Abilene weekly reflector., 1916-03-02

Englishman of the name of Hobbs.
very poor valet was he. but an excep-
tionally capable person when it came
to the checking of luggage and the di-
vining of railway timetables. He had
been a guide for tourist agency. 1t
was quite impossible to miss a train
that Hobbs suspected of being the right
one.
Prince Robin came unheralded and
traversed the breadth of the continent
without attracting more than the atten-
ton that is bestowed upon good looking
young men. Like his mother. nearly
quarter of century before. he Travelled
incognito. But where she had used the
somewhat emphatic name of Guggen-
slocker he was known TO the hotel
registers as Mr. r. Schmidt and ser
want"
There was romance in the eager
young soul of Prince Robin. He rev.
The beautiful Princess Yetive first saw
Grenfell Lorry in an express train 60
ing eastward from Denver. Their
wonderful romance was born. so to
speak. in a Pullman compartment car.
and it thrived so splendidly that it al
most upset dynasty, for never-in all
of nine centuries-had ruler OF Grau-
stark stopped to marriage with COM
moner.
And so when the farsighted minis
try and house of mobiles in Graustark
set about to select a wife for their
young ruler they made overtures TO
the Prince of Dawsbergen. whose do
main adjoined Graustark on the south.
The Crown Princess of Dawsbergen'
then but fifteen, was the unanimous
choice of the amiable matchmakers in
secret conclave. This was when Robin
was seventeen and just over being
fatuously in love with his middle aged
instructress i'll French.
The Prince Of Dawsbergen dispatch
ed an embassy Of noblemen to assure
his neighbor that the match would be
highly acceptable to him and that in
proper season the betrothal might be
announced. But alack! both courts
overlooked the fact that there was in
dependent American blood in the two
young people. Neither the Prince of
Graustark nor the Crown Princess Of
DawsLergen-whose mother was a
Miss Beverly Calhoun of Virginia-was
disposed to listen to the voice of ex-
pediency: in fact. at safe distance OF
three or four hundred milesJhe young
sters fguratively turned up their noses
at each other and frankly confessed
that they hated each other and
wouldn't be bullied into getting mar
ried, no matter what anybody said, or
something of the sort.
"S'pose I'm going to say I'll marry
girl I've never seenY" demanded sew
enteen-year-old Robin, full Of wrath.
Not |, my lords. I'm going to look
about a bit, if you don't mind. The
world is full of girls. Ill marry the
one happen to want or I'll not marry
at ALL"
But. highness." they protested, you
must listen to reason. There must be
a successor to the throne of Graustark.
You would not have the name die with
you. The young princess is
rs fifteen, you say he interrupted
loftily. Come around in ten years
and we'll talk it over again. But I'm
not going to pledge myself TO marry
child in short frocks, name or no
name. Is she prettyY'
The lords did not know. They had
not seen the young lady.
IF she is pretty you'd be sure to
know it. my lords, so well assume she
isn't. | saw her when she was three
years old. and she certainly was
fright when she cried. and. my lords
she cried all the time. No, I'll not
marry her. Be good enough to say to
the Prince of Dawsbergen that I'm
very much obliged to him, but it's quite
out of the question:
And the fifteen-year-old crown prin-
cess. 400 miles away. coolly informed
her doting parents that she was tired
Of being a princess anyway and very
much preferred marrying some one
who lived in a cottage. In tine, she
stamped her little foot and said she'd
Jump into the river before she'd marry
the Prince of Graustark.
But he's a very handsome. adorable
boy" began her mother.
"And half American, just as you are,
my child" put in her father encourag-
ingly. Nothing could be more suit
able than
u don't intend to marry anybody
until I'm thirty at least. so that ends
IT. daddy-I mean your poor old high
ness.
Naturally we do not expect you TO
be married before you are out of
short frocks. my dear" said Prince
Dantan stifiy. But a betrothal IS
quite another thing. It is customary |
to arrange these marriages years be-
fore
as Prince Robin in love with me-
rI-ahem-thats a very silly ques |