The Topeka state journal., 1922-02-13
Euening Story
Valentine Trail.
BY RUBY DOUGLAS.

"Oh. I'm so tired of lace paper
hearts and cupids made of chocolate,
and boxes of violets that have been
taken out of the ice-box, 1 almost
wish there were no such day as VAL
entine's day"
The girl who made the remark had
bobbed hair and one-pieee frock.
What would. you suggest, Jane ?"
Jane did not reply at once. That's
just it; don't know what 1 want
All 1 know is that don't want a lace
paper heart.''
Perhaps a real human heart,
served up on a platter as in ancient
barbaric days, would please you more
dear %
'N-no. I think Just want to find
some one original enough to give me
something different" Jane explained.
Il hate to follow in the old calf path
of all the girls who have ever started
up life's romantic trail at twenty"
The cllum made audible signs of
surprise. t'Oh Jane, you are funny,
you, trying to get out of the conven-
tional calf path."
Neither of the girls knew that, as
they sat talking thus over their little
tabourette and tea table before the big
log fire in the country clubhouse, a
man had been sitting close by con
Il think Isl be a sport myself, he
concluded quickly. "I like that girls
voice. I like her looks. I think I'd
like her philosophy"
Thereup he set out to find out who
she was, where she lived He then
set his brains to work to originate an
idea for a valentine that would not
include lace paper heart, choco-
late Cupid, nor box of violets out OF
the ice box.
At last he smiled the smile that
comes to young and old as an after
glow of emotion following an achieve
ment His mind had created a
thought.
1T depends on the snowfall, but
I'm just sport enough to think that
Cupid-tho not of chocolate-wiil inn
plore the gods to see that | have
snowy setting for February a."
Jane Hall lived in the community
adjoining the country club at which
Sc was having tea the afternoon that
Tom Hayes overheard her petulant
remarks about st. Valentine and his
customs.
'The big idea Tom decided, sis to
let the girl guess who is her Valentine.
At least. we never signed our names
to the love poetry we used to write
when we were kids"
The plan he had formulated in Or
| der to become the Valentine of the at
| tractive Miss Hall called for no little
strategy, a great alof ingenuity and
some work with the hands
On the night of February 8 a won
derfui carpet of white snow covered
midnight when the moon crept thru
! the clouds and the snow had ceased
| to fall
| Tom, feeling like a cut-throat or
| second-story operator. stole noiselessl1
| thru the virgin snow to the Halls
garden. He had created with his
| clever idea of a Valentine a real ro-
| nance within himself. He was as
| thrilled as a schoolgirl with her first
| love letter.
He had a garden trowel. a package
| of large red hearts cut from paper
some red fluid that looked like paint
and he had tied up his boots with
clumsy cloth so as to disguise his foot
steps in the snow.
! Underneath the window of Jane he
dug out q heart-shaped hole and
placed within it a great rod paper
| heart. Then he walked on thru the
garden, dropping drops of red in the
mother heart. The trail wended off
| down into the woods in the rear OF
| the Hall home and disappeared into
| space. Tom, in order to lose the trail,
| climbed over bushes, swung from tree
limbs and branches and otherwise. OBJ
eied.
fIf she's anything of a sport she'll
| follow this trail and it leads straight
to my heart" he said triumphantly.
| He almost laughed aloud as he
| thought of himself. a regular mans
man, at this hour of the morning
sneaking thru strange suburban lots in
order to plant a seed of romance in
the heart of a girl.
'I'H make. her notice me anyway.
he thought, by way of excusing him
self.
When Jane put up her shades to
look out at the weather on the morn
ing of st. Valentines day she rubbed
| her eyes to see if they told her the
truth Then she pinched herself and
leaned against the cold glass of the
window to see where the red trail
leading from the great heart in the
snow in the garden below led to.
Her heart thumbed wildly as she
dressed and went out of doors without