The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-02-03
SYNOPSIS,


 daughter of George Page, a hat
 drummer and his former saleslady
 wife, Emeline, was markd with fre-
 quent quarrels between her mother
 shifHess ways and matinee fan
 friends At fourteen, Julia, grown
 exceedingly handsome, and her
 mother lived a HstIess life. Eme1ine
 having divorced george years be- fore. Julia was to be an actress and
 her friends mostly of that profes- sion. Mark Rosenthal of the family
 on the floor above, had fallen in love
 with her.
 At the home of Barbara Toland, a
 society girl whom she met at an
 apateur play in which Julia had a
 professional part, she met Barbara's
 half-brother, Dr. James StuddifOrd,
 and her aunt, Miss Poland, who had
 established a settlement house. Her father being i'll, her mother became
 reconci1ed to him and they went to
 live on a fruit ranch, leaving Julia
 with her grandmother. Max begged
 her to marry him but she put him
 Miss Poland at her neighborhood
 house and found a new life opening
 before her. Julia met Dr. Studdi- ford again through an accident to her to marry him. She refused him,
 and Jealous of Dr. Studdiford, he shot himself. falling dead at her feet in the neighDorhood house.
 F I
 Fish, but no Jim. HerR was Jim at last, pale, freshly shaven, slipping in- to his place with a muttered apology and averted eyes. With a sense of impending calamity upon her, Julia struggled through her dinner; after a while she found herself holding cards, under a bright light; after a while again, she reached her stateroom.
 Julia turned up the light. The room was close and empty, filtered with the evidences of Jim's nasty toilet. She opened a window, and the sweet salt air filtered in, infinitely soothing and refreshing She began to go about the room, picking up Jim's clothes, and putting the place fin order. Once or twice her face twitched with pain, and once she stopped and pressed Jim's coat to her heart with both hands, as if to stop a wound, but she did not cry, and presently began her usual preparations for bed in her usual careful fashion The cherry-colored gown had been put away, and Julia, fin an embroidered white kfmono al- most stiff enough to stand alone was putting her rings into their little cases when Jim came in She looked at him over her shoulder.
 Where have you been. Jim? ?'' she asked quietly, noticing his white face, his tumbled hair, and a certain dis order In his appearance. Jim did not answer, and after a puzzled moment Julia repeated her question.
 Up on deck," Jim said, bitter burst of words breaking through his ugly silence He dropped into a chair, | and put his head in his hands.
 Julia watched him for a few mo- ments in silence, while she went on | with her preparations. She wound her little watch and put it under her pillow; she folded the counterpanes neatly back from both beds and got 1 to put trees into little satin slippers | she had been wearing, and carried | them to the closet.
 Suddenly Jim sat up, dropped his | hands. and stared at her haggardly. l
 "Julia,'' said he hoarsely, I've been | lp there thinking-Pm going mad, 1 gueSS-
 He stopped, and there was silence. l Julia stood still, looking at him. |
 Tell me-" Jim said, Twas it Mark?'' |
 The hideous suddenness of it struck | Julia like a bodily blow; she stood | as if she had been turned to ice. A great weight seemed to seize her limbs, a sickening vertigo attacked | her. She had a suffocating sense that time was passing, that ages were go- ing by in that bright glaring room,
  tered window, and the two beds, with their smooth white pillows, so neatly | turned down Still, she could not l speak-not yet
 '"Yes, it was Mark" she said tone lessly and gently. after 8 long silence | ''I thought you knew'
 "Oh. my God!' Jim said, choking. He flung his hands madly in the air | and got on his feet. Then, as if | ashamed, through all the boiling surge of his emotions, at this loss of con trol he rammed his hands into the | porl<ets of his light overcoat, and be- gan to pace the room. "You-you- you," he said, in a sort of vail, and in another moment, muttering some about air. he had snatch ed up his cap and was gone again.
 Julia slowly crossed the room, and sat down on her bed. She felt as a person who had swallowed a dose of poison might feel: agonies were soon to begin that would drive the life from her body. but she could not feel them yet. Instead she felt tired, tired beyond all bearing, and the lights hurt her eyes. She slipped her kimono from her, stepped out of her slippers. and plunged the room into utter dark ness. Like a tired child she crept into bed and with a great sigh dropped her head on the pillow.
 The ship p1owed on, it's great lights cutting steady course over the black water, its whole bulk qutvering to the heartbeat of the mighty engines; good nights and laughing good-nights were said in the narrow l3ot railways. Lights went out in cab In after cabin. The decks were dark and deserted. Below stairs the world that never slept hummed like a bee t; hive; squads of men were washing floors, laying tables; the kitchen was as hot and busy as at midday; the engine rooms were filled with silhou- cited forms briskly coming and going. { Up one one of the dark decks, with the soft mist blowing in his face. Jim ] spent the long night, his folded arms resting on the rail, his sombre eyes following the silent rush of waters, and in her cabin Julia lay wide awake and battling with despair.