The Pulaskian., 1917-03-02
THE CHANGE
By CATHERINE cRANMER.

| yourself away from. Nell" remon- strated her married sister, Mrs. Will ] kins
 Please don't dwell on that" Nell's tone indicated finality.
 Meaning, of course, a marriage with Perry Morton?"
 "Yes; mean just that and nothing more"
 Yet if you are really absorbed in this work of decorating houses, think what an opportunity that old Morton country place offers, and you could choose any sort of town house you'd want, with no limit to what you could spend on furnishings" Mrs. Wilkins set aside her unfinished cup of tea with an impatient sigh.
 Get thee behind me, Mammon," laughed Nell
 "Oh have it your own way, as you always have things" said her sister. Nell, there's no use picturing Per ry Morton as monster just because you don't happen to fancy him.
 No, he isn't monster at all, Sis; he's merely an easy-going line-of- leastresistance sort, and his program for life could be filled out twenty years in advance. But, look at the clock ! It's time to pack the tools with which Pm to hew out my own little des- tiny" And Nell took the nearest route up stairs by way of the back stairway.
 When she came down all ready for the train, maid handed her Perry Morton's card, with this message written on it: "Good-by, Nell. Luck to you. If I bob up now and then please try to regard me as a good omen"
 When she arrived that night at her tiny and-kitchenette apart ment she found huge box of pink and white roses. A few moments later. telegram was delivered to her. It contained this message: Omen number one. May the rose-colored days outnumber the color1ess ones two to one. Perry
 Nell worked hard. During her first months she had occasional notes from Perry Morton, but since he had gone out to a western ranch he had sent her but one note and it contained lit tie more than his address. One day, soon after she had taken contract for furnishing some apartments she was exploring about in furniture shop when she was effusively greeted by young bride from her home city.
 
 exclaimed the bride. "No one would suspect you were involved in mys- tery"
 Mystery? Why, Adelaide, what can you mean?" asked Nell.
 "Just this" said the bride, with teasing smile. everybody at home wonders about the mystery of your going off to work and Perry Morton's subsequent affair with Mrs. Mapes, widow of his college pal and, lastly, about Perry's sudden departure for the wild west. We can't figure out where you got peeved at Perry's fond ness for the widow or whether he went to the wilds to forget you or to forget the widow
 q see nothing mysterious. It sounds just plain silly to me-" laughed Nell. She noticed on her table magazine addressed to her. It was mailed at the publishers in New York, and, looking through it, she found a blue pencil mark in the index at this item: Subsequent Changes of Program, A Story, by P. M. Orton."
 It was the story of a young mans awakening to his own unimportance by hearing the girl he loved speak lightly of him. While it told of no remarkable achievements attained by the man, it showed how his mental attitude toward life had undergone such change that life must hence forth mean something deep to him.
 All the next day Nell had that i story in her mind and a hundred 1 times she wondered whether the name "P. M. Orton" was a contraction of | Perry Morton's name, or merely co. incidence, but as often she put the l thought from her and tried to be in- 1 different about it. When she reached home that evening she found a tele- l gram from Perry with only this sen. tence: "The last omen but one, and 1 it will follow shortly"
 Half an hour later, Perry appeared at her door.
 Nell, dear," he began recklessly, as soon as their first greeting was over, have bungled things? But I want ed to know, and I couldn't tell you that day I overheard you tell your sister was an easy-going, line-ofleast- resistance product of my environment, whose life program had all been printed in advance, and so on
 "Oh, Perry, please don't" began Nell.
 "Oh, yes, Nell, that was the making of me. Right that minute saw my self in new light that fairly hurt