The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1916-08-25
TOO VICTORIAN
BY JANE OSBORN.

ter-Ida's pretty golden-haired sister
looked up from her algebra and
glanced whimsically over her study
spectacles. Thank fortune, I've never
been in love-Oh, there's no use say
ing you aren't. Nowadays girls come
right out and say so when they are.
But 1 suppose if you insist on being
Victorian you just won't be frank
about it. / was saying that if l ever
did fall in love and then lost out the
way you have-well, you needn't look
so offended, you know you have-why,
| wouldn't nope around about it. I'd
use my brains, same as a man would"
Well, smarty, since you know it
all" Ida said, going over to her sister
and closing the algebra she was study
ing, what sort Of plot would you
perpetrate. Would you go down to
Matthew'S apartment through the
dumb waiter shaft and steal the young
hero away in the Silly night?"
Now you're talking," said Ruth,
springing to her feet. THAT might
be good plot IL the hero wasn't six
feet one and the heroine only five feet
three. I've thought out something
even craftier than that The facts
in the case are thus" Here Ruth be-
gan tabulating them on page of her
algebra notebook. Hero is really
very fond of heroine if not actually
in love with her. Hero naturally timid
and not much of a lady's man. Hero
lives in same apartment house as
heroine, and just before heroine gets
him to the proposing point she plays
her cards wrong and tries to make the
hero jealous. Hero, instead of getting
Jealous, just gets a case of cold pedal
extremities. Deadlock follows
Here is where the craft comes in
You remember that little baby ring
with the blue-enamel forget-me-nots
that the hero gave the heroine in a
moment Of sentimental fervor at a
picnic last summer. Now, don't look
surprised. OF course know he gave
it to. you. Haven't seen you wear
it around your neck on a piece OF
white ribbon every night since? Dc
you think l keep my eyes in my pa
jana pockets? Now if the hero thought
the heroine had lost that ring and
thought she cared a lot for it he'd
think that she cared lot for him
without having to be told so.
of course you haven't lost the ring
but just the same you can put an
advertisement in all the papers like
this:
LOST-A baby ring with small
forget-me-nets. OF small intrinsic
worth, but highly priced by the own
er. Reward, $75.'
Now, sooner or later, the hero is
bound to read that advertisement, and
after he puts his shrewd masculine
wits to work for about half an hour
it will begin to dawn on him that the
poor little five-feetthree heroine
misses him, wants to see him, loves
him dearly"
1t was a week later and the adver
tisement had appeared for five days
in the three local papers. Then one
day Ida came to Ruth's room and in
terrupted her in the midst of her alge
bra. Ruth removed her spectacle.
and focused her eyes on her sister
TITS so funny" Ida was crushing
an open letter in her hand. Someone
has found the ring, yet I still have
it."
"Goose!" was Ruth's rejoinder. ''It'i
Matthew that answered. He didn'
find it. He's just saying he did He
thinks he is being crafty just the wa,
I said he would and he thinks yol
did lose it and he's just pretending
he found it so as to have a chanct
to see you"
If he did write that letter, I an
| sure he Is very clever, for I never
would have thought that 1t was from
him-and I am not at all sure that i
is even now. See, the writer say
he will return the ring to the owne
IL she will meet him in the mall a
the park at four o'clock this after
noon. And she is to know him be
cause he will wear a red rose and
How did he know it was a cir
that lost the ring and how did he know
that the mall in the park is jus
across the way from the owner
house?"
I'm sure don't know, but coinci
dences like that are not unusual. ANY
way, I shall keep the appointment
alone"
/ At six o'clock Ruth, still porinl
over her algebra, saw a very pink
faced bright-eyed sister dash into he
room.
who do you think I've been walking
with, and he's coming back after din
ner? Matthew! But it wasn't he tina
wrote the letter. In fact, / didn't wal
for the man with the red rose. Mat
thew Just happened to be there ant
when told him was waiting for tn
man with red rose he told me tina
the man only wanted to kidnap me o
something like that. Don't you see
1t was as plain as day after Matthew
explained it to me. But girls neve
think of practical things like that
Matthew hadn't even seen the adyer
tisement in the paper and when I toll
him about losing the ring he sail
he'd have another one made just lik
it. OF course I never shall let Mat
thew know I didn't lose that ring"
Ruth put on her spectacles and sen
glance down at the algebraic figures
Say, Ida, you're Victorian all through
But 1 guess there are some men VIII,
like girls like that" she said.
Copyright, 1916, by the Mcclure News
paper Syndicate)