Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1919-05-06
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A Mistaken Identity
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Life is hard nOulncd the sill
with the pearl earrings. Il tel you
/ 1t takes great courage TO smile on
I when all ones best endeayors aie
blasted IN tAc.g tender yoUth!'
sins HE rs.t OK =" cheerluiIy sus-
Gcstou tie yoaJs woman who was or.
! doraG tea.
i've noticed" remarked the girl
with the pearl earrings, "th-t people
are wonderfully philosophical when it
isn't their trouble. Al optimi5t Is
person enjoying himself BY listening
to somebody ciacs woe. That's you.
Ny eh.cl regret il that Was 80 stu
pid! can stand anything bIt that
only be had 10 busln $40 10 l-Ol. the
way he did"
Did you furnish Chart" quarglcd
her hostess.
Listen said the fist girl. leaning
over the wicker table Mrs Richle
was always talking about her broth.
er, who was so crazy on music-aad
III have you know that when i family
has as much money as the Rluk.e
family they could be crazy On collect
ins Single Rails and got away with
It without difficulty
There wasn't a woman at the hO-
tel this suGlMer who could come with
in Thousand miles oil that hillIe
Womah'5 WARDROBE! And she Wls the
real thing. too-sweet and lovely AID
educated in Paris, and she liked Me.
Being more than 10 Years old, made
"a note in my brain this way: 'Richle.
her brother, possibilities Of meeting
some time. Fad, music You surely
couldn't blame me for doing such
little thing as that"
You would have been cnminaly
careless if you hadn't done So" re-
piled the girl who had ordered the
tea.
That's the way looked at it," re.
sumed the girl with the pearl ear
rings. "My reward came last week
when mrs. Hickle wrote that her
b.0tLar waa passing thru Chicago On
his WY West and would let HIM cal
upon me? She Was anxious that We
should meet. he would be here only
from one day TO the next. / had the
piano tuned again, aitno it had been
done Only last month, and | got cut
all those expensive collections OF
brahms and Chopin and L.8l- that
father bousnt for he when he was
under the Impression Yves going 10
give up popular mgsic for the real
thing. How | wished, al this crisis.
that | had been a good gin and prac-
tiscd. But the volumes looked lovely
and intellectual on the piano rack
and | LAID out all the grand opera
records to play upon the phonogranh,
so that he wouldn't have time to
ask me 70 play the piano. Then l got
seats for the Friday afternoon SYM
phony concert.
AS you know that single seats are
not to be bought ior Lose or money,
you can imagine TIE agony OF spirit
| went thru lang Two friends with
adjoini seats AMI hyproua.as them
in. --EnE tne,A to nae for J.nt day.
/ was bound TO have them if h. to
use d saEdbas and | almost did EaYG
to,
MI Rickle arrived at our house for
luncheon. lie Was big and broad
shouldcred with a square jaw and I
horribly fascinating, and betrayed his |
artistic tendencies only by has long /
fingers. / enIlyened luncheon by tell /
ing him all about the wreck of our .
opera season here and making HIM re-
late which were his favorite operas
and such topics. He seemed rciuc
tant to answer, bat | decided thar he
was modest and shy. Then | an
nounced that was going to carry HIM
off to the concert and spoke in IN
offhand way OF our season seats, He
seemed terribly embarrassed and inn
pressed and he didn't want to uoub-
lie ms, ana all that-but, of cGusae, he
went
Driving down l prattled of Mr..
Stocks genius and asked him if the
ninth symphony did not move him be
yond words and he said it did
we was awlully hard to talk to,
even tho he WAS Mrs. Hickle'a broth
Ell. / cudgeled my brains to find out
where his interests lay talked
Strauss, Chopin. Wagner and DeBQasy
md pianos and yioliEJ, vocal and eel
les and Couldn't get thing out of
him.
III he had not been 50 good look
ng and a RickIe ia have given up in
despair. However, a chance like that
doesn't come one way often, so /
gritted my teeth and went On. 1t
was a very classical program and l
.houeht he would be charmed. In the
middle of the symphony / looked up
and saw that he was asleep!
He cheered up a triflo at tea af-
.erward and when he babe me good
~ he said he was so appreciative Of
Ill | had done for him and hoped We
would meet again Then he wandered
)ff with d diaconsolato Groop to his
shoulders while l dove home totally
Exhausted and my threat aching from
ny monolog on music in ali its forms,
and expansions. The only
line any words not on that subject
we're used was when Mr.. Ricille was
ordering tea.
and the next mail brought a note
rom Mrs, RicSIe saying incidentally
hat she and Brother Arthur, the
,,7,ry 1o1 eIo o.-y,'ofr Oh Ia, s,,.t