The Project Gutenberg EBook of Bride Roses, by W. D. Howells

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Title: Bride Roses

Author: W. D. Howells

Release Date: September 2, 2010 [EBook #33608]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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BRIDE ROSES

W. D. HOWELLS

_Bride Roses_

A SCENE

_By W. D. Howells_

BOSTON AND NEW YORK

_Houghton, Mifflin and Company_ MDCCCC

COPYRIGHT, 1893, BY HARPER & BROTHERS

COPYRIGHT, 1900, BY W. D. HOWELLS

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

_Bride Roses_

SCENE

_A Lady_, entering the florist's with her muff to her face, and
fluttering gayly up to the counter, where the florist stands folding a
mass of loose flowers in a roll of cotton batting: "Good-morning, Mr.
Eichenlaub! Ah, put plenty of cotton round the poor things, if you don't
want them frozen stiff! You have no idea what a day it is, here in your
little tropic." She takes away her muff as she speaks, but gives each of
her cheeks a final pressure with it, and holds it up with one hand
inside as she sinks upon the stool before the counter.

_The Florist:_ "Dropic? With icepergs on the wintows?" He nods his head
toward the frosty panes, and wraps a sheet of tissue-paper around the
cotton and the flowers.

_The Lady:_ "But you are not near the windows. Back here it is
midsummer!"

_The Florist:_ "Yes, we got a rhevricherator to keep the rhoces from
sunstroke." He crimps the paper at the top, and twists it at the bottom
of the bundle in his hand. "Hier!" he calls to a young man warming his
hands at the stove. "Chon, but on your hat, and dtake this to--Holt on!
I forgot to but in the cart." He undoes the paper, and puts in a card
lying on the counter before him; the lady watches him vaguely. "There!"
He restores the wrapping and hands the package to the young man, who
goes out with it. "Well, matam?"

_The Lady_, laying her muff with her hand in it on the counter, and
leaning forward o