The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-01-01
LETTERS OF
TWO WOMEN
Kate Experiments With Life.
BY ZOE BECKLEY.


Your letter made my heart ache
little. You are mot yet Broken" you
say, and shall yet make a success of
life" You have a wonderfully brave
spirit, May, that makes mine seem by
comparison quite commonplace and
INFESTED. 1 have so few problems
that are big. and fealst To be sure I
have little home life and live in a
never-ending rush. But that's not a
problem; simply a discontentment,
say, which shall perhaps be adjusted
some day.
At the risk of seeming a boresome
egotist, Maze. I'm going to tell you
play-'Eyes of Youth, it was
ca1led-which hinges on the ability to
look into the future.
The idea took hold of me. L tried
to peer into my own life as it would
be five years hence, as the heroine
did in the play. And Maze, 1 saw my
SELF a hustling, busting, successful,
selfish woman with nothing but her
own prosperity to show for the pass
ing of the years.
1t frightened me, for there was so
much that seemed missing!
Just as the heroine in the play saw
herself a great prirna donna-but at
what cost! What sacrifices of fine
ness and love. Then suddenly l
thought of Sonia Luboff-Paul's
that Yiddish theater. l have not seen
her, May since the day of the scene
J when Paul got rid of her by frighten-
ing her with Some whispered Russian
words 1 couldn't understand Nor has
/ Paul spoken of her.
But recently / read that her COM
pany had closed and disbanded on ac-
count of bad business. At first / felt
meanly glad, and dismissed it from
my mind as something that did not
concern me. She was an unpleasant
/ incident, that was all, and well over.
Then, in my interpretive mood
/ brought on by the play, she cropped
up @gain in my mind After all, she
had cared fc Paul, she was bitter and
| disappointed, a lonely, exotic creature
| in a strange land. Paul had been
stern and ugly to her. 1 had been. at
/ best scornful.
l began to wonder how il would
seem to be kind to someone like that
someone whom most people prob
aeain were in4o not t kind 9, to: pee eS
| empty, selfish future. and / decided
to hunt out Sonia Luboff and be
decent to her.
But it will be dangerous" whis-
| pered Caution
"Oh, be genero1s." challenged my
Heart You know Paul loves you
with safe, strong love Why not
do BIG thing? Why not be differ
| ent from the usual selfish wife who,
in defending her own security,
misses the double joy of triumphing
over weakness and inspiring some
| one else TO find herself"
! Wen, Maze 1 got her address from
the theater management, and one
evening left the office a little early
and looked up Sonia Luboff at her
motel Maizie-such a grimy, cheer
| less room as / found her in, altho the
motel itself was Snowy and in the
center of the theatrical neighbour
\ hood
And now I suppose, dear. you're
preparing to hear a chapter either of
sentimental mush or highfalutin
heroics. Well, neither happened.
MISS Luboff was astonished. and q
little frightened. 1 think. 1 was a
bit shy. confess.
Gould you" I plunged, without
any apologize preamble, make use
of awoman friend %
She looked at me with shrewd.
searching eyes, then laughed un-
please ntly. What is this" she said.
"a game? Well, / do not care to
play it-with you"
| Which was exa city what you would
expect her to say, wasn't it, Maize =?
Paul has just come home
and I'll have to run and see about
dinner.
Always adoringly. KATE
The government has conscripted every