Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-04-01
Eorqotten-Ey a Siren

ASelSl dS LluSll AIh 90 kAC
Rover bestowed upon his own daily
grooming, Two hours FROM the
time when the invitation was issued
saw Old Stick-It accompanying
young Laverock upon this. enterprise
of getting to know this little crowd
of nice girls. On, not for
Archie, He would never 1 have
bothered about it for himself. Per-
fectly happy as he was. Still. Pity
not to follow this up, for the sake
of OLD Stick-It.
And besides Stick-It's mother and
sisters were coming on here present
ly for their holiday. They'd like to
meet a lew nice girls here. Every
body likes 10 meet nice, new girls.
-
In that town of toyish abodes
tsfze Packing case. style Chateau)
quite half the villas had names
beginning with "ker," which sis
Breton for house" Thus every
where there looked out from the
ratings tangled il grapevine and
rambler roses, wooden signs gilded
with the inscriptions "ker Eugene"
'ker Gaby," or "ker Dick" But
the villa to which the young Ameri-
can widow had directed Laverock
bore a conventionaEy usual, French
name:
Mon Repos"
Colorless enough, had it not been
SO deliclous!y, SO buoyantly map
prOpriate to the place. Repose was
its. very last characteristic. Move
ment, gay and restless, appeared
even through the approach; a tall
iron gateway of scrollwork, intricate
and delicate. painted pearl gray and
wreathed in the LEAKAGE, and the
lovely purple-and crimson and
white trumpcts of morning glory
convolvulus. Through this frame
showed "a dazzle pattern of breeze
blown color.
Up from the gateway and gar
landed ratings there led a flight of
shallow stone-steps; their sides
completely hidden in riotous over
growth. For beside every fourth
step there were set immense cornu-
copia vases of lapislazuli- blue
faience, out of which cascaded a tor
rent of the gaudiest flowers that
blow. Pink ivy-leafed geraniums;
sheaves of staring marguerites;
masses of sulpher- yellow calceolar-
Ia; esGhSchotZiaS: Zinnias; petunias
in the more vivid of even the petunia
shades: beGonias of blood red, of
shrickinG scarlet and of blazing
orange; lobelias of half "a dozen
fefvent blues. Between the vases,
crowded bush after bush of
hydranGes in full bloom. Their
globes of creamy green and of faint
pink shading to mauve sounded
rote of cooler color, but were
still drenched in warmth bv
those floods of joyous golden
sunshine of France that poured
down, through and upon the
whole gay dappled cretonne. Be-
You'd 1t on each side was a slant of
emerald lawn, trimmed with a Dor
der of striped, deck-chair awnings.
Beyond again We're breeze tossed
popuiars, curtseying like pavane-
dancers this way and that. and
showing now the silver gray under
sides, now the dim green of their
ieaty robes. They flanked the house.
The house itself was tall and
Whlle as one of the many demi-
! towers used for sailing marks along
tiat coast. Across pale facade and
Hght-green shutters rippled a JAPAN
csc pattern of cobalt shadows: the
open windows seemed to promise
caVerns of cool darkness inside. Out
, OF the middle window fioated proud
~ a big tri-coior French flag
smaller flags huttered from the
other windows. Union Jack, Stars
ana Stripes, the scarlet white
OF Denmark, Sweden's red, blue and
Goid, even a Red Dragon sweeping
across its green and white ground:
! what wasn't bunting was bathing
costumes; scarlet, striped, and black
hanging out to dry over the warm
slils and pinned down by pairs of
La
!ous small sizes, and what wasn't
bathing costumes was Chinese
lanterns. gay even in daylight as
they dangied and swung.
sound, too, as well as color. Der
ineated that place. From within on
me ioWer story poured the strains of
hachlnaninoff's prelude drawn with
no uncertain touch from a 9marlz-
AMY hne piano: this mingled with
/ the mosquito-like music of a
mandolin practiced on the xt-door
ba,cony. while somewhere else nm
uh.ocated gramophone discoursed
lpfeStlsslmoD The tune of I'm For
ever Blowing Bubbles" and all tho
s s,n,e q volume of treble chatter
from the top of the garden seemed
TO thread the diaper OF other~ sound
WIN many voices, all raised at
ohee IN some animated discussion.
~ me gate, young Laverock
thought No wonder she said thew
called it Ker BabeP. Joye, What =
merry DIN. What does this show re-
NINA me of? | know. Itn like being
NJ the joys, only more go"
ne shook off the sudden memory.
picture OF that Blue Bungalow and
oI those spring flowers that were
only less bright than those of mid
S' ui!'ieis' ana turned to the logged
friend at his elbow.
Pull yourself together. St;ck
Frepares to amuse these new friends
OF yours"
huh? 2" from Stick-It. "Mfne?.
Yes, yours. Don't you mess nm
your chances. BE your Sparkling
Young self. Think of the trouble
IA taxing to get you off,"
Ha al I You better ring that bell
They don't seem to hear. M
wohder, through all this noise" said
archie Laverock. Took here. we'll
Just march up in"
re LED tire way up that hanging |
saIuen OF steps. From above the
,-e pattern OF branches and |
Shapes was flung across his
newly cleaned fannels as he movad
toward the slant of lawn. Snddse
ootli ne and Stick-It drew nm
AT the sight of something odd on
me grass Three or four long ga red
heIgian hares sat about, in yarious
uhc0ncerned attitudes under the ,
popIars: A couple of yards away
from them black and white fox.
terrier stood staring at the hares
ne oidnt move. He didn't move.
III was perhaps three seconds be-
iore the visitors realized that all the
animals were of painted compohi-
ton: then both. men ioined in tha