A SINGULAR CASE
Where Circumstantial Evidence
Played Justice False.
HANGED AN INNOCENT MAN.
Every Incident In the Remarkable
Sequence of Events Seemed to Point
Conclusively to the Guilt of Harry
Blake, Who Was Accused of Murder.
It began In the Blue Horse tavern,
on the highway lending to Allmny.
Toward the close of nu niitiium dny
It hnlf dozen men 8nt In the old bar
room discussing events which then
were lending to the outbreak of the
American Revolution. At such n time
arguments were very likely to be mill
er more vigorous than ordinarily would
be the case. And this was no excep
tion. Fearing that trouble might re
sult, one of the men exclaimed: 'Come.
Wlckllffe, stop this. Such a dispute
Is nonsense."
Wlckllffe was an ugly looking fellow,
short and stout, with a dark, sallow
face, black eyes, low, wrinkled fore
head and lips thnt bared bis teetli on
occasions like a dog pi sparing to bite.
"Sly quarrel is with Harry r.lnke,"
he snarled. "It Is none of your affair."
"Well. Wlckllffe," Blake cried good
naturedly, "if you will quarrel, 1 won't.
I'll say no more."
Evidently Wlckllffe was bent on
trouble, for he muttered something
which brought n cry of "Slininc!" from
every one In the room. Blake's face
became deadly pule. "Wlckllffe," he
said steadily, "I didn't hour what you
said, but I dare you to repeat it. If
you do and there's one Improper word
In It, this hour will be the bitterest of
your life."
Once more the offensive words were
flung at him. and in an Instant Blake
had seized Wkkliw'o and thrown him
across the room. For a moment lie
lay stunned, but presently, his face
dark with hatred, he rose and. shak
Ing his (1st at Blake, exclaimed:
"You may take your measure for u
coffin. You will need one."
"Xot before you." was Hlake's reply.
Shortly after the quarrel WickHfi'c
left the nine Horse for his home.
Wake, whose road lay ir the same di
rection, followed soon. Ten minutes
later two more of the loiterers, also
going over the highway taken by
Wlckllffe and Wake, started on their
homeward way.
The last two travelers had ridden
several miles, talking earnestly of the
stirring eveuts which then engaged
iuon'3 nhi;!. when n lo'ul cry was
beard nt n little distance In a moment
It was repeated.
"Mercy!" the voice pleaded, and thou,
"Oh, Harry!"
"Can Blake be settling score:! with
Wlckllffe?" exclaimed Grayson, onr of
the two riders.
In a moment they had galloped
around n copse of trees at a bend In
the road. Within twenty yards of
them, on his back In the dust, lay
Wlckliffe dead. Bonding over him
stood Blake, grasping a knife driven
to the haft in his bosom,
v "Taken red handed," Gravsou cried,
while Walton, his companion, himself
a magistrate, sprang from his horse,
exclaiming. "Blake. I charge yon with
murder."
"Why, I didn't kill him." ltinke said
earnestly. "You are mad. I found
Wlckllffe lying dead and was about to
pull this knife from the wound when
you came up."
Grayson Kiook his Lend. "I wish I
could believe you, Harry," he said,
"but as I hope to be saved I saw yon
stab him. 1 did."
It would be hard to imagine u situa
tion more likely to convince a jury of
the prisoner's guilt. Conan Doyle In
his wildest fancies lit deduction never
presented more damning evidence to
Sherlock Holmes and Ir. Watson the
quarrel In the Bine Horse tavern, the
epithet resented, the fight, the counter
threat of death, the departure of both
while their temper yet was warm and
then the terrible tableau on the high
way. What might a man expect even now
with the thousand loopholes that the
law provides for escape? There could
be only one conclusion now, as then,
and thnt conclusion the jury reached
without leaving the courtroom. Blake's
protestations were vain. lie died on
the scaffold declaring big innocence.
Three months after the execution the
judge who presided at the trial -was
summoned tujAlbany to see a prisoner
under sentence of death. Grayson,
whose testimony chiefly had convicted
Blake, also was summoned. Much In
wonder, they entered the cell together.
