"I told you I didn"t want to see you until it was. As soon as you wake up, let me know. Good-by."
Jimmy, red, returned to the parlor, and there was confronted by a vision of white, with shining eyes and pink cheeks, who rushed up to him and kissed him and called him a dear old thing and said he was the cleverest, most unconventional man that ever was.
Limp, astounded, but delighted, James Trottingham Minton drew back a pace from Lucy Putnam, who, in her dainty white dress and her white hat and filmy white veil, was a delectable sight.
"I want you to meet Cousin Mary," he said.
"Is she to attend?"
"Of course," he answered.
They walked toward the end of the long parlor where Mary was sitting, but half way down the room they were stopped by Mrs. Putnam. She put both hands on Jimmy"s shoulders, gave him a motherly kiss on one cheek, and sighed:
"Jimmy, you will be kind to my little girl?"
Jimmy looked from mother to daughter in dumb bewilderment. Certainly this was the most remarkable conduct he ever had dreamed of. Yet, Mrs.
Putnam"s smile was so affectionate and kind, her eyes met his with such a tender look that he intuitively felt that all was right as right should be. And yet--why should they act as they did?
Into the midst of his reflections burst Lucy"s chum, Alice Jordan.
"I"ve a notion to kiss him, too!" she cried.
Jimmy stonily held himself in readiness to be kissed. If kissing went by favor he was pre-eminently a favored one. But Lucy clutched his arm with a pretty air of ownership and forbade Alice.
"Indeed, you will not. It wouldn"t be good form now. After--afterward, you may. Just once. Isn"t that right, Jimmy?"
"Perfectly," he replied, his mind still whirling in an effort to adjust actualities to his conception of what realities should be.
The four had formed a little group to themselves in the center of the parlor, Lucy clinging to Jimmy"s arm, Mrs. Putnam eying them both with a happy expression, and Alice fluttering from one to the other, a.s.suring them that they were the handsomest couple she ever had seen, that they ought to be proud of each other, and that Mrs. Putnam ought to be proud of them, and that she was sure n.o.body in all the world ever, ever could be as sublimely, beatifically happy as they would be, and that they must be sure to let her come to visit them.
"And," she cried, admiringly, stopping to pat Jimmy on his unclutched arm, "I just think your idea of proposing by telegraph was the brightest thing I ever heard of!"
It is to be written to the everlasting credit of James Trottingham Minton that he restrained himself from uttering the obvious remark on hearing this. Two words from him would have wrecked the house of cards.
Instead, he blushed and smiled modestly. Slowly it was filtering into his brain that by some unusual, unexpected, unprecedented freak of fortune his difficulties had been overcome; that some way or other he had proposed and had been accepted.
"I shall always cherish that telegram," Lucy declared, leaning more affectionately toward Jimmy. "If that grimy-faced messenger boy had not gone away so quickly with my answer I should have kissed him!"
"I"ve got the telegram here, dear," said Mrs. Putnam.
"Oh, let"s see it again," Alice begged. "I always wanted to hear a proposal, but it is some satisfaction to see one."
Mrs. Putnam opened her hand satchel, took out the telegram, unfolded it slowly, and they all looked at it, Jimmy gulping down a great choke of joy as he read:
"Please meet me and marry at Annex at two o"clock."
His bashfulness fell from him as a garment. He took the message, saying he would keep it, so that it might not be lost. Then he piloted the two girls and Mrs. Putnam to the spot where Mary had been waiting patiently and wonderingly.
"Mary," he said boldly, without a tremor in his voice, "I want you to meet the future Mrs. Minton, and my future mother-in-law, Mrs. Putnam, and my future--what are you to me, anyhow, Alice?"
"I"m a combination flower girl, maid of honor and sixteen bridesmaids chanting the wedding march," she laughed.
"And when," Mary gasped, "when is this to be?"
"At two o"clock," Lucy answered.
"Oh, Jimmy! You wretch! You never told me a word about it. But never mind. I bought the very thing for a wedding gift this morning."
Jimmy tore himself away from the excited laughter and chatter, ran to the telephone and got Mr. Putnam on the wire.
"This is Minton," he said.
"Who? Oh! Jimmy? Well?"
"Well, I"ve fixed that up."
"Good. And when is it to be?"
"Right away. Here at the Annex. I want you to go and get the license for me on your way over."
"Come, come, Jimmy. Don"t be in such precipitate haste."
"You told me that was the only way to arrange these matters."
"Humph! Did I? Well, I"ll get the license for you--"
"Good-by, then. I"ve got to telephone for a minister."
The minister was impressed at once with the value of haste in coming, and on his way back to the wedding party Jimmy stopped long enough to hand a five-dollar bill to the telegraph operator.
"Thank you, sir," said the astonished man. "I have been worrying for fear I had made a mistake about your message."
"You did. You made the greatest mistake of your life. Thank you!"
NATURAL PHILOSOPHY
BY WILLIAM HENRY DRUMMOND
Very offen I be t"inkin" of de queer folks goin" roun", And way dey kip a-talkin" of de hard tam get along-- May have plaintee money, too, an" de healt" be good an" soun"-- But you"ll fin" dere"s alway somet"ing goin" wrong-- "Course dere may be many reason w"y some feller ought to fret-- But me, I"m alway singin" de only song I know-- "Tisn"t long enough for music, an" so short you can"t forget, But it drive away de lonesome, an" dis is how she go, "Jus" tak" your chance, an" try your luck."
Funny feller"s w"at dey call me--"so diff"ren" from de res","
But ev"rybody got hees fault, as far as I can see-- An" all de t"ing I"m doin", I do it for de bes", Dough w"en I"m bettin" on a race, dat"s offen loss for me-- "Oho!" I say, "Alphonse, ma frien", to-day is not your day, For more you got your money up, de less your trotter go-- But never min" an" don"t lie down," dat"s w"at I alway say, An" sing de sam" ole song some more, mebbe a leetle slow-- "Jus" tak" your chance, an" try your luck."
S"pose ma uncle die an" lef me honder dollar, mebbe two-- An" I don"t tak" hees advice--me--for put heem on de bank-- "Stead o" dat, some lot"rie ticket, to see w"at I can do, An" purty soon I"m findin" put dey"re w"at you call de blank-- Wall! de bank she might bus" up dere--somet"ing might go wrong-- Dem feller, w"en dey get it, mebbe skip before de night-- Can"t tell--den w"ere"s your money? So I sing ma leetle song An" don"t boder wit" de w"isky, an" again I feel all right.
"Jus" tak" your chance, an" try your luck."