The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1921-09-16
MINTON'S GIRL
BY HELEN M,poNoUGH.
ooooonoooooooa0o

j. van Arden PERKINS (tne u. van
Arden" lately substituted for plain
John) laughed heartily from the
depths Of the fraternity sofa.
Don't miss this, fellows" he cried.
use your imagination and dramatic
instinct to picture a country lass In
a calico dress sitting in hair-cloth.
family old parlor-a mouse
colored creature-and then listen to
her metropolitan nerve:
Sunshine wouldn't be sunshine,
Skies wouldn't look so blue,
Life would be so drear, dear,
Without a thought of you
"And here's a snapshot. How do
you like the inscription? Taken the
day we parted, when you asked me
to wait for you. Waiting, as ever,
Nell.'"
"Look out" warned gay, cynical
voice, "there'1 be breach Of prom
Use, old mani"
Arthur Minton, serious-faced
chap, took the picture, first respect
fully-then reverently. eff girl Ike
that-a girl who can look at the world
with so level and innocent a gaze
with lips from which only sweetness
and charity fall-with hands worn
with service-if such a girl loved me
I'd go to the ends of the earth to
win her-and I wouldn't make her
loyalty a jest Of my fraternity"
With that he flung himself out Of
the smoking room and locked himself
In his own. So, he reflected. Perkins
was the man Nell loved so devotedly-
the man for whom she refused him.
He went back over the golden sum-
mer days two years ago when he first
met her. He had been touring through
the wonderful northern Vermont
country-when there had been an ac-
cident to his machine and he was
hurled over the embankment. Nell,
off on a solitary stroll. found him
living senseless, a mass of decorations.
Rich in the lore of Supple, medical
help, she did what she could, then
rode miles for a doctor.
All summer he was at their farm
house, and Nell, despite her many
household duties. delegated herself as
his special attendant
Confident that there was no one
else, he asked her at last to marry
him, telling her that she was the most
adorable girl he had ever met. 1t
was only then she told him she was
promised to another, whose family,
suddenly becoming heir to an unex-
pected fortune, had moved away.
Minton pressed his case and came
back to see her more than once, but
though there was an exquisite CANA
raderie between them, she still kept
her faith in her first love.
Minton WINGED when he thought
that Perkins silly, i'm
pressionable-was the unappreeiative
recipient Of her cOnstancy.
He Immediately made up his mind
to go to her.
He went into the hall to find
roommate Poised as if for flight
a look of fear and indecision on her
lovely face, stood Nell. She was not
the questionable country girl whom
he knew and loved, but an exquisite
ly gowned creature, still simple but
distinctively so.
He wondered afterwards why he
was not surprised to find her in his
fraternity rooms All he knew was
that he was inexpressibly happy He
took her, unresisting. in his arms.
81 still love you" he said breath
lessly, 'and I'm not going to let that
Perkins interfere any more, eitherr'
Il heard everything" she said, "and
your aunt, whose real identity 1 did
not know until a few moments ago,
told me a great deal more. After
you had told her about me last year,
she came TO US, asking TO stay with
US so that she might paint the river
and the mountains. She was very
good to me, and taught me so many
wonderful things-to modulate my
voice-to walk gracefully-to play,
sing and to paint
"Then one day she received a letter
from your sister. regretting that she
could not attend your fraternity
dance. Unknown to both you and me,
your aunt planned that I should go
instead, and she would chaperone me.
The rest-rooms which the hostess
provided for the women-guests hap
pened to adjoin the reom you and |
John were in. 1 didn't know either |
Of you were here until heard your |
voices.
AT first I thought-well, I can't |
tell you what I thought But now |
know that / can really honorably love |
you. You don't know how hard I had |
TO try to be loyal, and not to think
of you too much mot to care for |
you"
That night, during an intermission |
in the fraternity dance downstairs. |
"J. Van Arden" Perkins remarked to |
one of the boys:
where's Minton tonight? Guess
he got over his peeye all right. Saw |
him taking a deuced pretty girl and |
her chaperone over TO the hotel for |
dinner, and he was pretty hilarious. |
I'm trying to think where I met his
girl before. She's a peach and too
good-looking to waste her fine looks
on an old fogy like Minton Must
meet herr"
But at that precise moment the
"deuced pretty girl found great hap