Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-12-26

Foster at boarding school and both
: girls become engaged to college men.
Neither boy has any money and Vir-
ginia's mother removes her from
school in the hope Of breaking up the
infatuation and finding a wealthy
husband for Virginia. In the noun
tains they meet Sherman Holmes,
but when he proposes to Virginia
she refuses him. Mrs. West then
confesses that they have very little
money left in the world.
"nTARRY that penniless boy ~ Mrs.
A'A Vests voice rose in shrill
crescendo. Ruin all your chances
like that!" And she burst into tears.
Long after, when Virginia had coaxed
her to sleep and lay awake by her
mothers side listening to the countless
little night noises outside and worry
ing as no girl of eighteen should about
the future, there came at last the
conviction that the future was no
longer to- be accepted passively as she
had accepted it all her life. Life was
hers now to live for herself, and there
was something glorious in the thought,
ignorant and frightened as she was.
With this realization she dropped
asleep.
Mrs. West was still asleep the next
morning when Virginia opened her
eyes. She slept like child, and Vir-
ginia lay looking at her for a long
time. She felt great enveloping ten
derness for her mother. 1t wasn't her
fault, any of it--used to luxury all
her life, as she had been, and with
no idea of how to use money. Virginia
thought of the useless extravagances
which she might have helped to avoid if
she had known the truth, ard wondered
what her mother would do without the
things about her that meant not luxury
now, but just the necessities of daily
living.
She ordered breakfast upstairs and
telephoned down to the Office that they
were giving up their rooms. When
the breakfast came she carried it to
her mother, and they ate together from
a little table pulled up close to the
side of the bed. The room was already
strewn with their belongings and two
large trunks were standing open in the
next room all ready to be packed.
Mrs. West was listless and depressed.
She consented to Virginias plan to
leave Immediately simply because there
seemed nothing else to do. In one day
Virginia had emerged from under her
mothers wing and was taking the reins
of government into her own hands.
Yesterday she had been a child, taking
without question what her mother gave
her. Today she was engineering their
departure, paying their bills with
money from her mothers pocketbook
She was more thankful for the fact
that there was enough money there
Ahan she had ever been for anything
before in her life.
They left the hotel without seeing
Sherman Holmes, and Virginia, who
had managed everything, broke down
when they were finally seated in the
train, and wept into her handkerchief
like frightened child. The glory that
she had felt the night before had de-
parted. She was facing reality now,
and it was very different from just
speculating about life from a safe van
tage point.
Virginia had telegraphed Jimmy that
morning, and when she reached home
an answer was waiting for her. Jimmy
would be in town Saturday. A little
ray of comfort stole into her heart with
this assurance. She did not feel quite
so alone. A thick envelope containing
letter from Kathleen was also wait
ing for her, and she sat down in the
unaired living room with her hat and
coat still on to read it. Mrs. West
was not depressed to the extent of neg
1ecting her looks in any way. She
was already in her room repairing the
ravages that the train trip had caused,
cold creaming her face and slipping
into soft negligee. These things were
as natural to her as getting UP i'll the
morning; she even hummed little tune
while she drew the comb through the
waves of her hair.
Kathleen's letter was full of excite
ment. She had met wealthy man,
who had invited her to a party on his
yacht; but he was old and she couldn' t
make up her mind to marry him. She
had missed Virginia, but that was over
now, as she and her mother were COM
ing to New York next week.
"We'll have some gay times this
winter with no rules to worry about
and nothing to do but enjoy ourselves"
the letter ran. ''By the way. ! broke
my engagement to Bill. ! liked him,
but what was the use? He is poor
and ] am awfully extravagant. Have
you forgotten your. fooiishness with
jimmy? I hope SO. You ought to
marry some one with plenty of money"
Virginia let the letter fall into her
lap. For time she had forgotten all
about Kathleen.