Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1920-01-09
Best Laid
Plans
By CONSTANCE scUDDER

Diana Wilson wasn't born with
silver spoon in her mouth. Nothing
so ordinary ever happened to Diana.
Every one has silver spoons nowadays.
Oiana's had been gold, with a plat
mum monogram.
If 1t had been good form at the
time to incrust baby spoons with dia-
nonds, Mrs. Wilson would have seen
to 1t that 1t had them, too, In suffl-
cient number and Of the first water.
Mrs. J. Henshaw Wilson had more
money than brains but to do the lady
Justice we must suggest the thought
that even Solomon would have been
hard put to it, had his wisdom been
forced to stand the same comparison.
At any rate she possessed gray mat
.er In sufficient quantity to enable her
to have her own way about things, as
A rule. This story has to do with one
great exception. And, of course, like
everything else in our national and
private life that is out of whack just
now, it can be traced directly to the
ate war.
Diana had been an obedlent child
always. She had done just the proper
hing at the proper time and in the
manner In which she was hidden to
do 1t.
In her second year "out" the society
world threw into the discard the mad
pursuit Of pleasure and turned fever
SHY to the rolling of bandages, the
trying of ham and" and personal SUI
pervision Of the morals of our army
and navy. Diana chose the canteen
as her medium of serving.
Mrs. Wilson did not force Diana to
give up the canteen idea, for two rea-
sons. First, some of "our very best
people" were going into 1t. Second,
she was very busy just at that time
planning for the prelude to the great
event in her daughters life. Mrs. Will
son had married for money. 1t had
been high step up the social ladder
for her. She meant to use the ad-
vantage she had gained to boost her
offspring yet one rung higher.
Senator Brendon was the star to
which Mrs. Wilson had hitched her
wagon, and Dlana's beauty and
wealth constituted the motive power
which were to land her in the posi-
ton coveted for her by her mother.
Just as Mrs. Wilson's absorption In
her plans blinded her to the risks In
allowing Diana to become interested
In canteen work, so Dlana's interest
in the work kept her from realizing
that the engagement was being
forced upon her.
Senator BrendOn was a middle-aged
bachelor, a large, stupid man who
got by on his family name and a
oompOus manner. He had money
but not enough, and was a gallant ad-
nirer of the weaker sex" For him,
competent women, women who dis
played executive ability outside their
own homes, did not exist Mrs. VIII
son assured him that Diana had no
such talents.
To Diana the honor and glory of
being a senator's wife made q strong
appeal. But 1t was all an indefinite
thing-somethlng that couldn't come
to pass until the horrible war was
over. Meanwhile there were innumer-
able "ham ands" to be prepared for
nsatiable young American appetites.
Diana, bustllng around in immaculate
apron and cap, was thoroughly happy.
The senator rarely appeared in per-
son; he was too busy In Washington.
His infrequent visits left Diana quite
overwhelmed with hattery and gal
lantry.
1t did occur to the prospective
pride to wonder little that the wom-
en- with whom she was working daily
we're not more profuse In their con-
gratulations upon the announcement
Of the engagement; but Diana pos
sessed no exaggerated idea Of her own
mportance-and of course everybody
vas stepped through and through with
he one idea.
Mrs. Barding-Scott, who belonged in
the first mineral column of New
York's four hundred, was working
alongside Diana in the canteen one
lay. She watched the girl for a while
and then spoke, in her usual abrupt
way, "Child, are you at all interested
In suffrage7"
"Why, I never thought much about
t." answered Diana abstractedly.
10 trrffh
to a meeting this afternoonT
An invitation from Mrs. Bardlng-
Scott was similar to that Of a queen.
One did not decline. When Diana an
nounced to her maternal parent at
luncheon that Mrs. Barding-Scott
would call for her that afternoon
they were to attend meeting in COM
Wilson was so overjoyed
that she quite forgot to ask what the
was about
But at that meeting the goose Of
Mrs. Wilson's plans was cooked a
beautiful brown. For two hours Diana
sat with burning cheeks and listened
to as thorough a scarifying Of Senator
Brendon as the vocabularies of the
Eve Infatuated women who addressed
the assembly could produce. For Sen
ator Brendon had been indiscreet
enough to express publicly his real
reason that he had hitherto camou-
tagged under a pretended reverence for
states rights. He did not believe, II
at last, that women had suf-
fclent intelligence
Mrs. Bardlng-Scott made no com
mcnt on the way home, but Diam
was too furious at her finances slur