The Lakeland evening telegram., 1914-05-27
THE CASE OF ALFRED F.:
BY AMELIA PRICE.
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with sigh of relief. My, but | got
tired waiting on that corner!" she
said to her companion. Il hate this
standing around waiting for street
cars when there might just as we'll
have been an automobile in the fam
lily! As | was saying to my husband
this morning, it does beat all that
after you slave and plan all your life
for your children things never turn
out as you want them tos
That's So" agreed the woman in
the shade-too-bright heliotrope suit.
They just do as they please
Not that Lizzie is not a good
daughter" went on the middle aged
woman. Its just that you can't tell
about men. They can be the blind
est, most exasperating, contrary crea-
lures. AS | was saying to my hus-
band, when he took Alfred Guam for
partner, who on earth would have
dreamed that such boyish, pleasant
fellow could have such a will of his
own and be SO absolutely deaf TO the
call of what are really his own in
! terests?
He has money, you know, and as
his folks did not live here | made up
mind that it was my duty to be kind
of motherly to him. explained the
middle aged woman II think there
is nothing SO pathetic as a nice young
man far from home and prey to
! every designing creature who sets
, her eyes on him, especially when he
is a good looking young man like
Alfred"
Il thought" said the other woman
that lie and Lizzie
Il don't believe in trying to make
Matches said the middle aged WON
an, firmly Il wouldn't dream of in
terfering with fate. Lizzie may be
26, but she doesn't look it, and any
one with taste would realize how good
looking she is-in a quiet way, of
course. don't think it is refined to
have the sort of looks that attract
attention, Mrs. Carver, indeed
DON'T"
THE first night that | had Alfred
Guam to a good home-cooked dinner
let Lizzie stir up the French dress
ing and stuff the baked potatoes and
If happened to mention that she
got the dinner I can't see that there
was any necessity of my explaining
just what part Of 1t she got. Alfred
always was glad to get an invitation
to dinner. Afterward | had Lizzie
show him her book of photographs.
There's nothing like letting young
people get acquainted.
Anyhow, Alfred Guam might have
considered himself in luck to get a
nice girl like my Lizzie-not but that
she could have her pick of far better
than he' There's no telling what a
man will like-and to think that he
should lose his head over that silly,
giggling George MacPrang, who grew
SO fond of Lizzie all of a sudden on
the evenings she found that Alfred
was coming! Lizzie is SO unsus-
picious.
when he got his ruEabout | men
toned that Lizzie was perfectly crazy
over autos and that the fresh air was
SO good for her health. He took her
out several times when | invited him
to come early for dinner so they
could get ride afterward, but it
wasn't a month before that George
MacPrang was driving the runabout
with her own hands and smiling con-
descendingly when she passed our
house!
You don't know what l suffered at
the hands of that George MacPrang,
Mrs Carver! I'd ask Alfred out for
nice little family game of cards and
he'd have an engagement and the
next day Georgia would drop in and
tell what a fine time she and Alfred
had at the theater the night before!
He was perfectly nice to Lizzie
and if she dropped into the coal Of
flee near closing time, as it was per
fectly natural for her to do, since 1t
was her fathers office, Alfred would
usually bring her home. Don't push
Yourself I told Lizzie. Only don't
be backward about showing him that
he's popular with youf That fatters
a man-having him think you like
him and are too modest to show it,"
Just as | had arranged to have AL
fred take his summer vacation at the
same time We did and be our guest
at the cottage we were going to rent,
in comes that George MacPrang with
a solitaire as big as paving stone.
all smiles and applied bushes and
throws herself on Lizzies neck and
says she must tell her first, because
it was through her that she and Al
fred found each other.
Isn't that enough to make wom-
an give up in despair, Mrs. Carver?
Not that I'd have dreamed of trying
to force Alfred or Lizzie in each
others direction-not me-but being
a junior partner and, of course,
what's her fathers will be LiZzie's
Soma dow apd tbnp Alfrnd would have