lly timid
lover. The eternal feminine at this time seemed personified in Laura,
and worked upon him like an obsession. I have never seen a case quite
like his. The manner in which the marriage was regarded, and the extent
to which it was discussed, may have had something to do with this.

The boom period anywhere is essentially an era in which public events
dominate those of a private character, and publicity and promotion, hand
in hand, occupy the center of the stage. Giddings, as editor and
proprietor of the _Herald_, was one of the actors on whom the lime-light
was pretty constantly focussed. Miss Addison, belonging to the Lattimore
family, and prominent in good works, was more widely known than he among
Lattimoreans of the old days, sometimes referred to by Mr. Elkins as the
trilobites, who constituted a sort of ancient and exclusive caste among
us, priding themselves on having become rich by the only dignified and
purely automatic mode, that of sitting heroically still, and allowing
their lands to rise in value. These regarded Laura as one of themselves,
and her marriage as a sacrament of no ordinary character.

Giddings, on the other hand, as the type of the new crowd who had done
such wonders, and as the embodiment of its spirit, was dimly sensed by
all classes as a sort of hero of obscure origin, who by strong blows had
hewed his way to the possession of a princess of the blood. So the
interest was really absorbing. Even the _Herald's_ rival, the _Evening
Times_, dropped for a time the normal acrimony of its references to the
_Herald_, and sent a reporter to make a laudatory write-up of the
wedding.

On the night before the event, deep in the evening, Giddings and a
bibulous friend insisted on having refreshments served to them in the
parlor of the clubhouse. This was a violation of rules. Moreover, they
had involuntarily assumed sitting postures on the carpet, rendering
waiting upon them a breach of decorum as well. At least this was the
view of Pearson, who was now attached to the club.

"You must excuse me, gentlemen," he said, "but Ah'm bound to obey
rules."

"Bring us," said Giddings, "two cocktails."

"Can't do it, sah," said Pearson, "not hyah, sah!"

"Bring us paper to write resignations on!" said Giddings. "We won't
belong to a club where we are bullied by niggers."

Pearson brought the paper.

"They's no rule, suh," said he, "again' suhvin' resignation papah
anywhah in the house. But let me