"You," the prisoner said to the
judge, "presided at the trial of Harry
Blake."
"I did."
"And you," turning to Grayson,
"swore you saw him stab Wlckllffe.
On your testimony he was hung."
."I saw Blake stab him," Grayson
said.
"Ton did not," the prisoner sneered,
"for I killed Wlckliffe. I sprang into
the wood nt Blake's approach. Ills
tory was true."
Tho confession was so clear and full
that It left no doubt In the Judge's
mind that a fearful wrong had been
done Blake. As for Grayson, tho chief
Witness, he committed suicide. The
records contain many Instances of the
law's mistakes, but few so pathetic as
the case of Harry Blake. Kansas City
Sta- -
.Method is like packing things in a
hex. A good packer will get in half
BS much again as a bad one. Cecil. .
THE "THIRD DEGREE."
Ethics of the Process as Defined by
Inspector Byrnes.
"The 'third degree,' " said Inspector
Byrnes, the former chief of detectives,
"should be a psychic rather than a
physical process. It Is not remorse
brought about by continual thought
upon the belnousness of his crime thnt
drives a guilty man lo confession. It
is the nervous strain Involved in a long
effort to maintain his pretense of in
nocence, while lie Is in constant fear
that the police are In possession of evi
dence that may prove his guilt. Some
thing like a parallel case would be
that of a prizefighter who should sur
mise that his antagonist was playing
with him in the ring while capable of
sending in a knockout blow at any
time he felt so inclined. Apprehension
thnt he was dealing with conditions of
the nature of which he was unaware
would eventually weaken the man In
that case. Tell a suspected man who
Is guilty that you have evidence of his
guilt and that he will get nothing to
eat or will not be pormlted to sleep
until he confesses, nnd unless he is
a particularly stupid fellow he will
know that you have no proof against
him and are only trying to get It. For
instance, show him ostentatiously the
weapon with which he may have killed
a man and tell him that you know all
about the crime and he would better
confess it. He will say to himself,
'They haven't got sufficient evidence
to convict me and are trying to mnke
me famish it, for if they had the evi
dence they wouldn't care whether I
confessed or not,' and thus he will be
encouraged to hold out. Also, if he
does confess tinder duress, be makes
a false confession, which he knows It
will be impossible to corroborate.
"Now, a guilty man In ninety-nine
cases out of a hundred is not sure that
he has covered every trace of his crime,
and he may readily be put into the
state of mind of the man in Toe's
story of 'The Telltnlo Heart,' wherein
he can't help believing that proof of
his guilt has been discovered and that
his cross examiners are mocking him
by pretending not to be aware of it.
Let the guilty man catch sight of an
implement with which his crime Is as
sociated In tho possession of the po
lice, which he believes has been un
intentionally left where he sees It, and
It throws him into a panic, because he
does not know how they came by the
weapon nor what else they may have
discovered demonstrating his guilt in
getting hold of it. Perhaps he has con
cocted a story in his mind which the
discover- of this weapon renders Im
plausible, nnd he mentally puts to
gether nnd rejects one sequence of lies
after another, wondering whether it
Is safe to take chances on this bit of
information or that being not In the
possession of the police. Then he is
overwhelmed every few moments by
the thought that everything is known
and all bis efforts are useless. The
guilty man in tills condition Is no long
er normal, and bis collapse Is only a
matter of time." Frank Marshall
White In Harper's Weekly.
He Had Reformed.
A i;n:; m;::i who was nu enthusi
astic lover of nature went to the sea
side for a holiday and, approaching a
typical fisherman, said:
"Ah. my frh nd. how well you must
know the fn-e of nature nnd know it
In Its many moods! Have you ever
seen the sun sinking in such a glare of
glory that it swallows up the horizon
with fire? Have you uot seen the mist
gilding down the shrinking hillside
like a specter?"
And. very excited nnd throwing out
his arms, he continued:
"Have you never seen, my man, (he
moon struggling to shake off the rag
ged, rugged storm cloud?"
The fisherman replied. "No, sir; I
h;:ve uot :ii:co I signed the pledge."
