The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-08-01
THE OTHER FREAK.
BY OSBORN JONES.

at Perkins Junction and wait III Il
forsaken little shed of station in the L
middle of cornfields for the uncertain 4
shuttle train that carries you on to
Perkinstown - Perkinstown that Is
n4ne-tenths campus and college boys |
and girls, and faculty, and faculty
houses, and only one-tenth native pop /
ulatiOn.
Passengers stranded at Perkins t
junction never need introduction. /
That is an unwritten rule of courtesy |
at Perkins.
The acquaintance in this case was |
begun when the man raised his hat and |
bowed, indicating thereby that If the /
girl wished it he would speak. She |
was not 10th.
"You are student aren't you?" she
asked, and the man noticed that her
voice was silvery.
Then in the next few remarks the
barriers were down. Instinctively they
knew that they were of the stuff out
of which congenial comrades are
made.
When Is of the 45 minutes that
were doomed to pass in waiting had
slipped by, the man summoned cour-
age to ask the girl her name.
"Sidney Stone" she said, and then
when she asked him, he told her his
was AlonZo Love- Just a shade Of a
smile crossed her face.
Il suppose you think that is queer
sort of NAME" he said.
"Not funny, only somehow you don't
| look like an AlonZo. You look like
| Bill or Tom or something like that"
what courses are you going to
take?" asked Alonzo.
| u am going to take mining engineer
ing" she replied.
| The man whistled. You'll be the
only girl in that department" he told
| her.
Il know l shall be regarded as
freak"
| YES" he admitted There's an
other nut in college, thought chap
named Bill Dean, who is taking domes
tic science. That Is just as bad"
almost" And then Sidney told
her companion secret that she asked
him not to divulge She was destined
to be a mining engineer because in her
family there had always been min
ing engineer for four generations, and
because her father had died and left
her valuable collection of mining en-
| cheering instruments and papers and
her grandmother, who was her guard
ian, felt that she ought TO make use
of them.
Funny" said the man. "Darned
funny" he emphasized.
On the train together they occupied
adjoining seats.
'Do you know, 1 had an idea" she
confided. Il thought that perhaps
could get man to take the course for
me. Grandmother need never know.
That is why / came early, so / could
look around before registration. My
name is Sidney. That might be q
!, mans name
ats q good idea," commented the
) man, "but you're not the first one to
/ think of 1t. You know the other nut
But the train had drawn into the
I station at Perkinstown and the CONVEX,
sation was cut short.
In order not to commit herself tC
; any name until she found whether she
could make her plan work, Sidney die
not report at the university offices, but
betook herself and her baggage TO the
only inn in the place. So did the man
: And for two days, while each one
went his way, investigating possible
courses and accommodations they be
came better and better acquainted.
"Haye you found your Sidney?
: asked the man as they strolled through
the shady streets Of the town TO
gether.
mo, and it is hard. I can't adver
tise as it must be secret. Do yo'
! think you could help me?'
: The man paused. "Wcll, you know
. the other nut-that Bill Dean, who !
. taking domestic science courses. We'll
! In a way, I am that nut. That Is,
should have been if / hadn't manage
4 to accomplish just what you are try
= ing to do. Only was forehanded an
: got my substitute last spring. l cam
= up when the fellows were taking pre-
. liminaries and I picked my man.
g was Bill Dean. I'm still Bill Dean Q
= home. But here l am to be Alonzo Low
q You see, my mother runs one of tn
. biggest cattle ranches in our state. Sh
= has put my other two brothers up
=. business there, and now she says III
only thing she needs to make the plat
perfect success Is someone to ~
the house. The original will be hei
N tomorrow, but he will be known {
&C Bill Dean"
v The girl had been thinking intent
RI as she listened.
RS "Couldn't-don't you think yo'
wv mother would let me run the house
We you told her that had made sp
cialty of that sort of thing?"
fe would she? Why, of course 81
e. would. But how would that let "
mi ont 81