Evening star., 1923-01-21
BY
FANNIE
KILBOURNE

deficit and buy one spring dressr
The thought Of asking for q raise
in salary occurred TO her, but Hor-
tense pricked thah bubble before she
had been in the ONCE ten minutes
Hortense had known. of course, of
WheeIer's attentions; she knew that
Sara was living at the Leouia- Sara
was discreet, but Hortense surmised
other attentions. other luxuries. She
was too human to resist a little smack
of pleasure at the duty she saw
clearly.
'I feel it's my duty TO warn you"
she told Sara early that morning
/ T was out in the Ales yesterday af-
ternoon and I overheard MIR. Miller
and MIR. Hendricks talking about you.
They think your work has been fall
| ing off,
'AThey do.' Sara felt too much sur
prise to conceal 1t blandly.
| you know" Hortense cautioned
in her big-sister tone that made
Sara long to slap her, 'you can't
have your mind on million other
things and do good work.
| Sara swallowed her pride.
| You don't-did they-they didn't
| speak as though they were thinking
| of letting me go, did they?"
well. no." Hortense admitted
| 'They seemed to think you'd pick
up speed again"
She would have to, Sara told her
self grimly. And in the meantime
it would be a most imopportune oc-
| casion to ask for q raise. All day
long the more she thought about her
worries the darker and heavier the
clouds appeared. 1t was the next
morning, however, that the storm
really broke.
Hortense, whose brother had ex-
pected to stay until July, announc
| ed that he had been called home and
that they would be giving up Sara's
apartment right away.
t.You won't have any trouble rent
ing it again, I'm sure" Hortense as
srred her cheerfully.
| ttoh, no. of course not Sara as
sented with a hollow nonchalance.
She was by no means sure of this. At
the best. she would doubtless lose a
weeks rent and the price Of adver-
| tising, of having the apartment
thoroughly cleaned for a new tenant
At the worst, she might not be able TO
i re-rent 1t at all.
| So obsorbed was she in this cata
| clysm that she opened her sisters
letter mechanically and read il
| through, scarcely grasping it. Sud
denly, she caught her breath and
read again.
and the doctor says she
must have the treatment three times
a week for several months. She ia
Just worrying herself to death over
/ it. talks about being a burden on my
girls. You know how proud she's
always been of making her dinky lit
tie income pay for everything. tell
her it's nothing, that we'll never miss
the money. Can you make it for
half? 1 don't see how we can posi-
bly, manage more than that with the
new baby and everything.
DO write her right away and cheer
her up. I wish to goodness this had
come at any other time when we
could do no more, but George is wor
ried all the time as it is.''
Her mother sick-needing her help.
Like the startling sound of 4 voice
breaking into q dream. a feeling of
stark reality swept over Sara. The
last few months seemed unreal. It
was as though after weeks of gay
masquerading she had come suddenly
back to her old self. her old loves.
her old problems. Two worn-out
yesey frocks, a pair of slippers worn
thin by dancing-these were her re-
sources.
For a long time Sara sat staring
at the letter DULY. She glanced Al
the pile of bills on her desk, then
back to the letter. Suddenly she
Strengthened up. She laid the letter on
top of the bills. set paper weight
firmly on them all. She squared her
little shoulders under her Vesey.
frock. Let it prickle. 1t was all
she would have to wear until she
was even with the world.
"Im moving back into my own
apartment tomorrow" she told Hor-
/ tense.
Then. as though she had laid all
her dreams under the same firm paper
weight, she went briskiy to work al
her job. 1t takes more than a fancy
bottle to make Van Dell perfume our
of Standby soap.
/ < x X
TT was broad daylight Saturday aft
l. ernoon when Wheeler reached 10
9Th street. In the warm spring
sunshine the ugly iron fire escapes
|, climhed hra zenly nm the front Of fhe
fat building, noisy children were
playing in the street. the tailor's shop
was hustle of activity. From the
cash and-carry grocery on the cor
; ner came Sara Penfield, her arms full
; of bundles. her dress a cheap little
~ last years gingham. Cinderella was
back among her ashes. And ashes
, made just as much difference to Sara's
} prince as they did to Cinderella's.
Outside the door he took Sara's
packages in his arms; inside the door,
he laid them down and took Sara her
self.
But 1 tell you." she persisted at
last, I'm a cheap adventures. L
went around all dressed UP in clothes
/. I couldn't afford"
: 'You earned the money you paid
: for them, didn't your,
"Yes, but"
"And you turned down Carter when
you could have married him and his
half million, didn't you?"
Yes, but
wheeler's laugh. exultant, tender,
drowned her words.