Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-01-19
A TWICE
TOLD TALE
By SADIE OLCOTT

AlAilidlJ dNdoCIhJt hdo DCCh DooJ ~
day with his duties pertaining to the
graduation of the first class of the
corps of cadets and in the evening
strolled up to the West Point hotel.
Colonel Beverage had met SO many
strangers that he could not remember
them all, though being a prominent
person at West Point he was himself
remembered. A maiden lady who was
nearing the close of her fourth decade
nodded to him. Not being able to
place her, he joined her, with a view
to learning who she was without be-
traying his ignorance. They were soon
seated on a corner of the porch, and
the colonel opened the conversation
There is a far denser crowd than
that to be found here in June when
I was a cadet. The youngsters don't
have the opportunity to spoon here
that we had. In those days 1t was
possible to get a girl off here by her
self and make no end of love to her"
az presume, colonel" said the lady,
"that you did your share of that sort
of thing"
1--WE all did our duty, I assure you, in
keeping up the credit of the academy
as entertainers"
"Did you ever make a proposition on
this porchf"
''That is a pointed question, but since
you ask about what occurred twenty
years ago I presume there is nothing
1ndelicate in acknowledging that /
did,
"Was the girl attractive, or was it
the surroundings rather than her per-
sonality that moved your"
"She was delicious!"
'"That's a new word to apply to a.
woman"
at expresses exactly what she was
to me-"
"Do you remember on what part of
the portico this interesting scene took
placer"
"Remember! I shall never forget.
1t was in this very corner"
"Were you accepted"
o the contrary, my proposal was:
received with a merry laugh. You
cadets she said, are incorrigible.
Yours is the fourth proposal l have re-
ceived since l have been here. West
Point Is the only place in the world, I
believe. where a proposal means moth
ing
Mine meant a good deal, but its re-
ception took me fat aback. Instead
of trying to convince her that I was in
earnest 1 forced a smile and said:.
You top me by one. You have receiv-
ed four proposals. I have made but
three
Again came that laugh, though now
it seemed to me that there was mock
cry in it. 1 was quite sure the girl be-
lieved that there was something Sc
rious in what | had said to her and
was enjoying the stab she was giving
me. Naturally I ~endeavored to conceal
the fact that | was in earnest by
swearing In a heroic manner that l
loved her and her only and would new
err love any other woman. And that
was the truth, though I intended she.
should consider 1t mere gallantry. I
have never married and will never
marry"
The lady was silent for a time, SEEM
ingly impressed by this onesided ro-
nance. Presently she said:
MAY not the girl have received your
proposition as she did because of the
reputation cadets have for making love
to pass the timer
perhaps she did not take me seri-
ously. But 1 had done all 1 could dc,
In the matter. l had offered her my
love and my hand. She had laughed
at me. What else could I do but laugh
back?"
"She was very young, I presume"
Eighteen"
"And your"
twenty-five. 1t was the year I was
graduated"
After a brief silence the lady con-
tinued: at seems to me, colonel, that,
considering the reputation cadets have
or at least had when you were a cadet,
you should not have considered your
rejection necessarily as a true express
sion of this young girls feelings. You
should have tried again."
IT was ordered to the western coast;
she remained in the east"
81 see. How many such cases there
are in the world! Two hearts meet
and mingle. Before there can be q
proper understanding between them
they are spirited apart, perhaps to the
opposite ends of the earth. And even
when there is such an understanding it
requires no great shock to break it."
you are assuming that the girl, had
she believed in my sincerity, would
have reciprocated."
"That she alone knows"
At this point the tete-a-tete was in
terrupted by friends of both the colo
mel and the lady.
Are you two trying to fancy. your
selves back in your flirting days?'
asked one of the newcomers.
81 have enjoyed a very pleasant chat