H. M. STANLEY ANO THE MASHER.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume VI, Issue 23, 7 June 1890, Page 10

H. M. STANLEY ANO THE MASHER.

Mr Stanley ha*at last confessed why be never married. The fact is. said he. ‘although I admire the ladies verv much imlee-1. *omehow I have never been successful with them. I've explored Africa with success, but have never yet learned the secret ot exploring the female heart. ■ I don t know why I shouldn t be a success with them. I m sure. They are always greatly interested in rav c-n--versanon : I m still a young man .- nobo.lv ean *av I'm not tairiy good-looking : and in many other respect* f com rare tavourably with men who have been marke-Hv successful am-.ne the ladies : but I have always fallen short of success. I lh..ught I d ma-ie a capture once,’ Stanlev went on to explain. It was al-oard an Atlantic steamer.’ I was -roing across to New \ork. The captain, with whom I was 6 well aequainteu. wasa firm friend of mine. His great delight was to get me -eate-i next to him and get me to tell stories ot my Arncan experiences. ell. on this occasion I sat on his right, and opposite me on his len was a very charming young woman. She was strikingly handsome, an-i l-.ke-i verv lovable and ail that >he seemed as delighted as my friend the captain was at my stones of African adventure. I. at the same time was c !^ ue ’ i Wlth her ‘ " ith me « wa -s a ca*e of love at first - The captain introduced us to one another, and for several days my suit seemed to progress swimminglv. She seemed to have eyes and ear* for none but me. • My next neigh Um r to the left was a y-ung masher, all eoUar* and cuff*, wh.. -hdn t seem to have two ideas in his tread, and had never achieve.! anything more heroic than sm€'kin<f cigarettes and wearing an eyeglass. • Well this youth hardly ever said a word at the table out one -lay at dinner he happened to remark that he knew how to make an exceptionally good salad. At the mention or *alad the angelic young rairy opposite immediatelv ■iropped all interest in what I was saving to her and bestowed her attentions on him. - Very well, the n-asher was not blind to this displav of interest in his salad, an-i that evening had a dish of it pre-pare-1 and inptoi herto helphimeatit. Theend ofit all was that *heeruelly threw meover. and shortly after reaching New i ork married the young man. whose sole recommendation a* rag as I eould see, was that he knew how to make a -rood salad and whose accomplishment* consisted in wearin- an eyeglass and pufhng cigarettes. • k es. it s sad, muse-1 Mr. Stanley. ■ but it seem* to be on_y too true that a salad will make a deeper impression on the daintiest niece of femininity you might meet in a month than all the chivalnc devotion in the world.' In spite of his little story of the masher and the *alad our illustrious explorer would never have got anv farther along wtth the young lady in the case than makin ' himself agreeable. He would have been too seared to have seriouslv rought her hand, simply Ijeeause she was v.-ung and i-eautiful. • Mr. Stanley thinks a lovelv voung woman a *ort of win--less angel—a superior being who was made for rough him to admire at a respectful distance, but n->t to re apr-roached too cl->sely without sacrilege. Which is all verv well and very proper : but until he gets over this feeling of awe some bold masher, with a recipe for salad, will alwavs *ter. in and cut him out. ' ' -