Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1917-03-14
A PROTECTION.
(By Sadie Olcott.

fort. There are TOO many young ON
GERS here who have nothing to do but
fiirt, and they make girls life intol
cradle"
But you don't have to firt With
them if you don't wish to do So
"They are so persistent. There's Mr..
Wheeler, just out of West Point with
nothing but his pay as second lieuten
ant and nothing with which to occupy
himself but to cultivate his incipient
mustache. He has been bothering me
to become engaged to him. think
Won. as commandment of the post,
should issue an order against flirting"
And if the penalty of the order is
transgressed?
Twelve hours in the guardhouse.'
Very we'll Consider the order Is
sued. Go to the guardhouse.
Il? am not flirting. ! assure you
I'm in earnest"
She looked mt the colonel. hand
some bachelor of forty. with pair OF
beautiful eyes in a way that puzzled
him.
II have a mind TO order you out Of
the garrison" he said. You have be-
witched these young officers so as TO
render them useless as soldiers, and |
shall get no service out of them till
you are gone
"Do sit down and let us talk it over.
think can prove to you that | am
not a fiirt."
"Well, go on
seriously, Mr. Wheeler must be
headed off or
Hell blow out his brains?"
"How could he do that when
"He hasn't any?"
"Listen to me. see a way to settle
the matter with him
"And the rest of them?'
"Will you please cease to interrupt
me?"
Proceed"
"When a girl is once engaged she Is
| let alone. Now, | wish to be en-.
gagged"
"Oh, you do! For how long"
"That depends. My first object Is to
get rid of this clamor. | can't marry
all these young men, and if l engage
myself to one of them all the rest will
quarrel over the matter. Now. if ] en-
gage myself to their commanding Off.
Ger it will be very different. No one
Of them will have been preferred to
! the other"
"What a brain you have in that pref
ty head of yours! Are you sure they'll
not all mutiny?"
| How ridiculousw
I'm at your service. But | warn
you you may find it harder to get rid
of me than Wheeler"
ooh, I'm not afraid of that"
"You mean, l suppose, that being an
old fogy I'll do for buffer and wher
no longer needed will be retired"
you go-too fast. 1t will be time
enough to talk about crossing bridge
when we get to it.
Twill you announce our engage
ment?"
"There you are again-trying to cross
bridge we haven't reached"
"But | thought you said you wished
to be engaged to me for protection
What protection will it be if we keeI
che engagement secret?"
what does an engagement In
volve?"
kissing privileges
"There is something that comes be
fore that"
"What? Eli. oh. see-a proposal"
Certainly"
Twill you do me the honor to be my
wife,
mot on such proposal as that"
What kind of proposal would 70,
like?"
Zone with some feeling in it,"
Having received great many o
them. perhaps you will tell me tn,
most attractive way to proceed"
THE sutton, sitting beside the lad.
as you are sitting. takes her left hant
in his"
The colonel did as instructed, usini
his right hand.
Not that hand; the other!'
"Why 500"
1.-THE right hand must be free"
The colonel used his left hand.
Then he tells his story in his owl
way"
You are the loveliest little humbu.
in the world. l love you desperatel.
and have loved you desperately eve
since you came to the garrison, but
never dreamed that you would consid
er an old fellow like me for a moment
especially when
NOW you see why you should keel
your right hand free" she interrupte'
as he placed 1t on her waist
"All these young chaps are mad abOu
you"
That's the way | supposed you fel
about it. Now the privilege you spok
of comes In"
The colonel took advantage of tn
privilege and the young lady remark
ed that that was not essential to tn
original plan. whereupon the colone
exclaimed. "Original plan be hanged!
Tho colonel WAS right abOut the mn