Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-03-01
WHAT EVERY WOMAN WANTS TO KNOW-SPRNG FASHIONS USEFUL HH1o :
DAILY STORY
A Perinatetic Wooing

"0t Nv ENNoRoAAN AtAnANR "08
by the hurry with which she donned her
tar ulster and close brown walking hat
and slipped out Of the house. She hur-
ried down brilliantly lighted Broadway
hoping hat the new experience OF being
alone, u%nchaperoned, unprotected, amid
the rush OF life on all sides, might divert
her mind. She was halted at last by n
man with a megaphone. He was shout
ing IAN aboard for Chinatown. Right
this way. Tickets two dollars. All aboard
for Chinatown
She looked up at the huge, ugly rub
berneck wagon" now fairly transformed
into a bower of beauty by red, white and
blue electric lights and Chinese lanterns
bobbing In the chill breeze. 1t seemed to
offer surcease from the insistent, uncom-
Portable thoughts at the back of her
brain. The old wagon in its brave array
held some of the allurements of fairy
land, and its happy irresponsibility-and
on the spu of the moment she whipped
out her purse from her ulster pocket,
bought her ticket and climbed In among
the lanterns well toward the front.
George had Jared TO inslnuate that she
could not get along without him. He had
acted as If he were as much a part OF
her lire as her daily ride in the park, her
nights at the opera, her cotillon favors.
Worse still, there had been, too, the sug-
gestion that he was so much a part OF
her existence thai she could not get along
without him. Other girls were wooed and
hard won. She was taken for granted.
And she wanted romance, heart inter-
est" she had heard 1t called when the
drama was under consideration. All her
life had the conventional been rape
around her like a dun-colored cloak. She
would have freedom from conventionality
and George.
A thrill of anticipation ran through her
ns the big clumsy vehicle wheeled eau
tlously and threaded its way down the
crowded streets. Through the Tenderloin,
the Ghetto, the Bowery-all those local.
ties of which she had heard but never
seen-it went. When 1t halted at last she
was in the front of the party, still de-
terminedly eager to get outside of herself.
The conductor had taken her under his
wins and she felt very safe and sure.
They had climbed up and up and up
many winding, c%reaking. unsafe stairs to
the Joss house-a heathenish, garish
place filed with a mixture of rare carv-
ings, embroideries, worries and apparently
worthless junk. The conductor OF the
party waite. to give his explanation I'M
I'll the lOlLeTerS nbu gone.
Ladies and gentlemen he said, walt
a few minutes and l will explain this in
place. There are some people
present WIN did not come with the party
and who are waiting in the hope that
they will get the benefit of what am
about to tell you"
A little woman in a blue tailored suit
her way with asperity into the
crowd.
,,no ", ,,aon r,ep'' shn demanded. al
guess we nave as good a right to be here
as anyone. And Wen stay here till we
are ready to CO.
The conductor turned to Eloise for APP
probation.
THE members of this party have each
paid two dollars for this valuable In
and it Is not fair to them to
allow you to hear this for nothing. /
know your kind. You have been follow
ing us around just to get this
free. Not n night passes but L have
trouble of this kind and it's got to stop,
The little woman fought off her friends
who strove to lead her away.
And who are you that you should
talk to me that way? " she cried. DO
YOU know who 1 am? I'll have you ar
rested for insulting a lady. My brother
Is down now looking for a policeman.
you hear?" she shrieked. maddened
by her inability to impress the cool con-
There was a commotion in the doorway
two men pushed through and thrust
heir fists under the conductors nose.
"I'll report you!' they yelled, FOR in
o lady"
Eioise turned sick. She pushed out of
he excited crowd, past the two emanci-
lted, imperturbable old Cinnamon behind
their little trinket counter n hed TO
he balcony overlooking the main street
IF the Chinese quarter.
"Eloise!'
She Jumped at the sound of her name
a mans step on the balcony, and
pressed back against the wall or the
staring with wild eyes at the man
before her.
what are you doing here?" he de-
'"Why You have never been
mt like this! What does il mean?'
She gathered her forces suddenly Tor
.etaliation.
what if [ haven't?" she said, some
what breathlessly. II am old enough 10
10 as l c~hoose-and-it is not in the least
your affair what L do
She pushed past him into the Incense
aden interior to have the conductor
resent her with a package of joss sticks
a slip of paper covered with chinese
IA fortune he said, calamity. ASK
our Chinese laundryman TO read 1t Tor
81 haven't a Chinese laundryman,' she
p~assionately. And 1 never
will have one!
She ran almost blindly down the stairs
md into the street trusting to her in
itinct for locality to guide her TO the
learest subway station. The Orientals
ell pack I'm wild establishment at sight
If her fleeing figure, n a few fat, old
caused a roar of laughter.
elbows said unintelligble things to her
Her cheeks were burning, her breath
vas coming in gasps as she cam into
he little square marking the one-time
place In New York. All at
nee she felt that she was being fol-
owed. Quick, light footballs were com
ng behind her, were keeping pace with
,ers and terror clutched her heart. A
drunken men sprawled on the park
To return was impossible. She
Gould never find the "rubberneck'
larty. There was nothing TO do but keep
as best she could.
She emerged from the park ready to
irop with exhaustion, and was obliged
o slow down to get her breath. To her
-elief she found the steps had stopped
no one was in sight. She went on
md on through the better streets OF
he wholesale district. and at last saw
he twinkling lights of surface cars
- 81 g. n