The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1917-10-25


they happened to live in the same.
large city
a week after Tom and Nell had had
their breakfast-table scrap several.
had followed since then, and Nell was!
losing sleep and Tom was losing
weight-the mothers CHANGED to meet.
at the counter of department store in.
some hundred miles from the place
where Tom and Nell made their home.
At first they bowed and smiled as
women whose children have married
usually do-and with more effort at
saccharine politeness than actual cor
diality. i
Mrs. Bradford was buying lavender
ribbon and when she saw Mrs. Cole,
she, too, was buying lavender ribbon
1t had come to both the women that
ribbon Of that shade would better suit
their roles in life than the pink and
yellow and green ribbons that they
naturally would have chosen as orna-
mentation to their white frocks and
negligees. -..>t ~
Perhaps it was this that made Mrs.
Bradford assume an attitude toward
Mrs. Cole that was so totally different
from the attitude usually adopted by
women whose children have married
each other. At any rate Mrs. Bradford
did approach Mrs. Cole with an air of
camaraderie and two hours later Mrs.
Cole and Mrs. Bradford, both looking
particularly debonaire, were slipping
tea together-not in the inglenook of
either ones fireside but in very FASH
fonable and not at all sedate hotel
where the orchestra alternately MUIR
INJURED the latest waltz or whanged
out the most extreme Of one-steps.
They talked long and understanding
ly, and when they came to leave at the
portal Of the hotel, Mrs. Cole held out
her capable, plump hand Of the house.
wife to Mrs. Bradford's, that was slen-
der and blemishless.
"Well, good-by, Genevieve," she
said, albeit with little tug at that
last. unaccustomed word.
$50 long, Georgiana," replied Mrs.
Bradford, with firm pressure of the
hand. 'The Riddles will know all in
the morning" !:
The next morning the kiddies-Tom
and Nell Bradford-received letters
from their mothers and each one wait
ed for privacy to read the letter.
|. This was the one from Mrs. Cole
that Nell took from the folds of her
bodice and read as soon as Tom had
gone officeward.
''Dear Nell:
"What dears you and Tom were to
invite me for Thanksgiving, and, If
hadn't made other plans, should most
surely have come. But have some
precious, important business on foot
and l pust attend to it. Mrs. Bradford
and I have seen good deal of each
other lately, and we have little enter
prise on foot that will take up most Ct
our time, so we have decided to rua
down to one of the resorts for Thanks.
giving day and make the last arrange
mentS. I've always wanted to get out
and do something for myself, and now
that you children are all settled in life
L
is writing to tell you the details Of the
enterprise and we shall soon have our
prospectuses ready to send you more
detailed account of our undertaking.
am feeling splendidly. Don't worry
about me, and take good care of your
self. I must close now, as I have
date with the tailor and another with
the> hairdresser. I'm having my hair
done in the French roll, which I think
makes me look lot spryer than part
ed"
The letter that Tom opened in the
sanctum of his Office was longer. for
Mrs. Bradford was of a more literary
bent than Mrs. Cole. It told of the
venture in full. She and Mrs. Cole. who
had been seeing a good deal of each
other Of late, had gone into partner
ship. They had decided to open girls
boarding school. "Georgiana is such
a splendid housewife and I know so
many people whose children we could
get that all we need is the teachers
and, as one can always get inexperi-
enced young persons at reasonable
rates to do the teaching, there will be
no trouble on that score.
':And, by the way" remarked this
mother, ''you were very foolish to
apologize for not asking me to come
for Thanksgiving. AS it happens,
Georgiana and I are going off to the
.seashore, so couldn't have come any
way.
"Thank Nell for her, kind little let
ter, too. And, Tom, do, for mercy
sakes, tell her not to call me Mother
know it must be hard, for am really
not her mother, and won't be any
ones mother-in-law. Tell her to call
me Genevieve." ..