The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-09-13
81. AN ANTDOTE
By Marguerite d. Caldwell.

NSORyAA6uSs 1897 " WACOASA oyA
dictate, Inc.)
For six generations the little
white cottage, nesting in It's ever
green protection, had been owned
by maiden ladies Of various tenn
peraments. Its unique history was
directly due to the fact that Miss
Abigail Bradshaw, the original
maiden owner, had been badly dis
appointed in her very ardent love
affair, and ,thenceforth trusted no
man.
Abigail had adopted a niece, who
had needed her warning and re-
ceived the cottage as her recon-
ipense.
In turn, the second maiden Of the
little white cottage adopted girl
relative, and in her will advanced
a step and required that her child
| by adoption remain unmarried, and
take . girl baby also, teaching her
to do likewise.
And SO, down to the generation
of Priscilla Bradshaw they had all
taken this name), no man had
dwelt over night in the cottage.
Aunt Susan, the fifth maiden lady
had found Priscilla rather hard tc
understand. She was a silent girl
and prone to have ideas Of her OWL
and up to the time Of her death, q
year before, Aunt Susan had
wagged puzzled head at Priscilla
many times.
However, the girl had been much
impressed by the solemnity of hel
aunt's last warning from her death
bed. and her movements during thu
following year would not have puz
Izled Aunt Susan. She had lived il
solitude, mental and physical. no
even allowing herself to thinl
things Aunt Susan would not ap
prove.
1t was now a June night, and
standing before the mirror in he
Iaunt's bed room, she felt an indie
Unable, inexplainable LONELINESS
lcreeping over her; an unaccounta
BILE longing for-O, for something
something to love! There! Tha
was it. Someone to love-!
And then came her aunt's com
Inland: "And when you're q TAX
la girl baby, as your aunts hav
done before you" And she wa
only Ii.
Anyway, considering her ow1
: restlessness and discomfort, sh
wasn't sure she wanted to hand an
girl baby a life such as hers was &c
3 ing to be. Besides, sweet though
she could love one Of her own, {
SO much more.
Goodness, what am / thinking!
/ And as il to make amends fo
|graceless tngratitude, she CAV
!, thanks that she had been protecte
from worldly temptations and ths
l no man had crossed her path. Sh
remembered all she knew of then
the inherited knowledge 0f genera
7 tons, soured with age, that tn
male species of humans was th
direct instrument of the devil, an
that no woman ever fell for one VIII
didn't rue the day she did it. An
this was not theory; it was frs
lnanQeQ knOWleuSe.
So Priscilla thanked the Gre;
Deity that she had not loved a maj
Q and the next day she went to tt
Sunday school picnic.
Tall, fair and reserved, wavin
b hair struggling to be freed, ar
caught at her neck in the origin;
Bradshaw knot. Priscilla WI
e dressed in a lowered voile of plai
style, and much, o, much too lon
lShe made q sharp contrast to "a
: and modern Gerry Townsend, WI
e was preening before Bob Gal
iBarrytown's most popular your
man.
Il "Pll bet you don't dare!" 81
fairly sparkled.
The picnic was a success, n
everyone was tubilant except Pri
\ lcilla- She was most uncomfortabl
q and hours before 1t was time to ,
home she had wandered down to Il
, lake and thought and thought az
e wondered.
Everyone had been pleasant,
everyone always was, but sure
d young set" had deliberate
snubbed her. It was probably h
b outlandish clothes-she knew tn,
were different-and her hair. 81
had secretly admired the coiffu
e. the girls were wearing-puffed
tho hack Ard naffnd nj fha aora