Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1914-01-22

I
/ spired by the Juvenile spirit of the
age, would slip off the years while he
! shouldered them until there could be
/ no sympathy between them.
I There was only one thing to do
either to give up his hopes OF quiet
\ old age with his sistel-or else to slip
\ off some of the staidness that his age
and profession had brought him.
Il believe | really could enjoy good
! time" he said wonderingly as he went
1 TO bed
The next afternoon Professor Trim
gle sat in the orchard under low
hanging apple tree. He was in Han
nah's favorite seat, an ancient wing
chair covered with oilcloth. Here
Hannah could sit and sew or read OF
sleep entirely protected from dralshts.
Amos Tringle had spent a lonely
day He had seen the pretty Desmond
girls--he didn't know how many there
were. four or five altogether-drive
away in the motor with their hand
some mother; and there was no sound
of piano or of merry voices from the
tennis court over the way
The little volume of essays dropped
from the professors fingers to the
ground and he closed his eyes drowsi-
ly. Swift footsteps crossing the or
chard grass reused him and the sound
of a sweet voice brought him wide
awake
From behind the wing chair came
the most astonishing words.
'Dearie. if you're not asleep, won't
you please get this horrid splinter out
of my finger? If you are asleep, Miss
Hannah, dear you needn't answer"
added the voice with a gurgle of Celtic
humor
Professor Tringle cautiously poked
his head around the corner of the
winged chair and looked into the as
tonished face of the most beautiful girl
he had ever seen.
AS she uttered an embarrassed cry
he arose to his tall height and smiled
down into her wonderful blue eyes.
Don't be alarmed" he counseled
her. Il am Miss Tringles brother
she is in Petawick today, Won't you
sit down." He indicated the chair he
had vacated.
Mono, thank you, Professor Trim
gle, said the girl recovering her
poise Il am Desdemona Desmond
from across the street. I've a splinter
in my finger and the servants are so
clumsy about such things that just
ran across to Miss Hannah, I'm afraid
| disturbed you. with a glance at his
book
Not at all" he assured her eagerly,
and if you will permit me- Miss Des-
mond, viii remove the splinter Let
me see it.
Desdemona held out a pinkywhite
forefnger which Amos took in his own
hand, She gave him a needle and
tiny bottle of antiseptic solution. In a
second he had extracted the silver,
wincing with her at the slight pain
When he applied the antiseptic he
recorked the bottle and gave it to her
with the needle waving asiie her
thanks
Wont you sit DOWN." he asked
feeling awkwardly that he must seem
very ancient to this girl in the white
MILDLY blouse with red bow at her
throat and a glimpse of little white
tennis shoes beneath her snowy skirt.
Thanks, WILL if I'm not interrupt
ing you, she said demurely
Amos threw himself down on the
bench under the apple tree and after
that there passed the most delightful
hour he had ever known. Desdemona
Desmond could talk of things that in
terested him Not only vas she in
terested in girlish pursuits, but she
was widely read and her freshness
of view and her charming diffidence
before him. the learned man of letters,
was the undoing of Professor Tringle.
When Hannah came home that night
she was obliged to unearth from the
attic some automobile catalogues
which he had tossed aside in scorn the
week before; before his blazing en-
thusiasm her longing for a past youth
took new impetus and when a week
later they both came back from New
York in a bright red automobile, one
would scarcely have recognized the
staid brother and sister in the couple
so modishly attired in motor gar
ments
The Desmonds were deeply inter-
ested in the car-especially BESIDE
mona, and all the Desmonds rode forth
in 1t and were charmed with it and
with the professor-especially BESIDE
mona! And after awhile Hannah grew
to decline a motor ride by moonlight
while she went to sit with the Des-
monds on their gay piazza and Amos
Tringle and Desdemona went through
the country over perfect roads and
learning the old, old story BESIDE
mona was not too young to learn it,
and Amos, who was slipping off the
years with every hour of this new ex-
perience, was as young as Desdemona
herself.
The day Professor Tringle proposed
to Desdemona Desmond. he was wear
ing an old gray sweater and his hat
had been left at home; his thick hair
was ruffed all over his head and he