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Show (Chrislmas ; j UioLels z 1; (, Wetern Newspaper Union.) HAROLD had been told by his . : motlie.- th.it big cities were full of designing women. Harold did not know whether his mother was right or not. But he did know that In his city boarding house there was one of the dearest little girls who bad ever lived. Harold was not selfish. He was far from being a miser. His idea of a miser was a chap he had known in his home town. He had never spent any money which he could possibly avoid spending. He always ate with his friends and rarely paid for a meal. He was always out of cigarettes aud so smoked his friends' cigarettes. He had made a good living and never failed to talk of his poverty. He had been accused of worshiping money and he had replied : "Not a bit iiiii rot IBs of It. I have great respect for money. That isi the difference." Harold despised that kind of a person. And yet, perhaps, wouldn't the "dearest little lit-tle girl" think ho was mean? Ha had never given her anything and ' he had lived at the boardln? house for six months now. Did she think he was mean? That was what bothered him. She had i told him of a person she had known ! whom she considered a miser, and sha had told him of a joke upon this "miser." For he had bargained wdth a little shop dealer and had obtained aa article marked a dollar for fifty cents, j and then had walked down the street a little farther on anfl had seen the same article In another window for ( twenty-five cents. And finally he had seen It in a ten-cent store for a dime well, he had almost considered Ufa useless, while everyone else bad rejoiced re-joiced that It had been a good one on the "miser." , One of the reasons that made him feel that she thought, perhaps, he was mean was because she knew others who were generous. Or, at least, one other. I Every Saturday she had received flowers. She had taken a card out ot the box as they had sat at the board-, Ing house table at breakfast. The 6ther boarders teased her about her admirer and she seemed to enjoy It.1 ! Only he felt uncomfortable and could say nothing. j And Helen, whom he called to himself him-self the dearest little girl, had been receiving these flowers for quite a few weeks now. , Finally he could stand it no longer. His mother needn't tell him anything more about the city's designing women. wom-en. He was not going to lose tha ; dearest little girl, if there was yet a i chance, because of his mother's warn- ( lngs to keep to himself. I And, besides, Christmas was coming, and Christmas was a time of year , when everyone felt happy. He was going go-ing to make a tremendous fight to be happy ! And he sent her violets, beautiful deep purple violets, with a pink rose In the center. Never had he seen her so happy aa she was over his violets. How differently differ-ently she acted about his than about the others. And then he. asked her it she would take a walk with hi in. So far, they had had all their talks In the boarding house. "I wonder," he said, "If you'd think It was awfully sudden If I made a lit- tie suggestion? I was thinking how nice a ring would look on that left hand of yours as a Christmas present and an engagement present, pres-ent, if I may be so bold, and if you've not already promised yourself to the other fellow? fel-low? Or. maybe you could learn to like, me better." "What other fellow?" Helen asked. "The one who has been sendine TO: ml f vA yon flowers all along." "Oh," Helen said, "I'll have to tell you the truth. I sent them to myself. You were so shy. you seemed to like me and yet couldn't go about tellint; me or asking me out, and I thought maybe I'd make you curious r Jealous or something." "And you've cared for me nil along as I have for you?" he queried. She nodded. And then be told her the warnings he had been given by hia mother. "1 don't know out what's she's right." Helen said. "I made designs for you. she could truthfully say." But neither of them thought of the past, only of the glorious future ahead. And Helen wore more violets on Clmsti.ms day and a ting with a stono which sparkled so beaut if ill iy. And they had dinner by themselves a real ' Christmas dinner, for It was not only i Christmas day It wue their wedding ' day, too! |