Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1918-12-03
BY E. coLsoN.

AQO
liberal-minded indeed when he told
Philip Maintenon that he might call on
his daughter Gertrude as often as he
liked, provided he spoke or wrote no
word of love to the young woman,
This embargo was to last until Ger
trude, who had just passed her eight
zenith birthday, was twenty.
1t was delightful to see Gertrude as
often as he liked, certainly, especially
after the long weeks in which he had
wondered how much longer he would
be considered a welcome guest at the
Brewer mansion, but he soon found
that the permission to see her often
meant far less than it had appeared to
do at first sight. He was not the only
young man who saw her frequently, to
begin with. Gertrude was q pretty
girl. bright and popular in the bargain
Philip began to live In a chronic state
Of fear lest some other fellow, wise
enough to speak to the girl first and
then the father afterward, should step
in ahead of him. The girl herself did
not seem, to his excited fancy, to take
nearly so much interest In his atten-
tons as she had done heretofore.
Sometimes he was on the point Of
throwing up the whole thing for a
year or two and going West. All Of
which was precisely what Mrs. Brew
er had counted upon when she had con-
suited her husband to make terms.
After a time, however, Philip be-
came so deadly tired of waiting that
he gave up the idea of going West and
decided to change his tactics entirely.
He had promised to write or speak no
word of love to Gertrude, certainly,
but proposing had never been men
toned. Surely it was possible to make
proposal of marriage without utter
ing love-sick speechesl Yes, he would
certainly propose, and that as soon as
the opportunity offered.
But the opportunity was long in COM
ing. Mrs. Brewer had a nose for
news" which would have made the for
tune Of metropolitan newspaper re-
porter. and while she did not exactly
suspect Philip of endeavoring to break
his compact, so she gave her husband
to understand, still she meant him to
have no temptation of that order. New
er a moment alone with Gertrude
could he find or obtain. Even when
they went upon photographing expedi-
tons together-both being enthusiast
tice Photographic amateurS-they were
invariably accompanied by Gertrude's
brother Benjamin, a spoiled youth Of
fourteen, his mothers darling, and
also badly afflicted with the picture
taking craze. And yet 1t was through
q Photographic process that Philip
finally carried out his will in regard ia
his inamorata and circumvented her
mothers care.
The bright idea occurred to him one
Sunday afternoon, as he worked oves
his newest lens, and he lost no time ir
trying it. Carefully printing certain
legend upon transparent white pa
per, he pinned the paper up against
the windowpane and went over II
again more boldly and on the wrong
side, with charcoal crayon. Then he
attached the paper, still wrong side
outward, to the wall and photo
graphed the legend-backward. This
he did because characters of this kind
photographed in the ordinary way, are
oil xuouc rovorcod fp &ho pooo%juo t. 90
only in the printing that matters be-
come straight again, and it was in
the negative that Philip was particu-
larly interested.
He carried it with him when he
called upon Gertrude the following
evening. Gertrude ran upstairs to her
own little darkroom to develop the
plate Immediately. Philip had ex.
planned that he thought she would un.
derstand the new experiment he want.
ed to share with her more clearly If
she developed the negative.
"Metrol-hydrol suggest as devel-
oper," Philip had told her as she ran
upstairs with the plate-holder contain
ing the experimental" negative, and
this agent she had accordingly pre-
pared. She rocked the little tray back
and forth for two or three minutes,
then exposed 1t to the rays Of the red
lamp. ana this was the message:
"My dearest girl: VIII you marry
me? Philip Maintenon."
The girl grew white and pink as she
read it. Then she laughed merrily and
sat down to consider. Ten minutes
later she went down to the parlor and
explained that she had broken the pre-
cious negative.
Philip colored holly, and Mrs, Brew
err, plying his fancied disappointment
over the lost negative, took Gertrude
gently to task,
II don't see how you could be so
my daughter" she remonstrat-
ed. Nobody knows how much trouble
Mr.. Maintenon may have taken to Sc
cure the negative you have destroyed.
Can't you make 1t up to him In some
wayr"
II don't know, mamsie," answered
Gertrude, smiling and b'ushing ador-
ably as she turned her face away from
her mother and toward Philip. II
don't know. shouldn't care to repeat
the experiment myself, even If knew
how to do so, which do not. But we
might possibly present him with some
other work of art, If you think best
Suppose we try"
A sudden thought made her cheeks
burn vet more brilliantly, and she took
from the mantel small plaster figure
Of the conventionalized "Chicago." and
offered it to Philip. And-whether by
accident or design. again 1t would be
difficult to say-her small foreflngef
pointed to the inscription, 81 willr'