Fenrson's Weekly.
A Little Ambiguous.
The Ingrahains were entertaining
two friends at dinner. After Mr. lu
graham had helped them to roost beef
he happened to glance nt the other end
of the tuble, where his wife sat, and
observed, to his horror, that the sugar
bowl wus the old one, with both han
dles broken off, that usually graced the
dining table on wash days.
In vain he endeavored by mysterious
nods and winks to direct Mrs. Ingra
ham's attention to it. She either did
not see or would not see the mutilated
piece of queensware, and his patience
gave way at lost.
"Cornelia," he said, wfh some sharp
ness, "do you think we ought to use a
sugar bowl when we have company
without ears on?" Youth's Compan
ion. Suspioio
"Let me show you
ve Letters of
Wise Men,' " said tho
B PUT
rk in the book
emporium.
"Are they signed?" asked the cau
tious bookworm.
"Yes, indeed, every one of them."
"Then they must be forperies. Wise
men never sign their names to love let
ters." Chicago News.
The High Water Mak.
Mrs. Robinson And were you up the
Rhine? Mrs. De Jones (just returned
from a continental trip) I should
tJilnk bo, right to the very top. What
a" splendid view there is ftaln the sum
mit! New YorkWorhJ
An Unwelcome Discovery.
Post I discovered today that Parker
and I have a common ancestor. Mrs.
Post (a Colonial Damo)-lior. goodness'
lake don't tell any 6ne Brooklyn
Life. -
In the hands of many wealth is like '
harp In the hoofs ei ao ass. Martin '
Luther.
ATTACKED BY SHARKS.
A 8wimmer's Plucky Encounter With
Two Big Man Eaters.
John T. Clark, a well known swim
mer, In 1882 . had n narrow escape
from serving as a meal for two hun
gry sharks while giving an exhibition
at Pensacola, Fla. He had agreed to
be sewed up In a big sack, heavily
weighted with sand, and be thrown
into the bay near the navy yard, from
which bag he was to escape by cutting
his way out with a knife ond swim
ming ashore.
At an appointed time a flatboot took
htm out some distance from shore, and
after being tied up In the sack he was
thrown overboard. He had hardly got
Bore thou thirty feet below the sur
face when something bumped against
the sack, and almost Instantly the idea
flashed through his mind that it was a
shark. Before he could do anything
there was a bump from the other side
of the bag. In a moment or two he
had cut his way out nnd was rising to
the surface, still clutching the knife in
his hand. Once something cold grazed
his leg rs he was rising.
On reaching the surface he was
greeted with cheers, but noted with
dismay that there were no boats near.
He started to swim toward tho near
est one when the water parted a few
feet to one side and he could make
out the long black fin of a shark. The
monster headed at once for him, and
as he was about to dive to escape Its
clutch another shark dashed in.
As the first shark turned over on its
side in order to bite Clark dived be
low the surface, then up under the
shark, and drove the knife time after
time Into its vitals, and it sank to the
bottom. As he came to the surface
gasping for breath a yawlboat manned
by excited sailors from the navy yard
ran alongside, and ho was pulled
aboard Just in time to escape the sec
ond shark. Detroit Free Press:
THE PEANUT.
It Starts Growing In the Open, but
Finishes Under Ground.
Most people of the north suppose
that peanuts grow, like potatoes, on the
roots of tho vino. Others with equal
confidence state that they hang from
the branches like pea pods. Both are
right, and both are wrong. The peanut
starts in the air and sunlight above
ground in the shape of a flower grow
ing at the end of a long tube. After
the fall of blossoms this tube, or pe
duncle, elongates nnd bends down
ward, pushing Itself inches Into the
ground. If for any reason it cannot
do this it dies in a few hours. But
if it succeeds in burying Itself to Its
own satisfaction the ovary at the base
of the peduncle slowly enlarges aud
forms the familiar pod, which Is there
fore dug out of the ground.
