Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1917-06-29


1t is one of the many mysteries of a
great city that two hearts, which CUPID
intended fondly to beat for each other
may go for weeks and months and
years without any such beating.
There was Miss Annette. who came
here to the city from Kalamazoo, the
celery town Of the west. and secured
place as typist and stenographer. She
had heart and Cupid intended that it
should beat for somebody but the
weeks went past and she didn't find the
man.
There was Stephen Douglas, who
came from the town of Yapbank,
town on Long Island. He secured a
place with firm as cashier and book
keeper. Cupid had plans concerning
Stephen. He should have home and
a fireside and loving wife and half
dozen children, perhaps. But Stephen
pored over his books by day and walk
ed home at night and didn't see any
body who looked like girl he was to
fall in love with.
And all this very time Miss Annette
and stephen occupied boarding houses
right across the street from each 9TH
er. Their hours for going to work and
returning were about the same. and
they both had walk of seven blocks.
They both had front room on the
third floor. They both ate about the
same sort of food. Both landladfes
kindly saw to It that their board bills
never run over the week. Cupid was
in no great hurry to bring the fond
hearts together He was just waiting
for a little romance as an excuse.
When fog drives into New York it
comes from the rivers on both sides
of the city. 1t makes tunnel OF every
street. It brings a sort of darkness
which is worse than darkness 1t
chokes the street lamps. 1t bewilders
It makes every policeman on fixed
post seem to be nine feet high and the
fog gets in his throat, and he has to
roar to you when he speaks. You may
have crossed street a hundred times
to some designated point on reason
ably dark night, but II you try 1t IN
fog you will go wrong.
Miss Annette got home before the
fog came, but later on she had to run
out to the store block away. STEPHEN
Douglas also got home in good time,
but he had to go out later to get some
tobacco for his pipe, and while these
two people were busy on their errands
the fog drove In and 1t was like pulling
down a window shade. Stephen start
ed to go around the block to the left,
and Miss Annette started to go around
the block. too. They had to go slow;
they had to avoid pedestrians. They
had to hang to ratings and fences
They had 1ust neared the boarding
house patronized by Stephen, and the
young lady's boarding house was just
across the street. when they bumped
and the romance began
OF course. there were EXPLANATIONS
and explanations and of course Steph-
en- volunteered to escort Miss Annette
across the street. She hesitated and
then accepted his offer. They started
directly across and after five minutes
of cropping they found themselves down
at the corner That corner was only
half block from either boarding
house. but 1t looked so weary and
strange and altered that they could not
say that they had ever seen 1t before.
They were across the street, however.
and they had only to follow the side
walk back Then there came another
trouble. There were three houses just
alike. and you had to get your nose
almost against the doors to tell one
from the other Stephen returned
across the street, and by good luck he
found his own door. 1t took Miss An
nette twenty minutes to find shelter In
her own room
It wasn't very extraordinary to bump
against a young man in fog, or for
the young man to bump against
young woman. but they both felt that
the fond beating of their hearts had
begun at last. There had been no in
PRODUCTION. but there was to be one.
Your heart can't go ahead and do lot
of fond beating unless you know for
whom ii is beating. 1t might be beat
ing for Sarah Brown. when 1t was IN
tended to beat for Susan Smith. No
landlady. however good and noble she
is, will ever introduce you TO board
err in some other landlady's house. 1t
isn't ethics The one hoar1er m ght in
duce the other boarder to leave his
happy home. by saying they had cram
berry sauce every night for dinner al
his house Stephen thought Of various
ways to bring about an introduction
and it may be that Miss Annette gave
the matter some thought. but no intro
duction had taken place. when Sfeph-
ems tobacco ran low and he had to go
around the block another evening. II
wonderfully happened that Miss An
nette had to go out the same evening.
It wasn't foggv this time. But there
woe pale If wind on its way from the