Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-04-21
BYE. FRANKFORT MOORE.

commonplace young man. That was pos
si5ly now he had come To do SO we'll fol-
himself in the world The G50o a year te
which he had attained as head bookkeepeI
in the firm of Bromley & Longton OF
Dustington showed how We'll he had done
for himself for six years earlier he had
thought himself lucky man to have
touched 810o and his friends had agreed
with him It so happened, however, that
luck had nothing TO do with his advance
II was hard work that had done it-hard
work. and as has been limited. common
place work.
So he was promoted over the heads Oh
half a dozen 'slackers to be the heai
of the. correspondence department: ana
then il was that his knowledge of French
German and Portuguese was discoVereo
nv the heads of the firm. and another A'o
WAS added to his salary. After that MS
progress was steady until at the age o.
twenty-nine he was in receipt OF the t5oo
per annum. which was the maximum pdio
by Nessrs. Bromley & Loushton TO
member of their staff
But still Robert Carter was esseh'i'i'f
commonplace. ana lie was Informed OF
this fact when he proposed To e"i
Cravthornc. young person who was
flIIIy sensible of her own Responsibilities
as a pretty and accomplished Siii IA :.
town of great dullness. She WAS 'hG olttS
daughter of a booksellel'-the chiei n'p ~
seIler-in Dustington, ana sle hau -
several years been a constant sluutu' y
a cart,in rvue of those ronances which
her father stocked.
BEFORE She was sixteen years oil az
Pearl C'ravthorne was HVinS IN WI 4"
of romance among the heroes ana IL
81,
she conceived a great dislike for the PEG
pIe OF the town. The younG men "iio n
she met were either humdrun oi , ou,lo
ers and though she had many ''u.n' -, :
among them she did not give amy ol 'heIi'
the least encouraSement uil'ti si,e '
Robert Garter. She thought ne Was i
good deal nicer than the maJotllA vi tl'e
Tonne men in her circle of acqualhtalceS,
and it would be Impossible TO asts ''a'
she gave him some enconFaSeiueHt'
Mr. Carter fell in love with her-he
told her SO. and was foo!lsh enough ~
confide in her not only so Iai' ou. 80 y,
that he had long ago made up ms hiln nn
never to fall in love with any Siil "h'ii
lie could command G30o a year .
And your father agrees with me thai
that sum. with the prospects that | nave
of an increase. should be enough fof us
to make Il start on.
fathers leave toto address me! she
said with more than little bitterness III
her voice. -, n
WHY. of course / did: what did you
take me for?'' he said
Won vent to my father and talked
over the whole business-the Wnole pusi-
ness-that is the suitable Wofd-ousi-
ness? Oh Mr. Carter, You are eoihiiioii
placeneSS itself.
Am i? Yes. | suppose ] am. now
that | come to think of it. had no.
thought anything about it before. ana
now that / think of it, I'm not SURE
that there's much wrong in being COM
monpIace All the best business men
| know are commonplace. W nat "'>''''
YOU like me to be?
Again she shook her head sadly
II could not explain it 10 you she
said .'Only | feel that-that-oh, MT.
Carter do you mean To say that YOU
would be content to pass the rest on
yo,lr life in an office-from 10 IN the
morning until in the evening?
IF was sure of increases IN salary
at stated times, and II | had you 10
come home to every evening, lie repiled
stoutiy. ~
and you would call that life" she
said. -
= should call it 5. as happy PIP cred de a a
ask nothing better Don't think that
I have not been giving full consideration
to this busness-I mean the question
of asking YOU to marry NE Long De
fore / came to know YOU admired YOU
Did YOU fall in love with me then?
..Of course not: how could |, when
l had never spoken to YOU
He was helpless.
Have YOU never heard OF love al Hlst
sight?'' she asked.
..Oh yes. I've heard of it: but of
course that sort of thing is nonsense,
he replied.
lis it?" she said. Robert, IKE
Won very much but that is not love.
think that the right
sort will Gomez?
Il should not like to marry on the
chance.
Il don't mean after marriage. ! mean
before tiff YOU only keep the idea or
marrying me before your eyes you
may
Robert. just now-oh, ii is impossible.
Now, go away. If you are WISE Don
say another word.
He looked as if he were about TO KISS
her: and to her amazement he so far
forgot himself as to do So lie Kissed
her soundly and conscientiously. and she
so far forgot herself as to ALLOW him;
and. even making allowances for his not
being her ideal of dashine lover, she
found his rude treatment OF her In TINS
matter quite satisfactory
She went upstairs TO her room and her
novel. 1t had for its hero an officer IN
the guards, who had fallen madly in
love with a young woman whom he had
rescued from a scoundrel of the blacklist
dive. She came to the final shooting on
the last page shortly after midnight, and
put the book under her pillow with a
sigh All. why could not Robert Carter
have a little more of the Suardsman
about him?
\ few days later she went on her
annual visit to her aunt. who lived in
quiet ease at one of the watering places
on the Firth of Forth. and for a fort
night she was cut off from her novels.
for her Scotch aunt would not allow d
work of fiction. apart from the Waverley
novels, in her house.
Her aunt accompanied her 10 Edn
burgh on her return journey. put her
carefully into an empty Second-claSs COM
partment in the southwark going train;
bat at the moment of starting a man
rushed up the platform carrying a gun
case and a tea basket, ana a porter bun