Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-12-15

WELL, I'LL BE JISGED! SAID BILLY
with whom he had associated? No;
he would cut them all. Extending his
hand as he had seen persons make
vows in the theater, he made the fol-
lowing resolution:
~. William Henderson. solemnly re-
solve that l will. during the year be-
fore me. neither smoke. drink nor pro-
pose"
A town clock slowly and solemn!y
struck the hour of IL as If to impress
the Importance of the vow upon its
maker. At the last stroke the door
opened and the butler entered. bear
ing a salver on which nestled deli
cate little note emitting a violet per
fume. Billy knit his bEows as he saw
it and, taking it up, opened it. mean
while directing the butler to bring him
some soda water. The note read as
follows:
My Dear Hearts Mattel can't walt TO
tell you how happy you made me last
night when you told me how dearly you
loved me and asked me to be your wife.
Y is now O'Clock in the morning. but.
though 1 did not get home till 3. l have
been awakened by the sweet memory OF
hearing you make your delicious avowai-
[ cannot refrain from writing you 10 ask
how you feel after our merry seeing the
old year out and the new year in. Do
send me a line by bearer to assure me
that what you said to me was not dream,
but a reality. With million kisses. your
loving KATE
Well I'll be jinGedr' exclaimed
Billy. whats the use of making reso-
lutions for the new year when there
nil cd
up for the old one? Luckily she's sign
ed her name. for / hadn't the slightest
remembrance of who she was. Her
purpose is evident. She intends to
clinch 1t while it Is hot. What in the
world shall ! do? | have it. My
cousin Kate Singleton will help me
out OF the scrape She was with us
last night, and l remember saying
some sweet things to her"
When the butler returned with the
soda Billy called for writing mate
rails and wrote:
Dearest Sweetest Cousin-Believe me.
what 1 said TO you last night came from
the heart. You made me very happy
when you told me you returned my love
Isn't IL lovely that We should be both so
blessed on this bright New Years morn
ing? Yours till death. BILLY.
He read the note over and asked the
butler what kind of morning 1t was
and, being told that snow was falling.
was minded to write another. but con-
Guided that. with such an enormous
Justification in pretending that be sup
posed it was his cousin that be had
been proposing to. a little thing like
a mistake in the weather wouldn't
head ached badly. and he felt unequal
to any more lovemaking. He address
ed the note to Kate Singleton instead
Of Kate Edmonds and dispatched it.
So much for Billy Henderson's start
ing in for the new year. The resolu-
lions for it were all right. but he was
obliged TO carry i load Of debt into the
new account. He had no fear OF any
trouble with his cousin. only he mus
fxpYarn to her how he came to write
her such note. But there was no
hurry as to this. for il had been sent
TO Miss Edmonds, and 1t was not to
be expected thar she would forward it
at once What she would do In the
matter Billy conld only conjecture.
he must await the result.
DH'S udu oecu UP every HlSht ioT
week till the small hours in the morn
ing mud. ha wing been refreshed by the
soda water. sank into slumbeT rem
dercd especially peaceful by the good
resolutions he had made for the next
year. He slept eighteen hours without
knowing that he bad slept even one.
He touched the button for the butter
and when &c came asked:
What time II IL. James,"
Seven o'clock. sir
Seven O'Clock in the eYenlng2r