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About Cloverdale courier. (Cloverdale, Tillamook County, Or.) 190?-19?? | View Entire Issue (June 15, 1916)
vol . h CLOVERDALE, TILLAMOOK COUNTY, OREGON, JUNE 15, 1916 How She Proposed A Story For Leap Year By ELIN O R M A R S H > Professor Poland of ----- Woman’s college was lecturing to bis class, bis subject being customs in India. He had excited considerable attention while dwelling upon the suttee, the girls showing great indignation at the immolation of a widow on her hus band's funeral pyre. A hundred pens taking down the lecture scratched fiercely on as many notebooks. From the suttee he passed to the products of the country, and the pen scratching fell off so perceptibly that the professor was admonished that he was losing his hold on the interest of his class. He kept a number of slips, on each of which was written some bit of infor mation calculated to attract the atten tion of young women, and. taking up one. he interpolated it into liis lecture. “ Among the singular marriage cus toms of different people there is oue in India which is very delicate.” Every pen of the hundred young ladies began to send forth a sympa thetic sound. “ A father will hold his daughter for a price to be paid by the suitor before marriage. A parent having a very beautiful daughter oc being able to N estucca settle on her a large dowry will some times put so high a price on her that such young men as desire her cannot afford to pay it. This makes a market for marriageable women. Widows may he had at a very low price.” A hum of expressions of amusement, approbation or dissatisfaction inter rupted the lecturer. “ When a father finds that he has been holding his daughter too high and wishes, so to speak, to put her on the bargain counter [laughter] he does not tack a card to her on which Is written 'Special,' as would bo done in America if we had any such marriage custom, lie adopts a much more poetic method, i He marries her to a bouquet o f flowers and throws her husband into a well. Since he must be drowned the bride becomes a widow. This is a notifica tion to the young men that she may be had cheap.” Professor Poland, who was a young man o f twenty-seven, paused and show ed a white set o f teeth under his dark mustache in a smile which was meant to be a partial unbending from his priv fessional dignity. A ripple of amuse ment passed over his auditors, and he was about to return to a finish of the products o f India when Belle Ilalliday. one of those girls who go to college to let off a surplus stock of mischief, urose to ask a question. Professor Po land paused and looked at her inquir ingly. “ This being leap year," she said, “ it occurs to me that this wedding to the flowers might be used by a girl as a delicate way of proposing to the man of her choice. It would be equivalent to saying. ‘I may he had for a song; buy me.’ ” The class tittered. The professor looked at the ceiling, then made the following reply: “ Your method, Miss Ilalliday, would involve a knowledge on the part o f the man proposed to of the Indian custom V alley Bank M GEOVERDAEE, OREGON — g j W e W ant Your Banking pi Several of our customers are people we do not know bv sight though we have done business by mail with them for Years. give you the same satisfaction. Mail us Your Next Check or Checks It saves you time, and TIME 18 MONEY, especially at this season of the year. No need to come to the hank in person. SECURITY AND SERVICE Our Motto ■ÿ- v in question, which lie would not be likely to possess. “ Oh. 1 didn’t think of thnt!" And Miss Ilalliday sat down In pretended confusion. But if there was any con fusion in the matter It was with the professor, who was at the disadvan tage of being oue man among many women. He made an attempt to smile, then went on with his lecture, but did not again strike anything as interesf- lng to his class as the matter of a girl being wedded to a bunch of flowers and her husband being thrown Into a well. Professor Poland's lecture was deliv ered in February, and Miss Belle Hal liday was graduated In the following June at the foot of her class. As has been said, she did not go to college to study, hut to have a good time. She was philosophic about It. "Why should I make a grind of myself when all the rest of the class arc grinds? If 1 spent my time studying, w ho would do the deviltry? If I were destined to make my living as a teacher I would need to apply myself. But I’m not to teach; I’m to lie married.” “ Got him picked out, Belle?” asked a chum. “ Yes.” “ Has he proposed?” “ No. and I don’t expect him to pro lose This Is lean year, ami I Intend a -- any other can give you. • '- » nr* • !f l o Q we need vour business. jr^j Bank with your home bank and enlarge ^ the Business scope of the Nestucca Valley. wanted. She wanted Professor Po land. But Professor Poland was In re ceipt of an Income of $1,500 a year and possibly might in the course of ten j yenrs bo worth twice that to the cause iif education. Miss Holliday knew very j well that the modest young man would (never havet he assurance to propose (Concluded on last page.) FIRE! TROUBLES ON YOUR BRAIN You need the Bank uM MUTUALITY, That’s all to do the proposing myself." “ Going to be married to n hunch of flowers and throw your husband in a Veil?" “ Maybe.” The chief reason underlying Miss Halllday’s indisposition to muke a grind of herself she did not mention. I or father was a rich man, and she w as an only child. Besides what prop erty she might expect from him, she possessed a fortune in her own right, inherited from a grandmother. Indeed, it would he difllcult to And a reason why she should, like the busy bee. Im prove each shining hour over dead lan guages, mathematics or philosophy for which she would have little or no use, since tlie probability of her coming to want was very remote But Miss Ilalliday v.ns bright enough to get what she wanted, and In »me re spect she knew very well what she FIRE! $ FIRE! 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