Scattered over the roots f the plant,
however, are numerous warts or tu
bercles, in which, by the aid of a good
microscope, can be seen myriads of
minute organisms. These bacteria-like
bodies, though they get their living
from the plant, contribute materially
to its supporting by collecting nitrogen
from the air and holding It in storage,
so to speak, supplying it to tho plant
as need requires. These wonderful
little storehouses often contain, by
analysis, a greater supply of this in
despcnsablc fertilizer than the sur
rounding soil.
The native country of the peanut has
long been a matter of dispute, but the
department of agriculture states that
the weight of evidence seems to be in
favor of Brazil. Thus the peanut is
added to the four other plants of great
Importance thnt America has given to
the world namely, cotton, Indian corn,
tobacco aud the potato.
The Literary Squire.
Traveling Inspector (cross question
ing tho terrified class) And now, boys,
who wrote "Hamlet?"
Timid Boy P-p-please, sir, It wasn't
me.
Traveling Inspector (the same even
ing to bis host, the squire of the vil
lage) Most amusing thing happened
today. I was questioning the class
and asked a boy, "Who wrote 'Ham
let?' and he answered tearfully,
"P-p-please, sir, it wasn't me."
Squire (after loud and prolonged
laughter) Ha, ha! That's good, and
I suppose the little devil had done It
all the time. London Answers.
Knocked Into a Cocked Hat.
The expression "knocked into a cock
ed hat" is familiar to every one, but
perhaps its origin is not so generally
known. Cocked hot was a variety of
the game of bowls in which only three
pins were used, set up at the angles of
a triangle. When in bowling tenpins
all were knocked down except the
three at the corners the set was said
to be "knocked into a cocked hat,
whence the popular expression for de
priving anything of its main body,
character or purpose.
Perfect Happiness.
"Do you really believe there is such
a thing in this world as 'perfect happi
ness?' "
"Of course, but some other fellow al
ways has it." Philadelphia Ledger.
The Distinguishing Mark.
"How do you distinguish the waiters
from the guests in this cafe? Both
wear full dress."
"Yes, but the waiters keep sober."
Cleveland Leader.
The Jokes on the Men.
Mrs. A. Do you ever rend the Jokes
In the newspapers? Mrs. B. Only the
Jokes on the men the marriage no
tices, you know. Boston Transcript.
The only wealth which will not de
cay is knowledge. Langford.
A Sketch
By ETHAN ARBUCKLE
Copyright, 1910, by American Press
Association.
I was sketching in the country.
With my portable easel before me,
seated on my three legged stool, 1 was
doing a bit of landscape when a girl
came by who surely did not appear
rural. Her dress was ragged, her hat,
a straw, darkened by the weather aud
novlng a tawdry ornament, while over
her shoulders she wore a faded shawl.
Had I not, with the habit of an
artist, kept an eye open for models I
might not have noticed a certain klud
of beauty under these frayed gar
ments. The girl took off her bat and
displayed a wealth of hair, with Just
enough red In it to make It gold. The
day was hot, and she threw back her
shawl. Then"! noticed that her bodice
was cut low nnd revealed a superb
neck set on a pair of well rounded
shoulders.
"Why do you wear that kind of dress
at this time of day?" I asked.
"Because I haven't any other."
"Do you live about here?"
"No. I don't live anywhere. I'm
tramping."
Then she cried.
Not a Blip in grammer, not an unre
fined expression, escaped her. She had
evidently seen better days. Indeed, she
might have lived in luxury.
"If you will let me make a sketch of
you," I said, "I will pay you well for
doing so." !
"What will you do with the sketch?
Will everybody see it? I wouldn't
wish them to see It at home."
"I will put it In my portfolio. I don't
think any one who knows you will
ever Bee it"
She consented, and I made the
sketch, putting In the colors exactly as
they were. I gave her a good price
for the pose, which she clutched eager
ly. 1 believe she was hungry. While
I worked I was talking to her with a
view to learning something about her.
But she would tell me nothing willing
ly, and I was uuable to induce her to
give me any information by artifice.
At last I was obliged to let her go her
way.
