The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-10-07
MarCia'S
Problem
Being a Story of Liter
airy Education
By BARBARA PHIPPS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The prime cause Of the drawing to
gether of Winslow Tymerson and Mil
dred Swift was that they were both in
tellectual, both what the dancing set
called "booky." Now, intellectual per
sons may love as well as other per
sons, and the chances are that when
they get down to the real thing" they
will be like other real lovers-lovey
dovey-and as real little children talk
baby talk, so will these intellectual
lovers talk love talk. I don't mean
that he will say to her, "who is the
delight of thy hearth" and she will re-
ply you" or that he will say Whose
pet pid en- are 'ou?' and she will re-
ply, "Ours."
What do mean is that they will say
what they really feel, clothing 1t in
language that has been used by lovers
from time immemOrial.
When Tymerson met Miss Swift he
had recently been graduated at one Of
the oldest universities in America, one
in which knowledge had reached a
pinnacle so high that the professors,
looking down from 1t upon what was
beneath, as man viewing surround
ing peaks from the highest of noun
tain range, had begun to take the po-
sition that those outside their own ivy
clad college walls were mere pinheads
in the intellectual world.
Tymerson was a fair representative
Of his alma mater, and this is a prime
reason why Miss Swift was first at
tracted to him. At the time he was In.
troduced to her there were several
persons in the group, including a
young man whose intellect had Just
been Matched under the ordinary collie
giate method at a one horse college
containing mere bagatelle Of a thou.
sand students and which dated back
not more than $50 years. This young
man ventured the statement that MI.
Dickens would outlive Mr.. Thackeray.
Miss Swift noticed the look Tymerson
gave the speaker and the delieacy with
which he turned the subject without
even deigning a reply.
An elaborate lecture on literature
could not have given 80 marked an i'm.
preston Of the superior literary judy
ment Of Mr.. Tymerson as this quiet
squelching Of the person who had ven.
tured an opinion in his presence. But
there was an especial reason why it
impressed Miss Swift. She, too, was a
college graduate and during her col
lege career had contributed to the pe-
riodicals issued at her alma mater.
More than this, embodened by her lit
erary prominence while in college she
had soon after being graduated aspired
to the writing of a story, or. rather, a
novel.
The literary atmosphere she had
breathed was, like that found In high
attitudes, rare. In the school she had
been taught to admire cultured fami-
lies. The imagination was tabooed,
Dramatic situations were considered
as pertaining only to yellow literature.
Some writer's Of this school had at
tained an elevation where the atmos-
phere was so rare that only readers
with lungs especially prepared for it
could breathe at all.
One Of the first requirements-or fan.
cied requirements-of literary begin
ners Is criticism. As soon as Miss
Swift had become impressed with Mr..
Tymerson's literary judgment she was
DESTROYS Of submitting her work to
him to secure his opinion Of its merits.
But the young authoress knew that
when a man Of the world is given
something to read which has been
written by one Of his lady friends 1t Is
with the expectation that he will say
something complimentary about 1t.
Miss Swift. desiring an unbiased opin.
ion, determined to wait for an opportu-
nifty to get her novel before Mr.. Tymer-
sons critical eye without his knowing
that she was its author.
This preliminary may make it appear
that there was no love affair between
these two young persons. On the con-
trary, their hearts struck the love gait
as soon as they became acquainted. II
there was the GOODNESS Of intellectual.
fty between them they met in the sea-
son Of ethereal mildness, and that is
half Of Gupid's battle, for 1t is well
known that the little god fires his ar
rows in the spring with more telling
effect than any other season.
A courtship ensued which lasted for
year. Then Mr. Tymerson spoke.
From what has been said of him 1t
may be supposed that his proposal was
q model Of courtliness expressed In the
choicest English. This is not so. Love
and intellect have nothing to do with
one another, and when love asserts
itself intellect takes back seat. The
proposal took place in a fashion very
ordinary and In which a large number
OF proposals are made. Tymerson one
evening essayed to kiss Miss Swift.
She objected on the ground that he
had no such right, whereupon he grew
ashamed and gave himself the right
by stammering out a disjointed state
ment that he loved her and would she
marry him? 1t was after the break
mad been made that loves baby talk
came In
During all this time Mildred Swift
ksaf hNr- -