Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-04-20
THE GIRL WHO
SMILED THROUGH
BY Marion Rubicam.
Copyright. George Matthew Adams
AN HONEST CONFESSION.

Snapter I<Nii.
Occasionally we are revealed 10 our
selves in a surprising and unexpected
fashion. We live along from day to day,
feeling sure that we understand ourselves,
that there is nothing in our own natures
that our brains do not comprehend. ana
then comes n self-awakening.
Sometimes, unfortunately, we nave
not the gift of Interpretation. we know
that something is wrong and we are his-
contented and unhappy, but what IL Il
that is amiss we do not know. Therefore
we cannot take any steps to correct the
trouble. For the first step to any cure is
understanding. :,
Alice had not what has been called
the gift of Interpretation. She never nao
time to think much about herself. one
worked hard because she had TO, never
thinking that there was anything wrong
in that or that possibly there might be n
way out of il. She had taken it calmly that
some girls were born rich, and that they
could make themselves attractive, that
thev could 90 to school and learn to dance,
and cultivate soft musical voices, and IN
fact. become all the lovely, gracious things
she envied without ever hoping TO achieve.
Clara was little help to her In that
Clara was sweet natured girl. ana she
adored Alice quite openly; she was an
ideal best friend and loyal to the last de-
gree-but she had nothing to teach
And except for Clara, Alice had few
friends For one thing, she had been too
busy to go about, and she had been too
poor The people who could afford only
the cheap little houses on Dexter street
did not interest Alice. She was sweet to
them and conscious of no superiority
but they did not attract her.
ba .rirlS had poDp n school as much
as she had, and they wore better clothes
and "knew more" in the sense that they
got away now and then on vacations TO
other parts of the state; they saw occasion
nj shows and they had the education, or,
at least the wider point of view that
comes from innumerable "movles" Alice
had not even this.
As for the boys, their pointless jokes,
their rough voices their complete alb
sorption, in the thing nearest at hand
baseball, movies, their lob they did
not interest her at all.
Then came David and the revolution
began. He had no manner" that she
was conscious of, but he was different
and he appealed to her He had hyed all
over. he knew a variety of people, he had
seen more than one side of life, he could
talk of lovely pictures and marvellous
music that Alice could but vaguely un-
derstand, he had read and studled-and
he gave her a new point of view on life
and an ambition to be more than the
hard-worked girl she was. In short, she
was in love with him.
There followed, then, the disappoint-
ment and the heartbreak when DAVID
went away.
But because Alice would not be cast
down because she was too strong IN nature
and too optimistic in disposition to give
up-she began piecing her life together
as best she could
The studies David had made hel
ambitious to be proficient in, she went
at with desperate enthusiasm helped
by his books. Before her was the same
ambition-she had wanted to live on the
state run Model Farm with David as
David's wife. Now she wanted to live
there AZ one OF the workers. David would
not be there, but the work would be there,
and something of the spirit of David
would be there. She had wanted TO love
and be loved and to maryland David
was gone. But Lawrence came.
And Lawrence had many of David s
qualities. That Is, he had broad educa-
ton, a very high intelligence, he talked
the sort of talk David had, the language
of men who have had the beneficial in
fluences Of books and travel and the Other
cultural things of life. He knew more
and he was much more interesting thar
the other men she met.
He offered her love, and home. Anc
this substitute for what she had wanted
she seized, gladly and thankfully He
very mother love came outIn her fight Il
adopt the deserted baby and her grea'
care OF 1T.
In brief, Alice possessed strongly al
normal womanly instincts. She was simply
following out those instincts from day K
day, in everything she did. But she die
not analyze them.
But one afternoon she told all thl'
to Clara-Clara the gentle, and admlring
Clara with her dainty little figure anc
the wistful look that was always behinC
her amber colored eyes.
II guessed some of it" Clara said
II told mother something ike this months
ago, when you adopted Berenice. Are yot
going to marry Lawrence?'
Yes" Alice said, but not cheerfully
this time 81 feel as though l were taking
something that didn't belong to me wher
take him, though. For, after all he IS only
a substitute for the thing | wanted"
Tomorrow Way Out.