Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1919-09-26

people INTO HIS HOuSc TIE uduaS0l
makes his romance as young as he
con. Youth will indeed be served, and
its profound instinct is to be not only
scornfully amused but vaguely an
gered by middle-aged romance. So
standing beside his mother, George
was disturbed by sudden impression
coming upon him out of nowhere, sc
far as he could detect, that her eyes
were brilliant, that she was graceful
and youthful-in word that she was
Economically lovely.
He had one of those curious moments
that seem to have neither a cause moi
any connection with actual things
There was nothing in either her looks
or her manner to explain Georges un
comfortable feeling; and yet it in
creased, becoming suddenly q vague
resentment, as if she had done some
thing unmotherly to him.
The fantastic moment passed; and
even while it lasted he was doing his
duty, greeting two pretty girls with
whom he had grown up, as people say
and warmly assuring them that he re
membered them very well-an assur
ance which might have surprised them
"in anybody but George Minafer!'
It seemed unnecessary, since he ha6
spent many hours with them no longer
than the preceding August. They haC
with them their parents and an uncle
from out of town; and George negli
gently gave the parents the same as
surance he had given the daughters
but murmured another form Of greet
ing to the out-of-tOwn uncle, whom
he had never seen before. This per
son George absently took note of as
"queer-looking duck" Undergradu
ates had not yet adopted bird" II
was a period previous to that in which
sophomore would have thought OF
the Sharon girls uncle as queer
looking bird" or, perhaps, a funny
face bird" In Georges time every hu.
man male was to be defined at pleas.
ure as a "duck = but "duck" was not
spoken with admiring affection. as in
it's former feminine use to signify q
"dear"-on the contrary, "duck" i'm
piled the speakers personal detach
ment and humorous superiority. Ar
Indifferent amusement was whal
George felt when his mother, with
gentle emphasis, interrupted his in.
terchange of courtesies with the
nieces to present him to the queer
1NnIyfn~ OF IL II,
phasis Of Isabel's. though slight, en-
abled George to perceive that she con
sidered the queer-looking duck a per
son of some Importance; but 1t was
far from enabling him to understand
why. The duck parted his thick and
longish black hair on the side; his
tie was rgetful-looking thing, and
his coat, though it fitted a good
enough middle-aged figure, no product
of this year, or of last year either
Observing only his questionable hair
his preoccupied tie and his old coat
the Olympic George set him down as
queer-looking duck, and having thus
completed his portrait took no inter
est in him.
The Sharon girls passed on, taking
the queer-looking duck with them, and
George became pink with mortifica
ton as his mother called his attention
to a white-bearded guest waiting tc
shake his hand. This was Georges
great-uncle. old John Minafer: it was
old Johns boast that in spite of his
connection by marriage with the Am
persons he never had worn and never
would wear a swaller-tail coat. Mem
bers of his family had exerted their
influence uselessly - at eighty-nine
conservative people seldom form rad
zeal new habits, and old John wore his
Sunday suit of black broadcloth tc
the Anderson ball. The coat was
square, with skirts to the knees; ole
John called it prince Albert" and
was well enough pleased with it, but
his great-nephew considered it the
next thing to an insult.
The large room had filed, and sc
had the broad hall and the rooms on
the other side of the hall, where there
were tables for whist. The imported