The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-08-17
= A =
Love Letter
By F. A. Mitchell

conie ueT INTO our Ianlly circle. i an
glad to be with you at this time. II
Is very important to you and Adele. I
consider marriage the most important
event In ones life. II is, unlike birth
and death, controlled. trust you and
Adele will take It seriously, and, above
all things, do not fall into chat sickly
sentimentalism 80 common among low
ers. Love letters, so called, filled with
gush are especially to be avoided.
Write plain common sense to each
ether, with your plans for subject mat
ter. Confine yourselves In the begin
ming TO dear Adele and dear Tom
Think how stupid 1t will seem to you
later on to come across dearest, sweet
est Adelel' She will be then a thou
sand times dearer to you than she ia
today, but you will not show 1t In any
such ridiculous way"
Didn't you write love letters TO ma
when you were engaged, dadr
Il don't remember just what wrote
your mother" replied Mr.. Bracket,
| trying to think back to period when
he was twenty-one. Il was considered
matter of fact chap, and l am quite
sure / never INDUCED In lovey-dovey
nonsense"
What Tom and Adele's letters were
like does not pertain to this story.
Quite likely they were what most
young lovers write. Shortly before
their marriage Tom went up into~the
garrett to gather such effects as he
wished to take with him to his new
home and destroy what Lad lost It's
original value. Rummaging in an old
trunk which contained various family
effects, he came across a bunch of old
papers Untying a bundle Of letters
bound together with a faded narrow
ribbon in lieu of tape, he examined
them, noting that they had been writ
ten nearly a quarter of century be-
fore. He read number of them, then,
selecting one of them, rebound the rest
and put them back where he had found
them.
The evening before the wedding the
bride and groom to be dined with the
Brackets. When the meal was finish |
ed and coffee was brought on Tom
took letter from his pocket and said
to his father:
dad, you gave me lecture when l
became engaged on love letter writing |
which made deep impression on me-
found the other day while rummag-
ing among old papers one of those
ridiculous epistles written by some fell
low who must have had the lover fever
very badly. 1t has convinced me that
you are right. II reading such docu-
ment produces such contempt for the
writer, what would | think Of myself
at reading such letter written by my
self twenty years from noww
Tom handed the letter to his father,
who put on his glasses and perused It
1t read as follows
My Angel-Don't think that exaggerate
Ia calling you an angel. ! do so because
you are purer. better. nobler than any girl
| have ever known. / only wish were
with you now and could tell you so instead
Of writing It. / would take you In my
arms and give you a million kisses.
I looked for a letter from you by the
early mall but II did not come. so sup
pose TIL not get It till noon. have read
he one received yesterday twenty times
put It under my pillow when I went TO
bed that It might lead me to dream Of YOU
L did. / dreamed that we were sitting In
garden of roses but no rose rfvaled the
link of your ear or the vermlion of your ,
ips.
Mr.. Bracket threw the letter on the
able in disgust.
go on" said Tom.
GO on!'' replied the father. go on
through the twenty pages of such sick
ming stuff The man who wrote 1t !
hould have been tarred and feathered r
nd ridden on a rail. / pity the girl
Who married him. No doubt he tried :
0 support her writing poetry. Moon
,ght, music, love and flowers would
nit him"
The speaker stopped and looked at
hose about the board. When he be-
an to make his criticisms ON the writ
r of the letter the corners Of their lips
ook on an upward quirk. AS he pro-
eeded smiles replaced the Quirks.
vhen he reached the moonlight, mu-
Ic, love and flowers" all burst into
bar of laughter-that is, all except
FRS. Bracket, on whose face there
-as an expression Of embarrassment
iingled with amusement
whats the matter7" asked Mr..
racket, nettled.
Look at the date Of the letter, dad"
I'D Tom.
The date was examined and was
'und tor be November, 1892.
Now look at the signature
The signature was Your loving
ON
By this time Mr.. Bracket had be-
IN to realize the situation, more espe-
ally through the handwriting, which
recognized as mis- own.
''You didn't exaggerate a bit, dad,
calling mummy an angel" said Tom, |
d. rising. he went to his mother, put
; arms about her and kissed her. L
Can it be possible that was ever -
CHI a ninny as TO write like that7"
Id Mr.. Bracket. scrutinizing the Chi
graphy.
NO ninny at allT' cried Tom. The
" mistake is in not keeping up some a
II. You old folks drop IL all after
Irriage when you should only smooth 4
down. notice. dad. that when any
ng happens TO mother You have no 4
re control over your equanimity than n