Beverly banner. [volume] (Beverly, N.J.) 1877-1964, 1925-09-11
CHAPTER III-Continued

She set herself briSkly to unpack1ng
her small bag, folding things neatly
away in the small drawers Of the chif-
fonier. The two photographs in their
handsome frames, Prudence and Jer-
roId, she placed conspicuously on the
dressing table. And then she sudden
~ took up the picture of her mother,
and looked at 1t intently, questioningly,
almost passionately. She shook her
head at last with sharp Impotence,
and placed 1t opposite that of her IA
Their once more.
~ don't get you, Prudence" she
said.
In her intense moments, Jerry re-
ferred to her mother always as "Pru-
dence," using the word not so much as
a name, but rather as statement of
principle. code Of worship, creed Of
religion When she said, as she did
very often. II do not get you, Pru-
dence," she meant only that Prudence
was a depth of philosophy she could
not fathom. 1t irritated her. If Pru-
dence had been scintillatingly bril-
liant, intellectual woman, Jerry felt
she would not have minded her ina
bllity to reach the innermost recesses
of her mothers thought. Prudence
was no such thing, Jerry knew it.
After her unpacking, sweetened and
refreshed with perfumed bath in her
tiny rub, she ran up the dark stairway
TO the third floor, turned back and
tapped softly upon the door.
"Oh, d-nW she heard, muttered
fercely, from within the room. And
then apologetically Theresa called, 81
spilled the ink Come in. Miss Har-
mer, can't get up for minute. The
place is a mess. I've just had a scrap
with Mimi, and I'm wreck. She
wanted to clean up before you came
and / wouldn't let her, and we are
both furious"
Theresa was down on her knees
briskly hopping up the Ink with a
fresh towel. Jerry stood In the door
way, and looked about the room with
eager girlish interest. If her studio
downstairs appeared small to her, this
one she thought quite unendurably so.
There was no rug on the floor, nor cur
tain at the window The couch was a
tumbled mass of blankets and wrinkled
sheets with a box of paints and half
a dozen magazines thrown upon it.
The teacup was on the floor, its con-
tents untasted. And there was big
easel turned to catch the best light.
Theresa. just getting to her feet again,
looked with amused eyes upon Jerry's
frank inspection.
"Do--do you"
"Uh," Theresa nodded "Sleep here,
work here, eat here-die here, too, l
fancy. Haven't made my bed in heaven
knows when. Mimi used to come In to
do 1t for me, and bothered me to
death, so keep the door locked on her
now. If you hear her pounding to get
in, and me shouting for her to go away
and mind her own business, don't be
alarmed It's a frequent occurrence.
The place is a mess, Miss Harmer. l
She swept magazines books and
paints from a small straight chair and
showed it Hospitality toward Jerry.
"Cigarette?"
mo, thanks"
Theresa lit one for herself nervously,
tossing the burned match on the floor
in corner and Juggling at the ciga-
rette with deep breath, almost gulp-
Ing. She pulled off her smock.
Excuse me a minute, and I'll wash
my hands," AS she washed, and then
brushed back her dark tousled hair,
which she did not take time to comb.
but only fastened securely with addi-
tional pins, and scraped the paint from
her skirt, she ran briskly on In the
quick jerky fashion that Jerry found
80 fascinating.
II don't usually work like this. I'm
trying to get 1t finished-want 1t for
an exhibition. I think It's rather good.
The devil of it is that have to dig
along-for meal ticket-while I'm
trying to turn out something decent at
the same time. Heaven knows l eat
little enough-it shouldn't be hard to
earn the kind of living usually live.
Do you like Italian cooking7 Or
French? There are dozen nice little
places within block or two. Oh, and
there's wild little Russian place
would you prefer that7"
"Oh, any place at all, I shall love
any Of them. all Of them for that mat
ter-wherever you wish to go. I'm
really ashamed to take you away from
your work. l know you are only stop
ping to please me-"
"Oh. ] dare say it's very good
thing. Come to think of II. haven't