“One day mamma gave me permission to go to St. Joe with one of my girl friends. We left on the nine o’clock boat, and were to return on the one which arrives at midnight. We crossed without incident worthy of note. On the return I noticed a tall, fine looking fellow watching us. He was sitting on the upper deck. Girl like, my friend and I started up a flirtation. He came over and talked to us and finally my friend asked me to play. I did, and I have thought since that perhaps that was my chief attraction for him then, as he was very fond of music. In the meantime my friend had found some one to take up her time and Jack and I went up on deck by ourselves. We sat side by side and the gentle motion of the boat, the moon shining on the waters, the soft, warm breeze floating past us, were enchanting and very conducive to love-making. He was much older than I, but that made no difference to me. I thought only of the romantic situation, and wondered if fate had brought this prince of men to me. He kissed me and loved me as I had not imagined in my fondest dreams, and I drank it all in, and returned it with interest. “Before the boat reached Chicago he gave me his name and address, and I had given him mine, and it was arranged that we should correspond. For several weeks I heard from him regularly and then came a long silence. At first I was hopeful, but at last my hope gave way to doubt, and I became morose. I refused to eat and became as miserable as a sentimental girl of fifteen could possibly be. I left school, finally, having prevailed upon my mother to allow me to learn stenography. She consented, thinking, I presume, that it was the best thing that could be done as long as I was in my present frame of mind, although the cause of it was all a mystery at the time. “One night when I came home from school, I found a letter from the Alexian Brothers’ hospital, telling me of the severe illness of Jack, and that if I would see him alive, I must come at once. My heart was almost bursting with its strain of conflicting emotions. At one moment I was on the mountain top, filled with joy at the thought that he had not forgotten me; the next, down in the valley of despair, fearing his death. “I told mamma the whole occurrence, and while she did not approve of an acquaintance made in such a way, she concluded to go with me to the hospital. When we arrived we talked to the nurse a few moments, and she told us that he had constantly called for Carrie in his delirium. He never mentioned my last name, and as a last resort they thought of looking through all his effects to see if there was anything among them which would throw light on the subject. “In his coat pocket they found his last letter to me, which he had evidently not sent for some reason, and in this way they learned my address. They thought it best for mamma to remain outside at first, until they saw what effect, if any, my presence had upon him.