Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-02-02


ronyrlEht. 1920, by tho Bell syndicate Inc
rTE CERTAINLY was, agreed Jennie.
ii 81 say, Jennie, Jerry looks an
.vful lot like you tonight"
"No. I think he takes a lot more
,,,er you!" Jennie protested.
Harry shook his head. 'No, like
.r - lie looked from the baby up to
Ior and then back at the baby--and
,.oditotcd, Hes going to have black
ho;r and rather dark skin.' His
loo softencd little. Jennie, l have
WV ;dca that he may not look very muc|
al ,;po either of us; that he may look a
iof ,%' more like Black Jcrry--your father,
mean. -, ,,,, .,o huoot,oa
TIo did not quite understand what
uos rising in her mind, for he went on
M",nv M"n 'Jtll be a fine thing il he
SUI Soos iook like your father. Black Jerry
uUos ,ros all right. He'd have been n
ondor M"nd if he had ever had the chance
W. arc going to give our Jerry !"
shc did not answer. Soft tears filed
49,. ovcs For the moment her mind
ns, ras Gllcd with her father; her heart
hrobbcd with a tender poignant ache.
tIaT, her dad had loved her even to
.hO" ttO ,oint where he had believed that
,,;s Wv more existence would be milestone
no,,nd thc neck of her future, and so
70 insure her happiness had made away
with himself,
She had grieved deeply during the
.0ar and n half that had passed since
sbo had received Jerry's scrawl an
nouncing his purpose of passing out OF
hOr Iifc and out of all life, in order
that she might no longer be shamed
and held down by his notorlety: But
youth. through its excess or Vitality,
always RECEIVERS from lts nonmor.al
wounds when there is something to live
for ,Icrrys death was a fact-Jennie
m.as now accustomed to tit would
olrays remain grief of her life; but
timc was softening that grief to a
tender memory.
There was n ring of the apartment
ho, which was answered by the maid,
and after a moment Uncle George came
in Time had made little change in
him For many years he had looked a
snrncc, oldish man. and he would
doubtless look exactly the same until
his last day.
Uncle George was called upon to ad-
miro Young Jerry, which he did for sew
cral minutes with very real enthusiasm.
Then Jennie recalled something.
by the way, Uncle George, there
was a man--some kind of a soldier
here to see YOU while ago. lie SAID he
had message for you."
did he leave it?''
NO. He said his orders were to
deliver it personally into your hands.
7 told him you'd be here about this
time. and he said he'd come back"
Speaking Of soldiers, Uncle George. -
said Harry. "what do you think of
today's news about our relations with
Germany? DO you think we're going
to get pulled into the big fight?"
Sure as fate, IIarry-and soon.
"Woll. il it comes TO that" Harry
gave wistrul look at Jcnnie-'I'd like
to be over there in France. mixing it
up with the rest of them"
Uncle George spoke before Jennie had
n chance to reply. "Your spirits all
right, son, but you'll never have a
chance to get over.
'Why not?" demanded Harry.
Uncle George was wise in other mat
ters than the gay life of hotels and res
taurants with which most OF his ac-
quautanccs identified him. because.
son, il we get into this war. we're going
TO need fighters at the front. and fighters
right here at home making things to
Sight with The government is never go
ing to let such an expert engineer and
manager as you arc growing to be get
into licutcnant's uniform, when you Il
count for ten times as much in the big
fight by starting right here helping man
nge about - 900 varieties of things that
we'll be doing all at once. That's all
there is to it, son 4 so let's change the
subject and talk about the baby"
They did-until the apartment bell
rang once more. The person shown in
was a man with a slight nimp, in the
uniform OF sergeant Of the Canadian
eSpedtionary force.
"Oh. Uncle George" said Jennie.
this is the soldier who wanted to sec
you
The, sergeant bowed to Jennie, and
toFned to Uncle George. 'Is this Mr..
George llamilton?"
"Ics," said Uncle George.
have Il letter for you-but, par
@ uon me- what I've got to say is pri-
Stay right where you are. Uncle
George put in Jennie. Harry and
Ine DaDy aud ! haven't had our evening
iiooE out at Central Park. If YOU talk
low, we won { be able to hear a word"
Nhcn Jennie, with tiny Jerry in her
arms and Harry were at the windows
at the opposite end of the room. the
sergeant spoke in carefully subducd
m invalidcd home but expect to
Srt pack to the front" he explained
"LLcnF' I'm the hospital over there
MGere ! was laid up with this leg,
Sol TO know the man in the bed next
10 niue We got TO bc-you know