But her picture it was a fine repre
sentation of "From Affluence to Pov
erty" remained with me, gazing out
at mo from the sad eyes, nnd I found
myself constantly taking it out from
among my other sketches and looking
at it. Indeed, I found myself unfit for
work, bo complete a hold bad It taken
upon me. I slept that night nt a farm
house and woke In the night depressed
by a feeling that the girl was wander
ing about with no home, no money,
nothing to eat and obliged to wear
anything she could get to cover her.
What a selfish world! Why hod I not
taken her Into my heart nnd provided
for her wants?
Then I remembered that there Is a
barrier which prevents young men
from assisting young women. As to
taking her Into my heart, thnt I had
done, though I did not realize what a
foothold she had gained there.
One thing about her was pateut. She
was pure. No such beauty as hers
need go In rags except through purity.
It was this doubtless that prevented
my banishing her from my mind and
drew me toword her.
I hove always bad a habit of read
ing the personals in newspapers. I do
so because I like to have my fancy
started In weaving stories thnt the few
advertised words Indicate. One dny
I rend tho following:
Information wanted of Gladys Seymour,
twenty years old. When last seen she
wore a dark blue dress, cut low neck;
eyes dark brown; hair the same, with a
tinge of red In It.
I saw the subject of my sketch de
scribed In this personal. I called im
mediately on the advertiser and found
a lawyer. I Bbowed him my sketch,
and he showed me a photograph. They
were identical save as to dress. That
of the photograph was silk, that of the
sketch rags. He told me that the girl
bad been driven from home by the
cruelty of a stepmother. She had gone
vowing never to return. The step
mother bad died, and the girl's father,
who was alone, was anxious to find
his daughter, but hod little hope of
doing so. -
I determined to hunt for Gladys Sey
mour myself. Taking my sketch with
me, I went to the place where I bad
made it, then started in the direction
she had gone when she left me. I
spent a day In discovering where she
had slept that night A farmer's wife
bad taken her In and given her a bed
and a supper. Having learned the di
rection she had taken the next morn
ing, I went on and tracked her in a
direct line to a little town, where I
lost her. But, showing my sketch and
making inquiries, I traced her to a
store, where she had been given work
behind the counter. There I found
her, though in a better costume than
that in which I had met her.
I don't know which was more af
fected by tho news I gave' her, I nt
telling it or she nt learning it. She
went at once to her employer to say
that she would Ilko to go to her home,
and be excused her from remaining. I
furnished her with tho means to get
there not as charity, but as a loan.
Gladys Seymour did not remain at
homo long with her father, for I step
ped in and took her nway from him.
There was a bone of contention be
tween mo nnd my wife for a long
while. She wished the sketch I had
made of her when she was tramping
destroyed. I loved it and wished to
keep It. But the period was so painful
to her that I finally consented to burn
the picture.
TWAIN'S FIRST LECTURE.
Brst Hart Headed the Claque, but the
Audience 8wamped Them.
Mr. Clemeus prepared a lecture for
his Son Francisco audience, giving a
most extravagant account of what he
bad seen among the south sea Islands.
When Bret Ilarte and some other of
bis friends were told of his platform
Intention they ngreed to go In n body
to the old Mechanics' hall, where
Twain was to deliver himself, and
form a big claque thnt would Insure
the success of the affair.
Mark wrote his own handbills, which
set the town agog with anticipation.
One particularly inviting phrase print
ed at the bottom of the announcement
as, "Tho trouble will begin nt 8 p. m."
' The hall was crowded, and the claque
was uproarious when Clemens appear
ed upon tiie plotform. The lecture was
delivered with monlfest effort In a
slow, deliberate, drawling manner, and
the lecturer paid no heed whatever to
the inconsiderate demands of "Faster,
faster! We can't stay here all night!"
and other urgent calls.
Although Hortc tried to steer the
claquers, they insisted upon applaud
ing and laughing in the wrong places,
which may or may not have been In
tended as a Joke on Twain, but at last
the audience, which began to catch on
to the unique style of the man and to
appreciate his quaintly whimsical ut
terances, overwhelmed the cinque and
had things its own way.
