Fair play., 1920-11-27

Yet she soon saw that her wardrobe |
was sadly inadequate to the environ.
ment in which she found herself |
Whereupon the rich friends lent her |
some of their own finery; and after
laughingly applying paint and powder,
they laced her into sky-blue silk |
dress, so low that modest Meg blushed
at herself in the mirror, and Laurie,
who was at the party, openly express
ed his surprised disapproval. Chagrin
and remorse followed, and 1t was not
until after full confession to Marmee,
that Meg realized the trumpery value
Of fashionable rivalry and the real
worth Of simplicity and contentment.
All four of the girls had leanings to-
ward life Of luxury and ease, and
when Mrs. March anilngly proposed
that they try whole week of "al play
and no work." they agreed eagerly.
But the experiment was a miserable
failure; and after mortifying scenes
at company luncheon, q canary bird
dead from neglect, several slight ILL
nesses and lost tempers, the girls de-
cided that lounging and larklng didn't
pay. :
Now John Brooke, the tutor of Lau-
rie, was q secret adinirer Of pretty
Meg. Discovering this, the mischiev-
GUS boy wrote Meg passionate love
letter, purporting to be from Brooke.
This prank caused terrible upset in
both houses, but later on Brooke put
the momentous question, and Meg
meekly whispered, "Yes, john" and
hid her face on his waistcoat. 10,
laundering in, was transfixed with as
tonishment and dismay, and exclaim-
ed, "Oh, do somebody come quick!
John Brooke is acting .dreadfully, and
Meg likes It'll"
At Christmas, father March came
home from the war, and great cele-
bration was made. The neighbors
from the Laurence house were invited,
and there never was such Christmas
dinner as they had that day!
Later came the first break in their
restored home circle. The Dovecote
was the name Of the little brown
house that John Brooke had prepared
for his bride, and it was tiny affair
with a lawn in front about as big as
a handkerchief! The wedding, be-
meath the June roses was a simple,
honey one, and the bridal journey
was only the walk from the March
home to the dear little new house.
''rm too happy to care what anyone
says-Tm going to have my wedding
just as want It'll" Meg had declared;
and so, leaning on her husbands arm,
her hands full of flowers, she went
away, saying, "Thank you all for my
happy wedding day. Good-by, good
byw
10 developed into writer of SEN
sational stories. This, however, was
because she found a profitable market
for such work and she wanted the
money for herself and the others. For
little Beth was ailing. and summer
stay at the seashore might, they all
hoped, bring back the roses to her
cheeks. But it didn't, and after q
time the dark days came when gentle
Beth, like a tired but trustful child,
clung to the hands that had led her
all through life, as her father and
mother guided her tenderly through
the valley of the shadow and gave her
up to God.
Then came a day when Laurie was
invited to the Dovecote to see Meg's
new baby. Jo appeared, a proud aunt,
bearing a bundle on a pillow. "Shut
your eyes and hold out your arms"
she ordered, and Laurie, obeying, open
ed his eyes again, to see-two babies
'Twins, by Jupiter!" he cried; "take
'em, quick, somebody! I'm going to
laugh, and 1 shall drop 'em!'
Laurie had loved Jo for years, but
10, though truly sorry, couldn't re-
spond. AS she said, "It's impossible
for people to make themselves love
other people If they don't" And so.
after time, Laurie decided that Amy
was the only woman in the world who
could fill JOS place and make him
happy. And the two were very happy
together, Amy taking great pride in
her handsome husband. Don't laugh"
she said to him, "but your nose Is
such a comfort to mel" and she ca
ressed the well-cut feature with artis-
tic satisfaction.
10 found her fate in an elderly pro-
fessOr, wise and kind, but too poor to
think of marriage. For year the
pair worked and waited and hoped and
loved, and then Aunt March died and
left 10 her fine old country place. Here
10 and her professor set up their
home, and established boys school,
which became a great success. 10
lived a very happy life, and as the
years went on, two little lads of her
own came to increase her happiness.
Amy, too had dear child named
Beth, but she was a frail little crea-
ture and the dread of losing her was
the shadow over Amy's sunshine.
But the little women and all their
dear ones formed happy. united fam
fly, of whom JO truly wrote:
| II, I'm