Waiting for the Ring.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXV, Issue 241, 10 November 1903, Page 4

Waiting for the Ring.

» Oh, how silly he did look .' Kovi silly he did look ! A great, broadshouldered young follow like Kaj111011*1 to get down on his lioforo little me, and to beg that (imtat'ing) he might Call me his own ! And yet it was lovely of him, too. So many of them (Breaks oil abruptly, with a reminiscent smile, i. I do like romance ; it does make books seem so real. Why, whoa I listening to Raymond it was Just like getting to that delicious iiu>t chapter where all the love-making comes, without any of the trouble of wading through the horrid doa-ip-tions and character-stuff. Not il;at I do read much of that, anyhow. Those writing l persons could save themselves mt awful lot of work if they knew what I read of tholr obi \ books. Of course you have to guli lop thiough some of it—enough to I know whether the kero is tall and 1 dark, and raiven-haired, and kind of ' melancholy grand, you know, or whether he's the blonde Hercules kind, that is going to have things his own way, because he's big and strong, and fighty-like Raymond. I must say it's nice to Have a ! good strong man round the house. • I'd just hate to marry a smart young man with a bulging forehead who couldn't shove the piano around when you wanted it put into Uiu or an afternoon tea. Raymond has Must elegant shoulders. I sawupriz.middle of the room for a musicals fighter once, and I believe his coat would have fitted Raymond without I a bit of making over, j And to see a man like that on his knees before you—well, it's like a ,"°,™!' °!' a P'W- It gives you thrilis-don't you know ? I ren 4,,ber one play where the hero—it was elegant Fitzmorricc, the one all the girls went wild over the year I cair-e out—where he utsed to propose to the I heroine just after he'd Uirown the I blacksmith out of the window That was a scene, I tell you. I wish j , could act like Fitzmorrice. (Lowering her voice and imitating) "Mi»s Kadclifle-Blanche-forgive ,' M 'this act of violence in your presence. Alas ! I fear that vou will think me a rufflanly fellow," roaise airf insensitive to the higher, nobl-,r " (Breaks off, and resumes her own voice.) Why, when Raymond ■got down 011 his knees this " efternoon 1 couldn't get Fitzmorric-j out of my head for a moment. It was just like u play. Oh, I wish he'd do it all over again. What a goorl idea —maybe he would if I refused him i And next time I could do mv „ wn part evei so much better. I" acted like a little fool, I really did. .lust : think of my saying—l blush when J | think of it, but I really didn'/-. -think then, mvd I su id (laughs hvsterieal-ly)-I said, "This is KO Sll(/f , 0]) :, How I came to be such a ninny J don't know ; but I suppose i» Vi< reading it so often i„ newspaper jokes. Me must June thought me a regular i,„, 1. For jt KnKn - t „ ( , | emlly, sudden, you know ■ n't !■.»,• slow than otherwise. The ide! 'o< Jus askiivg me if J. ivm ( . SL . ( , n ~ ' Why it is a propyl t „ win, K v V, ' Si ,' Ulu ""8«'-vato.-v with jou. No man would ever ..,, so lar as that unless he had inmost serious intentions. In fact, when we got U.ere we ioniKl that odious Miss wierson showing . tho orchids to Van S u phi-n, who knows about a , „,, ".,, about orchids as he does aVml-J,.', about anything. So lhuu ~, . ; had to ; ask i„e whether 1. '.new , a pretty view there was f,. ()m , . billiard-room, and then we had i„ drop all tie pretty things

thought up about flowers, end' get ready to talk about landscapes. When wc readied the billiard-room, there was a couple in each window, and Kaymond was so mad I heard him say something siwldeu to himself. ' J think it's only lair to help a man sometimes—if it's the right man. of course, and so then I asked , ' • he didn't think it would lie wlvethw ► . on the glassed-in phHianntci' oUt «. , tj neither of piazza. So off we WMo.,,' -, iS thinkus saying a word, ah'd he , nv _ ing what he'd say, and I was **. dering whether we'd run Into uny more of the people about Ihe house. It was really funny, but whim we opened the door to go outside, we saw owe of the maids sweeping, arul we had to come back again. " It's really too chilly to go outside," I remarked ; and Raymond said he thought so too, and when, in despair, I led the way i.c the 3ibrary.'he followed like a iamb. I didn't say a thing. It was x.OO absurd. When I build my house I shall have a proposing room for young lovers, and it shall always bo ready. There was nobody in the library, but we had been so bothered that Raymond was in no mood lor proposing just then, and so we sat down before the lire, and talked about books and things. I believe he asked nie whether I was fond of , reading, and I told him that it depended. Of course there were some books 1 liked, and some I didn't. I And ho said that it was qifeor, but he was just like me in that, arid he f liked some books a great deal bettor than others, and others not so well. Then I said I thought as he ' did, and that some girls seemed to ' read anything that came along. lie said that he liked Thackeray, and I asked whether he didn't think Thackeray was a little cynical at times, and from that we began lo talk about love stories. He said he used to think them silly, but tnat was before—before he met me. bo then I asked him what difference that made, and then he was fairly sta^cc'l. Oh, the silly things' that hoy said ! But when he fairly went down on his Knees to me, then I inew it was real. So now we're engaged, I suppose, though I can't realise it. When I put on the ring—oh, I do think an engagement ring is just tho very sweetest thing to the whole wide world. (Bell rings). Here it is, I'm sure.—Tudor Jenks in the Century.