The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1920-12-30
Carlofta's
Second Love
By \. LOUIS RAYBoLD

- SAOOAS SAAA OA
ANsee~t~e~Ne~eNsN eeseNeeseNeeeNes<
C. 1920 BY Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate J
IT'S out Of the question, Mark" and
Carlotta's voice was very determined.
I'VE are too utterly different In tenn.
permanent, and besides, have q the
ory that no girl should marry her first
love- go CG ssslsS
.Ratsl" Marks explosive utterance
matched the disgust In his look. Car
lotta wasn't at all the sort Of person
from whom to expect theories, being
plumply. prettily feminine. with wistful
eyes and dimple In the chinward cor
ner OF her cheek. III sS.a fq
The. girl drew her brows together in
little froWn OF displeasure. II sup
pose that seems silly to you," she said.
but coneeding that / am somewhat
fond of you, I am afraid 1t Is proba-
bly, case Of being in love with love
liking the candy you bring me, the
orchesta seats for the best shows and
little attentions generally. Al girl
ought not to marry until she's had
an opportunity to make comparisons" i"
"And by the same token" came back
the man promptly, II suppose I'd feel
surer ! loved you II you were the ninth
or tenth on my list Of lady loves, In
stead Of being the first and only II"
"Nonsensei" Carlotta lightly repu-
dated the compliment. '.No man ever
marrtes his first love. who was prob
ably his Sunday school teacher. And,
anyway, what proof have that you
really and truly do love met" and she
smiled teasingly. ..
Possibly 1t was that smile that did
It. At any rate, Mark rose from his
chair, speaking coldly. deliberately !:
"Carlotta, you've often accused me Of
not appreciating your work. Heaven
knows that II you really were that rare
bird, q genius, I hope I would not have
the nerve to propose marriage to you:
But it seems to nae you were destined
for other things than mussing up cam
vases with pictures that look to me
like italian scenes laid In Russia with
oriental fairgrounds
However, daresay that's where
show my ignorance. But as to this
business of whether really love you
and this tommyrot about marrying
your first love- well. here's hoping
your second love has better luck than
! did" and with a bow intended to-
be both slightly ironic and extremely
dignified, Mark opened the door and
went out. s.
Carlotta, astonished, looked after.
him doubtfully. Was he really accept
Ing his dismissal with so little protest.
Then she sighed. Poor old practical
Markl
So completely lacking any tiniest BIT
OF creative genius which w0nld help
him understand her own intense yearn-
ings for self-expressionl So prosaic-
" unromantic that he could not COM
prehend her desire to be sure that It
was love with capital L he offered,
before surrendering to Il!
A month later Carlotta sold her first
picture, at price far less than she
expected-but. then, to sell one at all
was something. And the girl regular
~ took roundabout way home to
look at 1t in the window of the small
novelty shop where 1t was displayed
along with crocheted outfits for In
fants and hand-painted place cards.
Evidently Mark had also seen the pic
ture, with the artists name plainly
scrawled in the corner, for one night
when he and Carlotta found them-
selves adjacent strap-hangers in the
subway, he extended his congratula-
tions. And Carlotta, frankly pleased,
added to her thanks the little remark
that she had missed his calls. e.
"Same here" had answered Mark,
but by Jupiter, he had been working
his darned head of lately, and had
had to let all social duties go hang.
If Carlotta felt touch Of chagrin
that she had become merely one Of
Mark Hastings social duties, /" her ex-
trenely sweet smile at parting sue
cessfully concealed it from him. -
Mark soon had rival. A few days
after the sale Of her picture, the post
man had brought Carlotta q letter
whose writer, on delicately perfumed
paper, begged her, In flowing hand,
to pardon his effrontery in addressing
her, and to permit him to express his
Joy in her picture, which touched with
In him, so he wrote. a responsive
chord. He signed himself, briefly, Your
admirer. Gustave." 5s
Other letters followed, Of increas-
Ing bulk, whose contents took the en-
tire world Of art for their own. inter-
preted here and there with casual per-
sonal illusions calculated to arouse In
Carlotta an inevitable interest in the
writer. And Carlotta, recent gradu-
ate Of q small town Hart school," sat
reverently at the feet Of this authority
and drank IN his dissertations on pig
ments and shading and tricks Of fore
shortening and anecdotes Of the great
masters. es
Often she meditated on the ntfer dis
eimilarity Of the two men. The very
difference IN their letter-writipg meth
DDS was significant. CarIotta. finger
Ing In her coat pocket one Of Gnstaye's
well filled envelopes, conparedi 1t with
the thin epistles she had received from
Marx. away on ! bFieevacatiQn. $.
~ nlmnlv can't exnreaa, nv fhOu0kt1a.