San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-10-04
The Married Life of
Helen and Warren
BY MABEL HERBERT URNER-
A Broken Mirror

meet me at the office-we start from
there"
"oh, III be too tired to dress
and 60 out"
do you good. If you stay here
you'll just fuss around. I'll get
tickets for The Blow-Out'-hear
that's a rippin' show"
During the periodic chaos of
painting and house cleaning, she. ex-
pected little consideration from
Warren. His one idea was to es-
cape.
Gently she moved from the wall
her precious Pembroke table.
Cover it up and leave it in the
middle of the room? No, it was so
frail-they'd be sure to knock
against it.
Dear, help me take this into the
bedroom. They won't start in there
tomorrow.
Start in THERE?" he exploded.
mot goin' to do the BEDroom?"
why, thought you knewl Stop
that" as Pussy Purr-Mcw clawed
the protecting newspapers from a
chair. They're to do that all over
paper and paint"
THE devil they are! Just had
that room DONE"
"It's been two years. They didn't
touch it last year. Around the
window-sills it's perfectly awful.
This cheap paint-no wonder it
doesn't last. If we could only get
that lovely enamel finish they have
in London. Don't you remember
in our Whitehall Court flat? Just
like glass"
"Huh, that's the British-never
get that finish over here. Takes
two or three coats fore the enamel.
Let go, can carry it better alone
NO, don't lift IT that way-that
piece is loose. I'll take one end"
Where d'you want it," as he
backed into the bedroom.
Right there. Now we'll have
to be careful and not run into it."
This ceilings all right" scowling
upwards. "Not goin' to have this
done?"
"Why. look at that stain in tho
corner-where that bathtub ran
over. They tried to fix it--but it
always showed. You never can
touch up kalyomine. Would you
have this same shade or a little
deeper cream? oh. she's at those
papers again." rushing back to the
library.
Pussy Pu7r-Mew shut in the
kitchen, Helen resumed her per-
turbed NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
ers.
Dear. just one more thing"
pleadingIy, then won't bother you
again."
Now what?r belligerently,
knocking the ashes from his pipe.
These curtains must come down
and we won't have time in the
morning"
See here, what'd you do today?
Why leave all this till night?'
I'VE didn't know until late this
afternoon. They just brought their
ladders and said they'd be here in
the morning. We vacuumed the
rugs and rolled them up-that's all
we had time for before dinner. Dear.
it won't take long,
Huh. ] remember those blamed
curtain rods--put 'em up once. Rot
ten iob!"
But they're not hard to take
down. I'll do it-you just hold the
ladder"
For the next half hour. from the
top of the painters ladder, grumb-
lingly held, Helen struggled with OBJ
durate curtain fixtures.
Now | must put these ends so
I'll know where they are" gather
ing them up. Dear. put those rods
in the hall closet-tie them together
first"
"What'll tie 'em with" his
usual hel?lessness.
"Get the string box in the pantry.
I'm putting these ends in this
drawer"
Never any decent string" strug-
Cling with the snarled mass. why
don't you loosen up and buy a ball
get one for ten cents. Now, where
d'you want thesei"
al just told you - in the hall
closet. Oh, there's one you left
out Wait. I'll tie them" resigned
to his bungling incapability.
Carefully Helen folded the fine
net curtains. Not three weeks since
they had been Numbered. Now with
everything fresh they would have to
be done again.
A crash An explosive oath.
ooh, what HAVE you done!"
dashing to the hall closet where
Warren was glazing profanely at the
shattered mirror.
"That damned wire! Caught my
foot in it. Frames all right"
dragging it out. "Nothin' broke but
the glass"
a mirrorw walled Helen. Seven
years had luck ~
Rot Only had luck's the trou-
bic of gettin' it put in"
"And that fine old glass" pick
ing up the pieces. This modern
glass isn't"
Told you not TO take IL down
tonight. But you're so blamed
headstrong-"
Il wanted To hang it in my room
and you wouldn't You'll never do
anything about the house--and when
you do. you don't half do it,"
"You got that dead right! got
enough TO do at the Office
"But other men do--think what
Mr.. Stevens does, III have to get
the dust-pan. I wish you'd seen tn,
extra shelves he put up in their pam
try"
IF he likes To potter around the
house, DON'T Hate A."
That's why / never can havs
any Of the little conyeniences-"
why can't you? Got a super.
intendent and couple of house