The Devils Lake world and inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1915-1920, 1916-04-20
A 'Tactless
Wooing
By EDWARD ]. STEWART

&. &AV S~N0SV0lXVn VI NCko+ aoAuo AA4N
taken place. ,and,the feet vas ready to
sail. The surgeon in charge of the hos
pital approached the medical director
to report that all invalids had been re-
moved.
There's a man." said the former,
"who, I think, must have died without
his death getting on to the list. He
was dying yesterday afternoon. I
haven't seen him since and presume
his body was removed. Conover should
have e e to it that the record was
made"
well, there's no time now," said the
medical director, ito investigate the
case. We must go aboard"
So it was that when the ships reach
ed the United States the name of Hor-
ace Morton. petty officer, was reported.
"Died In hospital"
Now, 1t happened that the elimina-
ton Of Horace Morton was very ac-
ceptable to Mrs. Martha Jones, the
mother of Ethel Jones. who had been
betrothed to the sailor before he de-
parted for Vera Cruz. He had nothing
to marry on. while Philip Thompson, a
plumber, who also wanted Ethel, had
made considerable funds in his bust
ness and was able to take car of her
in good style. Mrs. Jones had set her
face against her daughters marrying
Morton, and to quiet the old lady Ethel
promised that If her lover lost his life
in Mexico she would marry Thompson.
After this promise there was peace in
the Jones family. Mrs. Jones hoping
that the man who she considered stood
In the way of her daughters welfare
would be snuffed out by a Mexican bull
let.
But there was only a small scrap at
the landing at Vera Cruz. and greatly
to Mrs. Jones' disappointment, Morton
was not among the killed. Then came
the evacuation. and with it the mother
made preparations to renew the fight
in the matter Of .. son-in-law. But
when she read in 4, morning paper that
Morton had died at Vera Cruz she NUT
tered silent thanks and with every ap-
pearance Of heartfelt sympathy broke
the sad news to her daughter, all the
while laying plans for a wedding with
the plumber.
Ethel shut herself up in her room for
a week, then came out with a surren-
der, telling her mother that since her
lover was dead she. cared not whom she
married and was perfectly willing to
take the plumber or any n else. Such
being the case, Mrs. Jones sent MI.
Thompson word that the. way was open
for him to win her daughter, but she
advised him to be very circumspect
and proceed slowly. She believed that
Ethel thought she loved another, but
that the girl was deceiving herself. "A
few weeks courtship would do the
business.
Mr.. Thompson. who was not an adept
in wooing a olna who had just lost
the man she loved. began by sending
Ethel an invitation. to a plumbers ball.
Fortunately, he sent it through Mrs.
Jones. who threw it in the fire with all
haste and wrote her daughters nom
acceptance or account of indisposition.
Nj. Thompson; next move was send
ing a bouquet of flowers. Mrs. Jones
intercepted them. separated the posy.
put them in a box and gave them to
Ethel as an offering of sympathy from
the donor.
This was a beginning, and Mrs.
Jones hoped that by carefully heading
OF the indicate attentions of Mr..
Thompson to bring the affair to a sue
cessful termination in due time. Why
she took SO much pains to prevent her
daughters being ruf1ed by the plumb
er's want of tact is not plain, because
Ethel was not in a state of mind to
care whom she married. Perhaps her
motive was looking to the future. 1t is
also a question as to why Mr.. Th6mp-
son was anxious to marry a girl whose
heart was in the grave. He explained
this to Mrs. Jones by saying that a live
man was better any day than a dead
one and Ethel vas sure to find it out.
1t must be admitted that there is more
wisdom in the explanation than senti-
ment in the statement.
All things have an end, and the
plumbers courtship was no exception.
The wedding day came round. and
with it came a coincidence. When the
wedding party was assembling in walk.
ed Horace Morton, who had failed ia
get on the dead list in accordance with
the navy regulations. And there was
no time for an investigation. He
had walked out Of the hospital in deli.
rum, and the party responsible for hin
had been looking for him up to the
very moment of the sailing Of the flee,
homeward.
Upon his appearance as a wedding
guest, pale and emaciated, there was 8
scattering of those present. The bride
alone seemed to consider him flesh ani
blood and, rushing toward him. fel
into his arms. He had been aware OF
Mrs. Jones' opposition to him and hel
preference for the. plumber; conse
quently he took in the situation with
out Its being explained to him.
II reckon he said, ''that since every
thing is handy for q wedding we MAJ
as well have one:".1
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