Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-03-29
Chapter NLIII.

As the warm weather developed Alice
found herself really happier than she had
been for a long time, Looking back
through the months, she wondered some
times how she had stood it.
And | could not have done IT, she
said TO her mother, in one of her infrequent
bursts of confidence, except for the work
I've DONE Do you know, haven taken
half an hour to be frivolous, or TO do lust
nothing at all, since Lois left-and
David" she stopped with the sentence
unfinished. Even now, she could not talk
very much about David.
II know, my dear Don't you think
Won ought to?'' Mrs. Fairbanks paused
midway in her work. AS usual, she was
ready to accept any suggestion Ailce
made. IL Alice said she had not been
frivolous. the mother Immediately Thought
she wanted to be-and that OF course, she
should be. If Alice remarked that she
was tired of the house, Mrs. Fairbanks at
once wanted her to 60 off on trlp III
never entered her poor little head to con-
slider the practical details; Alice wanted
thing-and wouldn't Alice take IT.!
Alice. as usual, laughed aside her
mothers remark.
sS1on, ,yonId | be frivoo,rs7" she want
ed to know. There are the MOVIES, but
hate them. they're full of love stores that
end happily. and all the love stories /
know about in real life are tragedies.
Then there's a show now and then, but
usually they're worse than the MOVIES.
Occasionally someone gives party. But
first of all haven't nice dress to wear
and secondly, the people don't interest
ms" =,
Mrs. Fairbanks poised spoon in mid
air and looked slightly discouraged. She
was mixing a pudding for supper, and
Alice, having come from the settlement
house, had dropped into one OF the kitchen
chairs to rest. =,
Mrs. Fairbanks seized upon the one
part of the remark most comprehensive
to her.
Now | wish you'd 60 down to Tupper's
tomorrow, and pick out some nice silk.
And a pattern. | can make IT for you, and
it needn't cost so much"
Dear mother, | don't want q party
dress Alice protested. Il wouldn't
enjoy these silly dances q bit more If ! had
the best dress IN the room. Where's my
chemistry / want to study"
She went into the other room, the book
N her hand Her mother looked after her
with a-eiightly worried expression.
Alice was different these days. Her
hugh was a. ready, her optimism seemed
as pronounced-And yet, there was a
difference. She went with almost feverlsh
haste from one piece OF work to another,
even her magnificent strength was not
euusl to the tasks she set herself. The
college books she pored over so faithfully
IN the evenings sometimes were too dltf-
cult for her tired brain TO concentrate
,rpon. Alice had often fallen asleep over a
subject that ordinarily fascinated her.
That one remark the girl had made
that all the love stories she knew about IN
real life were tragedies, showed the diff
ference. Alice had never before admitted
that there was anything radically wrong
with the world.
Mrs. Fairbanks went ON mixing the
pudding, then, having made 1t frothy by
much beating, she poured 1t INTO creased
tin and set II IN the oven.
'1'Il get her the dress anyway" she
said to herself. and at once felt that all
the world was rosy again. IN go down to
Tupper's and pick out some taffeta In that
soft blue she likes and make it TO surprise
her"
Mrs. Fairbanks was perfectly happy |
again. She felt, too that Alice would be
when she was presented with the dress.
Alice meantime had thrown herself on |
the couch, and picked up her book. But it |
was hard to read and comprehend an |
intricite problem when her back ached |
She had done the first work on the gar
dens that were TO adorn the settlement |
house neighborhood and to make beauti- |
full the waste spaces, as well as the lives /
of the little gardeners. And she was tired. |
The rows of symbols for various chemicals |
SWAN ID front Of her eyes.
Someone knocked on the door and she /
jumped up to answer it. 1t was Lawrence
Marlowe, with several glass tubes under
his arms and half dozen colored bottles
OF fluid.
For the labratory,' he said. want to
work? Get your notebook, I've been doing
a thrilling stunt to show you"
They went upstairs TO the 'labratorv"
-Alice's old bedroom, now done over into
bare room holding rows Of bottles on
shelves and most of Lawrence's old
chemical equipment. Alice slept down
stairs. now, so she could use this room To
experiment In, and to study in She had
put all the books David had gwen her up
on shelves.
She donned an apron and set to work
cheerfully After all there was some con-
ISOLATION in life.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.
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