The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1920-12-25
~oBLE DILL, at twenty-five, had

N been seriously in love ohi!
- twice before the COLLAPSE
brought on by Julia Atwater. anc
though his mother talked OF organic
ing u Young Mems Mothers Ciue
against Julia. nevertheless she &C
Enewledged that in one solitary wa!
Noble was being improved BY the eX
psrience. His two previous attacks
zone at twelve. the other at eiSh
,eenl had been iucomparably lighter
and the changes in him, noted a
home. merely slight general irrita
hility and a lack of domestic punctu
ality. due TO too much punctuaIltS
elsewhere. But when his Julia Al
water came. the very first syptom ht
manifested was a strange new effor
10 become beautiful by means OF bod
lily garnishment. and his mother ever
discovered that he Worked with
pumice stone upon the cigarette stains
ON his fingers She was amazed. YET
not orer.grateful 10 tho lovely Julia;
what had been done 10 Noble in every
other way was destructive. and the
trial OF living with him in his ruinou$
state was too great
The most curious thing about hi;
condition was that for long time he
took il for granted that his family did
not know what was the matter with
him: and this shows, as nothing else
could. the meekness and tact OF The
Dills: for. excluding bad cooks and
the dangerously insane. the persons
most disturbing 10 the serenity OF
households are young lovers. But the
world has had TO accommodate itself
10 them because young lovers cannot
possibly accommodate themselves Ia
The world. For the young lover there
is no general life Of the species: for
him there are no appalling spirals
evolving in = triliop skies beyond our
own: for him. the universe is deli
cate blush under u single little bonnet
He has no business except what deals
with the business that goes on under
this bonnet: he has but an irritated
perception of every vital thing in IA
rure except the vital thing under his
bonnet-all else is trivial intrusion
But whatever does concern the centri
fugal bonnet. whatever concerns ii in
the remotest. faintest tarthest-ah
then he springs 10 life! So Noble Dill
sat through a Sunday dinner at home
seemingly drusged TO torpor. while
the family talk went on about him
but when his father. in the course oil
some remarks upon politics. happened
10 mention the name Of the county
treasurer. Charles J. Patterson. No
ble's startled attention to the CONVEX
sation was so conspicuous as TO be
disconcertinG. Mrs. Dill signalled
with her head that comment should
be omitted. and Mr.. Dill became for
the moment one factor in fairly
clear example OF telephathic communt
cation, for IL is almost impossible to
believe that his wife's almost imper
ceptible gesture was what caused him
TO recall that Charles ]. Patterson
was Julia Atwater's uncle.
That name. Charles J. Patterson
coming thus upon Mobiles ears was
like An unexpected shrine on the way,
side where plods the fanatic pilgrim
and yet Mr.. Patterson was the most
casual of Julia's uncles by marriage;
he neither had nor desired any effect
upon her destiny. To Noble he was
inefyably privileged and fateful. Some
thing OF the same quality invested the
wooden gateposts in front OF the big
honest brick house where Julia lived
with that august old danger. her
father. In general. Noble felt a warm
er something for the gateposts. how.
ever. than be felt for Mr.. Atwater. The
latter inspired Noble with not only
the urcalied-for affection and venera,
ton inevitable toward Julia's next OF
kin, but also with a kind OF horror
due 10 the irresponsible and awful
power possessed by a sacred girls
father. In sum, Noble loved Mr. At.
water: but often. in his reyeries. when
he had rescued him from drowning or
being burned to death, he preferred 10
picture the peculiar old mans injuries
as ultimately fatal.
II Julia and all her relatives and
Noble Dill and Mobiles rivals had hap,
pened to live In Chica&o or New York
or Peking. much would have been diff.
in love with any other person and
walk the streets with some assurance,
but In a town OF sixty-fiye thousand IN
habitants (so asserted. but not official.
" proved to be in love with a beauti.
tul girl who belongs to large family
connection" is like living under the
surveillance of a photograph. Every.
thing will be known at headquarters.
There were two of Julia's relatives
who would have been profoundly nat.
tered and surprised had they realized
how important they had become TO
Noble Dill. True. his only reason for
lNttributiug any Importance whatever
tSthem was their relationship to Julia,
ana lay In nothing intrinsic with
themA. True, also. the only reason why
they wApld have valued his esteem
was that he had reached the age OF
twenty-two.- while they had just at.
tanned that OF thirteen and were under
the constant necessity OF combating
the suppressions which older years
wished to put upon them. These two
were the cousins. Floredce Atwater
and Herbert lllingsworth Atwater,
Julia's niece and nephew. Noble dis
eliminated between them. On &C
count OF her close consangulnity TO
Julia, he regarded Florence as holy
child. but her impulsiyeness had in
vescted her. in neighborhood opinion.
with terror as holy as Der childhood,
and Noble strongly preferred her cou-
SIN, young Herbert, much milder and
less imaginative character.
TSHCS. on Sunday afternoon. hav.
ing been home to lunch after his
- ,,nnrnInr- lahnrc Nnhlo nnrcnd In