An old timer who attended the lec
ture says of the effect of Twain upon
his first audience: "His slow drawl,
the anxious and perturbed expression
of his visage, the apparently painful
effort with which he framed his sen
tences and, above all, the surprise that
spread over his face when the audi
ence roared with delight or rapturous
ly applauded the finer passages were
unlike anything of the kind they had
ever known. The lecture was a great
success." Bailey Millard In Hamp
ton's Magazine.
GATHERING PRUNES.
The Fruit Is Never Picked, but Is Al
lowed to Fall to the Ground.
A peculiarity of prunes Is that they
are never picked from the trees, but
are allowed to fall to the ground. The
reason Is that n prune must be dead
ripe, with all Its sugar developed, or It
will not cure properly. Therefore the
ground under tho trees Is carefully pre
pared and leveled to make a soft,
smooth bod for the falling fruit. Gath
ering the fallen prunes Is a staple In
dustry In August and September. Boys
and girls and often entire families are
employed In it, camping In the or
chards. Being gathered, the prunes are rolled
down troughs full of tiny needles that
prick their skins. They are then dip
ped lit a hot solution containing lye,
which cleanses them, and rinsed in
cold water. Next they are put in
broad, shnllow wooden trays nnd laid
In the sun for two or three weeks.
This sun drying practlcnlly converts
them Into the staple prunes of com
merce and of boarding bouse jokes
At the packing house they are assort
ed as to size by a machine which
shakes them over a huge sieve. The
farther the prune travels over the
sieve the larger the holes, and when
It comes to n hole a little bigger than
Itself it drops through Into the proper
bin. It is then mil through a vat Con
taining hot water aud finally rolls
down a chute Into n wooden packing
box the same box that you see nt the
grocer's. When the prunes pour from
the chute, however, there Is u remova
ble frame about three Inches high on
top of the box. Box aud frame go un
der n press, which promptly stamps
down the contents so thnt they are no
higher than the top of the box. The
frame Is lifted off, the cover Is nailed
on the box, nnd the prunes are ready
to ship. Will Fnyira In Saturday Even
ing Post.
More Serious.
"Mathlldo Browne was very rude to
an overdressed old woman she met on
tho street car the other day."
"I know the story. The old woman
turned out to be Mothtlde's very rich
aunt, and now she's going to give all
her money to a hospital for decrepit
dogs."
"Nothing of the sort. In fact, it's
worse. The old woman was the
Browncs new cook, and now they
haven't any." Cleveland Tlain Dealer.
Mecca of the Buddhists.
Tibet lies between the latitude of
Rome nnd Cairo, yet, owing to the
fact that it is nearly all one series of
lofty tablelands, Its climate is purely
arctic. There is hardly any rain, and
biting dry winds send dust or dry
snowstorms forever raging across its
lnhospltablo uplands.
Lassa, Its capital, is the Mecca of
the Buddhist world, nnd pious Bud
dhists gain much merit by making the
pilgrimage.
Expurgating It.
"Elfledn, what did your father say
when he beard that I had been here
calling on you?"
,"Ho said you were a numskull, a
mollycoddle and n Jolterhead.''
"Is that all?"
"That's all, Guy except the adjec
tives." Chicago Tribune.
He Countered.
"Tho position is yours, sir, if you
will deposit $1,000 as security."
"I accept your offer, Bit, If you will
deposit $1,000 as a security for my se
curity." Exchange.
To Live Long.
If you wish to bo o Methuselah yon
will have to quit doing all the things
that make It worth while not to br one.
St. Lontu rost-Dlepntch.
Retribution
By BERTHA D. ALSOP
Copyright, 1910, by American Press
Asaoolatton.
He was from childhood a lady killer.
As a boy In knickerbockers he had giv
en the little girls of his acquaintance
flowers and Invited them to have Ices
with him. Tbey were not old enough
to quarrel about him, but they doted
on him all the same. As a youth he
resembled a young Byron with his
large blue eyes, his negligee flaxen hair
and round white throat. Then came
young manhood. By this time be
found more zest in his attentions to
girls, though fewer pleased him. He
and they were still young enough to
feel the sweetness of a flirtation, and
occasionally when the denouement
came be was obliged to admit to him
self that be had been singed.
