The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1925-05-22

an VINO writes the society news In tue
Sunday Tribune called you today?"
'.No. What? I never read it."
"She said you were one of the
jeunesse doree."
Dirk grinned. "Gosh I"
II remember enough of my French
at Miss listers school to know that
that means gilded youth"
mel That's good! I'm not even
spangled"
"Dirk!" her voice was low, vibrant.
'Dirk, don't want you to be gilded
youth. / don't care how thick the
gliding. Dirk, that isn't what worked
in the sun and cold for. I'm not re-
preaching you; didn't mind the work.
Forgive me for even mentioning 1t.
But, Dirk, 1 don't want my son to be
known as one of the jeunesse doree.
No! Not my SOM"
"Now, listen, Mother. That's fool
ish. If you're going to talk like that.
Like mother in a melodrama whose
sons gone wrong. work like
dog. You know that. You get the
wrong angle on things, stuck out here
on this little farm
She sat up in bed, looking down at
the thin end of her braid as she twined
1t round and round her finger. "Dirk,
do you know sometimes actually think
that If you stayed here on the farm"
Good Cd, Mother! What for"
ooh, don't know. Time to dream.
Time to-no, suppose that isn't true
any more. suppose the day is past
when the genius came from the farm.
Machinery has cut into his dreams.
Patent binders, plows, reapers-hes
mechanic. He hasn't time to dream.
Well. :"
She lay back, looked up at him,
"Dirk, why don't you marry?"
"Why-there's no one want to mar
ry."
mo one who's free. you mean?"
He stood up. Il mean no one"
He stopped and kissed her lightly. Her
arms went round him close. Her hand
with the thick gold wedding band on
it pressed his head to her hard. $50
big" He was a baby again.
"You haven't called me that in
years." He was laughing.
She reverted to the old game they
had played when he was child. "How
big is my son! How big?" She was
smiling, but her eyes were somber.
$50 big!" answered Dirk, and meas
ured very tiny space between thumb
and forefnger. $50 big"
She faced him, sitting up very
straight in bed, the little wool shawl
hunched about her shoulders. "Dirk,
are you ever going back to architec-
ture? The war is history. It's now
or never with you. Pretty soon it will
be too late. Are you ever going back
to architecture? To your profession?"
A clean amputation. mo, Mother"
She gave an actual gasp, as though
icy water had been thrown full in
her face. She looked suddenly old,
tired. Her shoulders sagged. He stood
in the doorway, braced for her re-
proaches. But when she spoke it was
to reproach herself. 'Then I'm a fail
ure."
"Oh, what nonsense, Mother. I'm
happy. You can't live somebody else's
life. You used to tell me, when l was
kid, remember, that life wasn't just
an adventure, to be taken as it came,
with the hope that something glorious
was always hidden just around the
corner. You said you had lived that
way and 1t hadn't worked. You said"
She interrupted him with little
cry. II know I did. / know I did"
Suddenly she raised a warning finger.
Her eyes were luminous, prophetic.
"Dirk, you can't desert her like that I"
Desert who?" He was startled.
Beauty! Self-expression. What
ever you want to call it. You wait!
She'll turn on you some day. Some
day you'll want her, and she won't be
there"
Inwardly he had heen resentful of,
this bedside conversation with his
mother. She made little of him, he
thought, while outsiders appreciated
his success. He had said, $50 big"
measuring tiny space between thumb
and forefinger in answer to her half
playful question, but he had not hon.
estly meant it. He thought her ridicu-
lousy old-fashioned now in her view
point, and certainly unreasonable. But
he would not quarrel with her.
"You wait, too, Mother" he said
now, smiling "SOme day your way-
ward SON will be real success. Wait
till the millions roll in. Then We'll
see."
She lay down, turned her back de-
liberately upon him, pulled the covers
up about her.
"Shall turn out your light, Mother,
and open the windows?"
"Meena'n do it. She always does.
Just call her. Goodnight"
He knew that he had come to be a
rather big man in his world. Influ-
ence had helped He knew that too