The Elk Mountain pilot., 1921-10-13

|
thing She does do. Ever since she
came home from school about four
fifths of all the young men in town
have been wild about her-and SOS
every old bachelor. for the matter of
that!'
"Yes." Mr.. Atwater added. Every
old widower. too"
His wife warmly accepted the
amendment. "And every old widower,
too" she said, nodding. "Ratheri And
of course Julia's done exactly as she
pleased about everything, and natural
ly she's going to do as she pleases
about this"
well. of course. it is her own af-
fair. Mollie." Mr.. Atwater said, mildly
"She couldn't be expected to consult
the whole Atwater family connection
before"
"Oh. no." she agreed, ST don't say
she could. Stlll, 1t is rather upset
ting, coming so suddenly like this
when not one of the family have ever
seen him-never even heard his very
name before"
"Well. that part of it isn't espe-
cially strange, Mollie-when he was
born and brought up In town three
hundred miles from here. don't see
just how we could have heard his
name-unless he visited here or got
into the papers in some way"
Mrs. Atwater seemed unwilling to
yield a mysterious point She rocked
decorously in her chair shook her
head. and after setting her lips rigid
ly, opened them to insist that she could
never change her mind: Julia had
acted very abruptly. "Why couldn't
she have let her poor father know. at
least few days before she did?'
Mr.. Atwater sighed. "Why, she ex-
plains in her letter that she only
knew it, herself, an hour before she
wrote"
"Her poor fatherl" his wife repeat
ed commiseratingly.
"Why, Mollie, / don't see that faith
er's especially to be pitied."
"Don't you?" said Mrs Atwater.
"That old man, to have to live in that
big house all alone. except a few me-
gro servants?"'
"Why, mol About half the houses
in the neighborhood, up and down the
street, are fully occupied by close rela-
tiyes of his; 1 doubt if he'll be really
as lonely as he'd like to be. And he's
often said he'd give a great deal il
Julia had been plain, unpopular girl.
I'm strongly of the opinion, myself,
that he'll be pleased about this. OF
course it may upset him little, just
at first"
"Yes; I think it willl' Mrs. At
water shook her head forebodingly
"And he isn't the only one it's going
to upset"
mo, he isn't" her husband admit
ted, seriously. "rhats always been
the trouble with Julia; she never could
bear to seem disappointing; and so, OF
course, / suppose every one of 'em had
n special idea that he was really about
the top of the list with her."
every last one of 'em was positive
of it," said Mrs. Atwater. "That was
Jula's way with 'eml"
Yes, Julia's always been much too
kind-hearted for other peoples good T.
Thus Mr.. Atwater summed up-and
he was this Julla's brother. Addition
ally, since he was the older. he had
known her since her birth.
"If you ask me-" said his wife, "Tll
really be surprised If it all goes
through without suicide"
"Oh. not quite suicide, perhaps" Mr..
Atwater protested. I'm glad its a
dry state, thought
She failed TO fathom his simple
meaning. "Why?"
"Well. some of em might feel that
desperate at least" he explained.
Prohibitions safeguard for the dis
appointed in love"
This phrase and previous one
stirred Florence. who had been sitting
quietly, according to request, and
resting; but not resting her Curl
osity. who's disappointed in love,
papa?" she inquired with an explosive
eagerness which slightly startled her
preoccupied parents. "What is all this
about Aunt Julia, and Grandpa goin'
to live alone and people committing
suicide and prohibition and every
thing? What is all this. mama?'
Nothing. Florence"
"Nothing! That's what you always
say about the very most interesting
things that happen in the whole fam
fly! What is all this. papa?"
"It's nothing that would be inter-
esting to little girls, Florence. Mere
! ly some family matters"
"My goodness Florence exclaimed.
"Pm not little girl any more, papa
You're always forgetting my age. And
If it's family matter belong to the
family, I guess, about as much as any
body else, don't 1? Grandpa himself
isn't any more one Of the family than
1 am. I don't care how old he isl"
This was undeniable, and her father
laughed. ''It's really nothing you'd
care about one way or the other" he
said.