Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-10-07
A SWEETHEART AT THIRTY
The story Of Woman's rransfor nation.
ny MARION RUBlNCAM.
IGO BACK.
Chapter c

forward eagerly. You SAY you never
had a chance. You say if you had things
might have been different. You say that
Won never spent Jlm's money Tor NICE
clothes. or for hired help, so you could
have time to make yourself look pretty
and rest To keep yourself young.
That's about II, Esther answered,
dccp virtue in her tones.
ibid Jim have the money enough
for slch little things as new clothes
once m a while and q servant in the busy
season.
oYcs. he used to want me to have
one and he liked me in new clothes
l remember, when we was hrst married
how he liked 10 see me IN rutiled dresses,
speciallv pink ones Jim loved pink.
Then why didn't you have lot OF
them"
II didn't like to spend the money.
After all. most any sort of thing would
do out there ON the farmland the rut-
fled things were hard to wash and IRON.
'fBut don't YOU see-you saved Jun
money, and not so much OF 1T at that
but YOU took from him something
that was so precious money could never
buy lt?'
"Huh?" | got as an answer
"Your own sweetness and prettlnesS
And attractiveneSS | went on, forgetting
myself and trying with all my power to
make Esther understand. "1ou deprived
him of something you can never give
back-don't you see that?
''But I've been good wife and mother
Esther fell back on her own old defence.
YES. yes, in the material things, but
what do they amount to?' | cried I'M
patiently. You were not q good wife
when YOU let Jim be disillusioned, nor
Q GOOD mother when you lost respect
for your own appearance before your
children"
Esther stared resentfuIly at me. A
yyxsr or two ago, had l dared to talk thus
vay. would have been met with TRADE
hsting hours, and would not have been
spoken TO for days. But now she recognized
where had climbed by the very methods
| WAS preaching to her, so she held her
temper. Nevertheless, she did not like
what l said.
And l said only 8 little of what knew
-enngh to open her eyes only How could
I tell her that her careless, uncorseted
6crrc in It's old wrapper, her tapping
house slippers, her shiny SKIN all made a
rcpulsive combination7
/ thought she did not take In even
what little had said. But she did, for a
little while Afterwards she came out with
an answer that showed she had been
thinking IT over.
Il dunno what l saved JIm's money
Drr, anyway. / wish ! hadn't. The other
woman got It,"
/ said nothing. After all | wanted TO
talk of this as little as possible. As for
ssthe othnr woman that dread spectre
Of so many women's hves-I thought there
was less In that than Esther's Imagination
would let her believe.
ANYWAY / never took any for my
own pleasure till | came down here,
.he went on. Nor never neglected Jim
except for this week. And Pm going back
in two days"
'rBut you don't ike the city" con-
soled her.
"Oh. | guess I'd like it well enough
If / lived here and got acquainted.
she said making her first concession to
city life. Il can see your Francis doesn't
like me, Thoughts he crazy about you.
And otherwise there's only Vi, who Is
more your daughter than mine as I've
said, and Helen.'
silently blessed Helen who, had
been lovely to Esther, taking her over
To- her little restaurant for tea and gos-
sip so Francis and myself might run off
together for an hour or SO during the
afternoon, and so WIS lateness In getting
IN from work might pass unnoticed. For
vi and Bud went for an hour at another
restaurant in the neighborhood. But
Vi never came away from these meetings
cheered: her face was pale and thin and
Esther thought 1t was the confinement OF
her position.
But it's been rest?'
''Oh yes, I've done nothin' but lie
shout and talk. My hands don't crack
50 since I've come here" she rambled
on, spreading out fat, short fingered
hand before her. 81 guess because |
wore gloves when / went out and haven't
had my hands too much in water. End,
how do YOU fix up your naas?
So 1t was takIngi Smiling a little,
went into the bedroom and brought out
my manicure implements, and while /
sewed, gave her minute directions as
to Whist to do. Heaven knows there was
enoughi And the result, when hang nails
had been clipped, cream rubbed into dry,
callous places and bleaches put on stains,
Was anything but lovely. But Esther look
ed admiringly at her short ridge-covered
nails.
III get You set OF THESE tnings,
wall YOU do thus every week.
"Oh Lord" Esther answered, ''Its a
lot of bother, isn't It?''
Esther, l SAID suddenly, "I 60 back
for few weeks and look after Jim and
James, Will you stay on here-and rest,
and fix yourself up hitler
] believed for moment Esther SIN
eerely loved me.
''Yes, / Will" she answered.
And that's how, in spite Of Francis
ristful protests and Wis down-drawn
mouth, dropped everything and went
back.
Tomorrow Old Life.