The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1917-11-06
Messages
In Plants
A Man and a Girl Converse
Through Flowers.
By ETHEL HOLMES

Ethan Atwater was a well educated
young man, with fortune, good looks,
good health and good mind. His oc-
cupation was both occupation. and
amusement. He studied and did some
scribbling, occasionally sending very
pretty verses to magazines.
Atwater lived in small place, but
a very old one. Many of the dwellings
stood alone and often in the center of
large grounds. His house was quaint,
and the grounds were marvel Of good
taste. On entering his study one
would Immediately be impressed with
the fact Chat 1t had been furnished
and decorated by an artist with an ex-
quisite sense for harmony In color.
Through the window appeared grounds
that had evidently been arranged by
a landscape gardener. Both the artist
and the gardener were Ethan AtWater.
Atwater had been drawn to one or
two different women at different times,
but had sooner or later discovered
something In one or the other to offend
his sensitive taste. something that Ell
Their smacked Of coarseness or an alb
sence Of ideality. Not that he was q
sentimental man. He may rather be
called a man of sentiment. The senti-
mental was as repulsive to him as
cQaTseness.
On Atwater's return from journey
he found that the place next adjoining
his on the east had changed hands
~ 40 49, n Loo H.
into the house whose appearance
struck him favorably. Her apparel
was in good taste. Her hat appeared
to have been made neither for q giant
nor q dwarf. The colors Of which her
costume were composed were subdued.
Her face, too. spoke Of innate refine
ment.
Il was In the autumn that Atwater
first saw this girl, and nearly every
day after that he observed her either
gndpR Oua or coming In OF at window.
B3e nret impulse was 10 assume the
privilege OF neighbor and go In and
call on the newcomers, but It occurred
to bin that be would take pleasure In
studying the girl from the brief dis
lance that separated their abodes. One
Of his theories was that refined per
son could not be unrefned; that an
ideal person could not be commonplace.
II she were both ideal and refined she
would show her ideality and refine
mept TO him without an acquaintance.
II there was lack Of either he would
be able to detect 1t without speaking to
her or being spoken to by her.
Within q few weeks he had wit
messed acts on the part Of his neighbor
indicating traits that be considered
usual In If not essential to a refined
nature. He saw her receive a child
who came 10 her house and knew at
once that her heart warmed to chill
dren. He was standing at window
when she attended an old lady to her
carriage and was sure that she sympa-
thiEed with the aged These were but
Individual instances Of Atwater's OBJ
seryations, no one Of which was of su-
preme Importance, but all, taken to-
gether, indicated a nature such as he
could admire and revere
Then he went away for awhile. When
he returned he made discovery. The
young lady next door did not appear
either In the grounds or at a window.
he began to fear that he had seen her /
for the last time. That fear was akin
to pain. He was tempted to make In
Quiries, but knew no one to ask After
week of chatting one afternoon he
saw her drive up to the house In car
riage and received with demonstrations
Of affection by the other members of
the family. Atwater longed to jump |
out OF the window and take her In his
arms himself. But this was an impulse
that didn't count for or against his nat
ural idiosyncrasies
Later he made another discovery SIM |
liar to the first He'saw a very hand |
some young man leave the house next |
door and the young lady follow him |
out to the gate, apparently loath to |
have him depart. This time it was re-
vealed to him not only that the young |
lady was a person of interest to him.
but that he objected to her being of IN
terest to any other man. From this /
point she ceased to be a matter of |
study by observation. She was to be
appropriated.
Ny story up to this point has been
very one sided, and it must continue
tor the present to be one sided. 1t is
not to be supposed that girl may be
under constant observation by young
man next door without some observa-
ton on the part Of the girl. Atwater
bad never seen her looking at him,
though he had never failed to look at
her whenever she appeared. Had he
caught her doing 30 he would have
considered her as overstepping the
bounds set for modest young woman
That she did not do so convinced him
that she did not consider him worth
looking at.
One morning In March Atwater
saw a man digging up the soil in the
yard In the adjoining grounds. 1t was
plain that the ground was not intend
ed for vegetables. but for flowers. In
another week the young lady came out