The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-10-09

EVENING STORY
For the Aviation Corps.
(By Jane OSBORNE

the AVIATION corps that was to be sent
to- the front by his alma mater ne De-
gan to figure, Irst IN ms own heaa
and tnen on paper. ne inquired Wneh
ne vas sitting at his desk IN mis- once,
at time wnen his business conscience
told HIM he ought TO be attending TO
mis- correspondence, and all TIE way
nome in his limousine that nlSht ne
was still figuring. To the men Win
whom CLAY had gone thru college II
would seem easy enough. Tor hlm 10
give a liberal check-a thousand uoi-
lars at least-for Clay had more cap
ital to begin with than most OF the
men and his. thriving business had IN
creased his income largely. perhaps
Clay looked at himself with the eyes
of an outsider when he made out that
check for a thousand dollars but be-
fore he signed it he thought of Peggy
Peggy made all the difference in the
world.
1t wasn't that Peggy was selfish, but
Peggy was the sort of wife that needed
to be financed generously. 1t would
have been as alien to Peggys nature
thought Clay to attempt any sort OF
economy, even in war time, as IT would
be alien to the butterfly's nature to
start in storing away the honeyed-
sweetness that it gathers from the
flowers the thrifty bee does. Clay
rather liked the metaphor. He had
made innumerable lists in innumer-
able memorandum books and on the
backs of letters that he carried in his
pockets of possible expenditures that
might be cut down or eliminated. 1t
would seem easy enough to most men
to dispense with a chauffeur, espec !al-
| ly as the chauffeur then employed was
and the task of replacing him would
not be an easy one. But that would
mean putting away the limousine and
using z roadster. And Clay would
have liked it himself. but whoever
would have the heart to ask Peggy to
make that sacrifice?
1t was quite out of the question to
discharge any of the house servants.
! Clay had felt from the first that it
| was almost an injustice to ask Peggy
| to be the mistress of his household on
the paltry four servants that his in
| come warranted. Clay had read in the
| papers about economies in food PLAN
ming that various society women had
| been making. He vaguely recalled an
effort to limit dinners to four courses
| No doubt the food bills were high in
his household; as he never discussed
those expenses with Peggy, and no.
| ticed very little about the minutiae of
! household management, he could only
| conjecture on this point. Doubtless
| her dressmakers bills were heavier
| than need be. sBut Clay's own mother
| had taught him that man shouldn't
expect to have wife dress exquisite
| ly without running up bills at the
dressmaker's. And since he had
chosen a wife that did dress exquisite
| ly, he never even looked at the dress
makers bills
And he couldn't cut out the Coun-
try club, because Peggy had asked
| him 70 Join, and he couldn't sell any
of the grounds around his house be-
cause they were the delight of Peggy S
heart. He couldn't reduce his own
fasI INil hos a l.
I ready reduced to a minimum-he did
| that when he bought his share of lib
| erty bonds. And he didn't smoke and
he didn't drink, so he could not cut
those habits out. He almost felt that
it would have been a blessing if he
had had some extravagant habit that
might now be cut out.
It was just when he was turning
into the long driveway that led to the
| low-roofed bungalow nesting among
the trees where Peggy, who he was
sure, ought to have lived in an Ital-
ian villa at least, deigned to dwell.
| that the idea came to him 1t wasn't
a very brilliant idea, but it was the
| only solution to the problem. He
| wouldn't discharge his stenogra pher,
either, because she was leaving the
| next week to be married, and he
| wouldn't have to learn how to type
write, because he had mastered that
difficult art when in college. He could
i
ence himself. he was sure. He had
time for rapid figuring. The girls
salary for a year would amount to
just $1,040. That would cover the
check and leave $40. He had just
decided to spend the $40 in order to
buy Peggy little travelling case she
had recently admired, when Peggy
| greeted him with even more than
usual excitement at the door. It was
Peggys manner always to be IN a
state of delightful expectancy and i'm
patience when Clay returned home
every night. Her vivacity was con-
| tagious and Clay would have been
transported from business or thoughts
| of the departing stenographer had it
| not been for the thought of the I'M
rather pensive at dinner, stealing
snatches of time between Peggy's
clever little sallies to mediate and
| work out his plan of action. In order
to dispense with the stenographer. he
was thinking. he would have to work
overtime. 1t would often mean that
he would bave to return to his office
at night, patiently to type out the
letters that were not typed in the cay
time.
Of course Peggy should not. know
He would have to tell Peggy simply
that business detained him.
DO you think this caviarre is
I goodF" Peggy Interrupted him with a
tune VI ISdl INJURY lAdI was quite
disarming. Peggy never upbraided
her husband when he appeared pen
sive. She merely diverted him, some
times by questions of almost ridicul-
Gus non Importance.
Il was just going to comment or
the flavor" replied Clay, who had
been eating without the slightest
knowledge of what was before him
In the back of his mind he had ar
annoying recollection of having noted
lately that the price of caviarre had
recently advanced a hundred per cent
Peggy talked on glibly thru dinner
which she seemed TO eat with q rel.
ish. And more than once she stouped
/ to give directions to the waitress.
DO you think the new cook vii
. do2" she asked, knowing well enough
. that Clay never had WORD to sa1
! about the household ma ma n,err.nr,t