Smyrna times., 1926-07-28
Another Flapper
There Was
BY JANE OSBORN


gether" all the afternoon. They had
Joined some of the other young people
at tennis for an hour or so, then they
had gone In swimming.
Now they sat on the hotel veranda,
Marian looking so lovely after her
romp in the ocean that a first glance
invited a second.
She and Edward Norton were talk
ing easily, frankly, like two young
boys. They were talking about col
lege fraternities, 1t happened, and
Edward said he knew the grip of a
certain order, not his own, and In or
der to show its intricacies to Marian
he had to clasp her hand in his. She
bungled dreadfully the first time 90
there were repeated hand claspings.
Then their ginger ale came and they
sat and sucked the cooling beverage
through straws, the while Marian
swinging her slender young legs from
the railing of the veranda where she
had perched herself
Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Smith. who
sat within the curtained drawing
room, watching Edward and Marian,
had spent their girlhood some thirty
years ago. In those days girls did
not wear knee-length skirts nor one
piece bathing suits, and they did not
shingIe their hair.
"Just see them holding hands out
there" said Mrs. Smith to her com
panion "And look at that girls skirts
I actually caught a glimpse of her
knee-bare knees. It's really disgust
ing"
"Oh, 1 think something ought to
be done about it." said Mrs. Brown.
"And the things they do," added
Mrs. Smith "They don't think any
thing Of going from one roadhouse
to another dancing and eating-and
sometimes It's tomorrow morning be-
fore they get home. And the boys
don't propose the way they used to.
They discuss marriage as two men
would a business partnership. Some
times the girl suggests it first-with-
out a husband then they talk 1t
over. Oh. it's really awful"
Now it happened that from where
Edward Norton and Marian Hayes
sat what they said in their tuneful
young voices could not be heard above
the oceans ceaseless roar, but what
these two middle-aged women said
could be heard by them. AS they sat
there trying to decide whether they
would take q walk or just sit and
talk, they tried not to indicate 10
each other that they were hearing the
voices inside the window. Edward,
however, was beginning to feel
trifie embarrassed.
Listen" said Marian when Mrs.
Smith had made the last remark. "Are
they talking about us2 Do they think
that we are all like that?'
That's what most of the old ones
do think" said Edward, regarding his
cuff button with some embarrassment
"Of course, know that the fellows /
know are no rougher, on the average,
than the fellows my father knew-be-
cause Dad and took the trouble to
compare notes and TO go at the thing
reasonably-and / don't believe the
fiappers, as they call them, are any
different, at heart, than the girls my
mother knew"
TITS too bad to disappoint them,"
said Marian. People like those old
women. 1t would be fun, In a way, to
go off and have dinner at a roadhouse,
and dance and then go on TO another
rOadhOuse and dance"
Edward Norton stood up and, taking
Marian's arm, made her rise, too.
Lets CO." he said, and fifteen min
utes later he and Marian were speed
ing away from the hotel.
So they went to a rather gay road
house and dined and then danced, and
from there sped on to another road
house.
Were doing these things" said
Marian. "But after all we aren't liv-
ing up to the picture those women
painted. We aren't talking the way
they said we talked. don't believe
any of the girls do"
"You mean about-about marriage
and everything" said Ned, aad then
as Marian nodded yes, he went on,
because II young people were as
frank as all that it wouldn't be so
hard TOTO propose"
"Do you suppose 1t Is hard for a
man to propose" asked Marian.
Ned slowed down his car and looked
keenly at his companion. Don't you
know 1t would be hardT' he asked.
"Just because you girls dress the way
you do and go swimming with us and
everything doesn't mean that we are
really bit better acquainted than as
if we just sat around In conservatorfes
and drawing rooms the way they used
to dot doesn't make proposing any
easier, mean"
Edward Norton" said Marian with
mock solemnity, 'yOu talk as IL there
was some one you wanted to propose
to and you didn't know how to go
about it."