The St. Johns herald., 1922-12-21
--f-- .lIIlv

when, on Waru evening AOAI' night later, Lulu descended the stairs dressed for her incredible trip to the city, she wore The white waist which she had often thought they would ''use" for her if she died. And really, the waist looked as if 1t had been planned for the purpose, and its wide, upstanding plaited lace at throat and wrist made her neck look thinner, her forearm sharp and veined. Her hair she had "crimped' and parted in the middle, puffed high-it was so that hair had been worn in Lulu's girlhood
 "WeIlI I' said Ina, when she saw this coiffure, and frankly examined 1t, head well back, tongue meditatively teasing at her lower lip.
 For travel Lulu was again wearing 1na's linen duster-the old one.
 Ninian appeared, in a sack coat and his diamond. His distinctly con- vex face, its thick, rosy flesh, thick mouth and cleft chin gave Lulu once more that bold sense of lOOking-nOt at him, for then she was shy and averted her eyes-but at his photo graph at which she could gaze as much as she would. She looked up at him openly, fell in step beside him. Was he not taking her to the city? Ina and Dwight themselves were go- ing because she, Lulu, had brought about this party.
 "Act as good as you look, Lulie," Mrs. Bett called after them. She gave no instructions to Ina, who was mar Fied and able to shine in her conduct, it seemed.
 Dwight was cross. On the way to the station he might have been heard to take 1t up again, whatever 1t was. and his Ina unmistakably said: "Well, now, don't keep it going all the way there"; and turned back to the others with some elaborate comment about the dust, thus cutting off her so-called lord from his legitimate retort. A mean advantage.
 The city was two hours distant, and they were to spend the night. On the train, in the double seat, Ninian be side her among the bags, Lulu sat in the simple consciousness that the people all knew that she too had been chosen. A man and a woman were opposite, with their little boy between them. Zulu felt this woman's supe- riority of experience over her own, and smiled at her from a world of fel- Iowship. But the woman lifted her eyebrows and stared and turned away, with slow and insolent winking.
 Ninian had -boyish pride in his knowledge of places to eat in many cities--as if he were leading certain of the tribe to deer-run in a strange wood. Ninian took his party to a downtown cafe, then popular among business and newspaper men. The place was below the sidewalk, was reached by a dozen marble steps, and the OdOr of Its griddle-cakes took the air of the street. -Ninian made a great show of selecting a table, changed once, called the waiter "my man" and rubbed soft hands on "What do you say? Shall 1t be 'lobster2'' He ordered the dinner, instructing the waiter with painstaking grufrness.
 "Not that they can touch your cook ing here, Miss Lulu," he said, settling himself to wait, and crumblfng a crust.
 Dwight, expanding bit in the aura of the food, observed that Lulu was a regular chef, that was what Lulu was. He still would not look at his wife, who now remarked:
 Shelf, Dwightie. Not cheff."
 This was a mean alvantage, which he pretended not to hear-another mean advantage.
 4'Ina," said Lulu, your hats just a little mite-nO, over the other way"
 ''Was there anything to prevent your speaking of that befOre?" Ina inquired acidly.
 'T started to and then somebody always said something" said Lulu hUmbly.