Show I 1 THE f CASE A SE OF THE TH ae CUB I 1 by ily 11 8 canfield aws by dally daily story pub co among the other women in the hotel far in that massive arrest which th the e southern hota hor of lake superior superiors constance stood alone by reason eason of her beauty alty and her wealth she was 23 28 rears old of large graceful figure dark dirk gray eyes ee black eyebrOW brows 3 matlea hair halt and a complexion of pure white and red her iler splendid taco face vw wore a sweetly serious look and eho she feted a I self Belf contained woman of bind mina and heart beart in her ten seasons of society she had seen been no man whom she bad had been wooed the ba could love ir ardently dently bat but had remained ice it bad had been her fate to arouse the desire of f possession lu in many men wherever tta be went sent there vere ore lovers sighing in her train they could not say that she treated them unfairly or that thit one was more esteemed than another one and all they were cour received and when their times cams cam as courteously though firmly dismissed she often told herself that the she could not understand love that ho be had no inherent ir incapacity capacity 0 0 love and nd that she would dio an old maid she believed this it must be understood that she had no irremovable prejudice against matrimony or insensate desire to pro pre serve her freedom at any cost she was convinced that woman Is incomplete jete without marriage and she would have baye assur assumed nee gladly the duties of wifehood wite hood if she could have found a man to win her heart this man had never reyer come conte and now although she did not look to be older than 22 she viewed the near approach of the thirties with disquietude and the prospect of a loveless childless ago age had no churms for her th thene were the men at this hotel who loved her and wanted her erasmus moody bloody professor of political economy in a state v A 4 light slight nervous man biti eyeglasses and a tendency to dro who rejoiced in a low olow of language and had 2 belief that wisdom must appeal to a woman 0 of miss penryhnn Penry hns intellectual brow she discussed coinage with bin him consumption production ro and lindred had red topics and seemed to enjoy mm him mightily H waa araa afraid of 0 the water and as she spent much of her time on or in the lake he was handicapped herbert graham 35 years old law yer yet la in excellent practice good look la but not so good looking as he thought himself rather a cocksure man and a bold wooer he ile valued the other lightly and had felt certain of access success since eho she bad ad told him that to pat put a jury in tears or awby tho multitude from the hustings seemed to her the greatest and most deser able ie achievement possible to man george trevanion physician a clean and ud modest fellow enough somewhat komow bome what bat hi r leaped to her feet ib ii 1 who never hal bad a thought or of e prize and und effaced himself gloomily cloo toniy greatly treat mily from aar afar and er cr claude blayne eclar pt and writ 1111 for the wines magazines in long hair bair dyke M beard card ana und bobtailed bob tailed coat mod good J et collar who spoiled pa much conalty paper tersea verses and made B ime 1110 with chance ilace Il ance nce ana and pta ants A 10 low w p A y yel visage had claude 1 d x aay ne delay 11 a u slight eyes rolled in ecstasy provocation at ong rong aver loa 10 a to ro bodily exercise exer clae but a pea pen chant for moonlight strolls and quiet nooks wherein reir there was light enough for reading his manuscript to buffer ers john hammond Ha ramond unanimously the cub and mortally offensive to three ot of theider tho older rivals this was a big loosely built youth of 0 23 treah fresh from college with the football hair ot tho the past benson cut close a tan on his clear cheeks a merry healthy laugh and an adoration in his blue eyes which he did not try to bide these eyes had in them the light of ap f I 1 was talking earnestly juvenescence a light thae that groves proves batul to many women old enough to better it was during the last week of miss BUBB Pen rhyne stay that the professor proposed in form he bad had invited her into the email small stuffy parlor in which no one ever eat tat and there he went down upon his thin knees she did not ask him to rise or offer to assist him he ile went gallantly through u r lengthy statement of affection and when he ran out of words at last smiled and said 1 I shall never marry professor I 1 admire your gifts and think you are arel a good man but can go no further no the subject matter Is quite hope less believe me please consider the suba 1 closed there was no getting around that thal the professor in an unusual burst of confidence told graham about IL it the 1 lawyer chuckled and said you ought to have come to me first old man I 1 could have told you better he ile was next it happened down by the edge of the lake where a grea great t hemlock had callea and made a IL convenient scat seat ho he went through glibly enough then not waiting for an acquiescence of which ho he had no doubt slipped an arm about her tier waist she wrenched herself free leaped to her feet and turned on him a faco face of hot indignation not trusting herself to speak she walked toward the house he ran after her and asked shame fac edly am I 1 not to have an ani ewer aba a glanced at him icily and replied you are not worth on an an nu dwerl graham did not tell tho the professor about this but paid his bill and went back to the city that evening it Is not believed that george tre vanlon ranion would have asked her to marry him it if bla his misery bad not forced him to speak her ile told her that he was not good enough fir her that it was not meant tor for bucl as a he to wip wirl and wear so bright S X jewel that he would not have spoken at all but that he wanted her to know that he lie loved her very dearly jande nd would always love her no matter whether she oho became en an others wife ordet or riot 61 6 1 I 1 am ony only a plain man n said poor george and I 1 have never expected expect d that you could care for me but such aa as I 1 am I 1 love you with my whole heart and soul she was wag tender and compassionate ilith him she gave him her band haud and told him bin that she esteemed hini him truly and any woman ought t to be proud to ie e his wife yea will find someone better suited gutted to td you and who will vill care for you 1 she ob added know that you will I 1 shall pray that you will there were tea tears ra in her gray eyes claude A layne delay debated long within himself he hf bad had little doubt of the but wanted to do the thins thing properly and in keeping with his character as a poet and man of letters should he woo her finally by br moonlight when the soften softening tria rays ot of cynthia ell fell about aerah ber shie haj praised bis his moon aloon song sang 0 coldly caira calra dead sister of 0 the night or should he pop la in that shady cloister of balsam pines and maple ho bad had read to her nearly all of his hi book ot of society verse sat satan and satin bho she had bad rather fancied his th lines her hair ot of sr ser pent gold that writhed thod and the swart diamonds of her eyes As it happened he be did not do either althor ho ile proposed in verse and left the pink piper in its envelope under her napkin at breakfast he never got an answer and he understood why before bo he was a day older he wandered by moonlight that night wandered vaz dered and wondered what forni form her acceptance would take an aa hour later his face palo pale and the clammy dew of agony on bis his brow he hunted up tho professor and tre vanlon vanton and hotd them what he h had bad seen this va was it in brief briet re rc a turn in the path he saw a bit ot of sward award moonlighted moon lighted in the center of this sward award stood misa miss pen pe rhyn and the cub who loomed big and boyish the cub was earnestly the ladys face was halt averted but her whole delicious figure tig seemed to droop and molt melt toward him in spite of herself he ile took her hand sha she tried weakly to withdraw it but ho he was stronger than she the cub went from bad to worse ha ile drew her toward him next instant she was in his arms apparently apparent lr con tent her black back hair showing against his flannel blazer 1 I came away then said the poet huskily said the professor women are mere creatures of im hes iles a good boy eald said trevanion Tre vanlon she ts to older than he but they will be happy it was so with her men and women may try to explain it or let lot it alone after ten seasons constance penrhyn loved the cub as fondly and much more strongly than a chit of six teen could have done it what Is more she marriel him 1 and regards hica him still ag as quite peerless pearless among men |