF this conversation. tears OF gratitude
came to the widows eyes
Think how anxious and unhappy /
have been all these weeks" she ejacu-
lated in self reprOach- I'VE ought
never to anticipate trouble, ought we
used to wonder why you were so
silent about Gordon and about his not
wTfting-and all the time you were
caring for Mr.. Fletcher"
But here Mary checked her. Moth
err, she said. since V1r lives are TO be
entirely separated from the past
months. suppose we try to forget them
and talk Of them no more And the
mother smilngly agreed
Events transpired rapidly in the
weeks that followed. Fletcher urged
speedy marriage
insisted one day. Here are you, Mary
working away down at Parsons Of
flee, earning a mere pittauce, and here
am earning enough for you and me
hate TO seem TO nag at you all the
time, but we'll be no reader to get
married a year from now than we are
now"
Mary scarcely understood Why she
put off the expected day She had
written to Craig that she would be
read his prompt and brief note Of con-
graduation. she tore it into bits. But
still she declined to name a date on
which she would become Bert Fetch
er's wife
Then. one morning, glancing through
the daily paper, she saw among the
wedding announcements the notice OF
the marriage at san Antonio. Texas, OF
Gordon Craig and Eleanor Morse.
That night she told Herbert Fletcher
that she would marry him in fort
rousseau with she said bitterly, $50.
as you always say, why wait any
lon ger2' %
Thus it came about that Mary Dan
married in June at the brides tiny
apartment. The only witnesses TO the
ceremony were Mrs Danforth and the
ICoDffDued IN Next TssueO