New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1917-04-20
CHAPTER |.
Beuinninu an Adventure.

"Indced,' continued the professor,
CHANGING down mt his notes, 'if one
We're he editor of II column OFF,
advice to young girls, one might crys-
talliZe the remarks | have been making
this morning into Il Wnrnins-never
marry II man with IA passion for prin-
ciples."
1t got II laugh, of course. Professor
iaI jokes always do. But the girl
didn't laugh. She came to with II start
she had beer staring out the window
and wrote, apparently, the fool thing
down In her notebook. 1t was the
only note she had made in ~thirty-tiye
minutes.
All of this brilliant exposition of
the paradox of Rousseau and Robes
pierre Che was giving IL course on the
French revolution), the strange and
vet inevitable fact that the %softest,
most sentimental, roSe-Scented religion
ever invented, should have produced,
through its most thoroughly infatuated
disciple, the ghastlirSt reign of terror
that ever shocked the world his mas
ttIIN 'lidItlN ' GNhiN ~ ilN " Si'Nh
~incorruptihle," too humane to SWat Il
fly, yet capable of sending half of
France to the guillotinc in order that
the half that was left might believe
unanimously in the rights of man-
all this the girl had let 60 by unhcard,
in favor, apparently, of the dronc of
Il street piano, which came in through
- .-:.-I .- 10 a.. ,-...., - a,
prcnaturrIy warm March wind. OF
all his ph%il0SophiHiug, there Was not IL
pcn-trHck to mar the N%irSinity of the
page she had opened her notobuUk /"
when the lecture began.
And then, with a perfectly serious
face, she had written down his silly
little joke about advice to young girls,
There was no reason in the world
for his paying AMY special attention 10
her; il annoyed him frightfully that
he did.
She was g~ood-looking, of course
n rather boyishly splendid young crea-
ture of somewhere about twenty, with
n heap of chestnut hair that had
II sort of electric vitality about it. She
had IL strong chin, with n slight forward
thrust, good Straight-looking. express
sive eyes. and n big, wide, really beau
.iful mouth, with square white teeth
in il, which. when she smiled, cX-
rrtcd Il sort of hypnotic effect on
him. All that, however, left uncX-
pIaincd. the quality she had of making
YOU, whatever she did, irrestihly aware
of her. And, conversely, unaware OF
everyone else about her.
Her name WAS liosalind Stanton. but
his impression was that they called her
Rose.
The hell rang out in the corridor.
lie dismissed the class and began
Stacking up his notes. Then, Miss
Stanton he said.
she detached herself from the
stream that was moving toward the
door and, with Il good-humored look
of inquiry about her very expressive
eyebrows, came toward him.
This is an idiotic question" he
said as she paused before his desk,
but did you get anything at all out
of my lecture except my bit of face
tious advice to young girls about to
marry?"
she flushed a little "a girl like that
hadn't any right to flush: ii ought
10 be against the college regulations),
drew her bows together in a puzzled
sort of way, and then, with her wide.
boyish. good-humored mouth. she smil-
ed II didn't know IL was facet!ous,"
she said. 1T struck me As pretty good.
But-i'm awfully sorry Il you thought
me in%attentive. You see, mother
brought us up on the Social Contract
and the age of Reason" such things.
and | didn't put it down because . :"
Il see" he said. Il beg your par
don"
She smiled, perfectly cheerfully
begged his pardon, and assured him
she'd try to do better.
Another girl who had been waiting
to speak tn the professor, perceiving
that their conversation was at az end,
came and stood beside her at the desk
"A scrawny girl with an eager voice.
and a question she wanted to ask about
Robespierre; and for ome reason
or other, Rosalind Stanton's valedic-
tory smile seemed Il include a con-
seriousness of this other girl-a con-
seriousness of a contrast. 1t might not
have been any more than that, but
somehow it left the professor feeling
that he had given himself away.