He bad no thought of marriage, a
home, children. He didn't consider
himself old enough for that. When ha
reached twenty-seven he began to look
forward to it as something that would
naturally come about. At thlrty-flv
he wished that it would come about
At forty he began to fear that it would
never come. Then it occurred to hinl
that he bad better try to bring It about
But by this time young girls had be
gun to consider bim an elderly man.
And, as for those near bis own age, he
had no use for them. He knew tbaO
men of forty have on rare occasions
married girls half their age and both?
husband and wife been very happy la
each other. Why not he? He re
solved to make an effort.
An effort In love! He had glide
naturally into so many affairs of the
heart that to try to get Into one seem
ed repugnant to him. Why had be not
taken advantage of some one of these
affairs to preclude the possibility ofi
the lonely old age that was overshotA
owing him why? Ha knew well
enough why. He had ulways consld
ered the game, not tho reality. To
have taken one of the girls he might
have hod would have been to give up
a conquest. At least so ho had regard
ed It at the time.
Having lost his position nt home ol
a young man and consequently not
being thrown In with young girls, he
determined to go elsewhere. It wa
the season of outing, and he determin
ed to go wife bunting by the sen. He
had made many conquests there. Moon
light shimmering on the dancing waves
had called out that which had moved
many a girl to love him. True, now
there were gray hairs In his moustache,
and bis Byronlu forehead was higher
than It bad been, but he thovfght with
the same surroundings he might do the
trick as he had often done it before.
It was sad to see a young girl pass
bim without looking at him, whereas
twenty years agone nnother of her age
could not have refrained from a
glance. lie became acquainted with
several of tbem, but somehow there
seemed a gulf between him and them
that be could not cross. These were
half or less than half his age. Finally
be met one between twenty-live and
thirty who caught his fancy. Theie
was this, too, about her that be did
not find In the younger ones thes;
surprised hi in by acting nnd talking la
a way that seemed childish to bim.
They seemed to bim to hnve grows
nearer the nursery than their proto
types. Surely the girls he had asso
ciated with when he was under twenty-five
were not ns frivolous as these
misses. The older girl, on the contrary,
talked and acted like a woman. She
could be a companion to him.
He made up his mind that if he
could win her he would do so. He
made a few abortive efforts to make
love as be would have made It fifteea
or twenty years before. What Be
would have said and looked and acted
then now seemed Insipid to him.' tjo
desisted, contenting himself with the
girl's companionship and showing her
little attentions.
One thing troubled him. Though nhi
accepted his attentions nnd listened U
his chat, she did not seem to be ta
pressed with his superior wisdom, Hi
felt that, while she attended to what he"
said, she occasionally let it bo knoWlf
that she knew more of the subject be
was talking about than be knew hinf
self. Surely there was nothing near
the nursery here. He was uncomfort
able at the thought that this young
woman felt him intellectually beneath,
her. It was rather that be felt ber to
be his superior.
When the season was drawing to a
close he wished to bring matters to a
focus. This used to be easy enough
when ho was a youngster playing a
game. But now that ho was a middle
aged man, Intending to tell a mature
young woman that be loved her and
ask ber to bo bis wife, it seemed that
the many times he had done the soma
thing came up to moclc him. ,
However, ho got it out. T
"How times change' us!" bUo saw..
"A dozen years ago, when I was six
teen, you proposed to me, aud you did
it beautifully. Then I thought you
god. Now, being older, 1 know yon
for a very admlrabio and pleasant gen
tleman. I thank; you for tho honor
done me, but I sen not now minded to
marry."
Ho looked nt ber with n dazed ex
pression, vainly trying to recall her TCs
sho was. But about the flino of thetr
former meeting he had proposed ft) tool
many girls to ennblo him to distinguish
her from tho rest. Ho arose-In silence
and retired.
no returned disengaged) find Is stfill
a bachelor, nis- forehead extends m
the back of bis .neck, h& teeth tttl
going, and he Is alonft J-