I am in love with this girl, Sylvia. I have been in love with her as long as I know her. But she didn't like me. She tolerated me as a friend, but nothing more. I thought that if I was steady and patient, I would win her love by and by. I am an orphan, employed in as a shop-assistant, and rose to be a partner in the business. I was happy to be able to give Sylvia a good life. But she met a man, Charley Kinraid, a sailor, and fell in love with him, and got engaged. He is not a good man. The other junior partner who works with me told me that he was after many women, that he dated his sister, and then dumped her when a better-looking woman came along. I heard stories about his exploits with women. Then one day I saw him being forced into a military navy. He asked me to deliver a message to Sylvia and promised to come back and marry her. I went away on business, and when I came back, Kinraid was believed to drown. They found some of his clothes on the shore. Sylvia is very depressed. But I found out that her neighbour, Bessy Corney, cried after Kinraid as if she were engaged to him, too. I am doing very well for myself, and can offer Sylvia a prosperous future. If I tell her what I witnessed, she will wait for Kinraid and be unhappy and lonely. What should I do?
Tags: