Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1914-04-22
NOT AT ALL DIFFICULT
BY GRACE SCHEVEBS.

he the limit" They did not employ
the term in it's usual sense, for their
admiration of young Dukes was
boundless. What they had in mind
was his infinite capacity for keeping
still.
He never talked unless he had
something to say, and when he had
said it ceased talking. There was
sound philosophy in his method, but
the average man has not the strength
Of mind to follow it out-he keeps up
a conversational twitter because he
has a horror of silence. 1t gets on
| his nerves. Aller Dukes did not seem
to possess any nerves. At any rate,
he did not futter an eyelash at whole
streaks of stiffness. The odd part
to shut him off behind any remote
barrier-he had the faculty of making
himself more intimately one of the
party by just listening than did the
others by reams of gable.
He never by any chance gossiped
about himself
Most people are so egotistical that
they think the public is feverishly in
terested in their trips to Europe, pro-
jected or past, their new clothes at
the tailor's or dressmakers, their
servants shortcomings and the money
| they are making.
Aller Dukes seemed wrapped in i'm
penetrable modesty. Any information
you got out Of him relating to him
self had to be pried and blasted loose
and he clearly regarded the operation
with disfavor.
Naturally he was fascinating to
girls, because he gave them so much
to talk and wonder about. When he
took one of them to party she had
all the sensations Of starting on a
trip into remotest Africa, because
there always was the possibility of
making AIler Dukes talk.
Nobody has done it yet, but while
there is life there is hope. The effect
Of Alters silence was to make other
people talk, and resolve as they would
not to chatter and unfold their best
secrets to him, they always did.
When he began taking Ethel Anvil
ing around more than ali the other
SfrIS excitement ran nigh.
Suppose said Ethel's best friend.
Suppose he should want to propose
to you-he'd never be able to waste
words enough to lead up to it.!
what's he going to do? A girl simply
has to be sort Of courted!"
''Tn not worrying" said Ethel, and
1 tossed her head. He's just a good
friend and doesn't care a bit about
/ me!'
But it was observed that she
blushed when she said it.
Perhaps Ethel herself wondered as
had her best friend. She and A1lel
got along famously together because
she could talk six miles an hour and
she always took such vivid interest
in life that she had plenty to say. Not
4 that Aller maintained a sphinXlike 81
4 lence-when she considered the mat
Z ter it seemed that he always saiC
/ things to the point. Still, as her bes
friend had pointed out, girl simply
! has to be courted.
And the young man had wasted NJ
1 time in pretty speeches.
4 Before she realized it, Ethel Awlins
I was consumed with curiosity as tt
4 whether Aller Dukes really liked he
n a good deal and how he possibly coult
i convey the idea to her if he did lik
4 her.
j Deep down in her heart she wa
4 hoping that he did.
B Several others had told Ethel tina
q they cared for her, and as she re
4 viewed the manner in which they ha
B done so none of the methods en-
d ployed appealed to her as at all al
| tractive. To be sure, they had bee
graceful enough, clever enough, arts
tic enough, and yet she had sent tn
a young men all away. How, she pair
II fully wondered, could silent ALLIE
II Dukes tell her of his admiration, SUI
II posing he should want to, SO that
II would impress her? She dislike
II very much the idea Of not being in
II pressed sufficiently to say yes. B
II which one may judge that Ethel wa
IL considerably in love with the sileI
II chap.
ii To her self she insisted that sh
II did not care a bit.
III Most unexpectedly one evening, jul
IL as they were going down the stel
l. On their way to a party, not whe
II they were returning, with moonligl
II and the rest of the conventional Sc
ii ting, Al1er Dukes turned his hea
toward Ethel a moment and the
II said: "Will you marry me, Ethel?''
II It took him exactly from the thil
II to the fifth step to say it. And Ethe
Il after an instant, heard herself sayir
IL calmly from the sixth step to IL
II seventh: Eyes, Aller." And the
II they were walking on the level sid
il walk.
II Some time later Ethel said I
IL prOachfully: ''That was an awful
II funny way you proposed to mel"
II Aller looked surprised. 81 dor
] see why" he said 81 wanted to kno
al oy1 uub Woo 3boro ~ .