Evening star., 1926-06-06
NO SENSE OF HUMOR
By Margaret CuLkin Banning
Jokes and Tragedies Mingled in Young Couples Life.

: married to old man Mullins daugh
ter. Old man Mullin had carried the
plate up and down the aisle OF St
Verona's Church for some 20 years
at the proper intervals. Also he had
held the same expert. unimportant
bank position for 90 years.
No Pedler had ever worked in a
bank; certainly no Pedler had ever
carried a plate up and down the aisle
Of any church. Yet the Pedlers We're
as we'll known to Cosmopolis as the
Mullins. The Mullins owned their
own house and Mr.. Mullin had all the
things necessary to respectahility and
comfort. including q beautiful daugh'
ter The PedierS never owned n
house, had rented a number Of houses,
held every conceivable job. been in OIL,
every boom the town had had, been
on the verge Of fortune and never
quite made 1t. Everybody liked old
Pedler. Nobody would trust him with
a. cent. Everybody liked Mullin and
anybody would trust him with his
last cent. People liked Bill and peo-
pie liked Gale. It was the combina-
ton that seemed unnatural.
1t was only Gale and Bill who
! knew, while the rest OF the world
talked OF how unnatural this engage
ment was, that it was entirely nat
! u,al from the first moment they had
met at one OF the big charity bazaars
! to which Bill had gone for amuse-
ment and at which Gale had served
from duty.
! Bill fell in love, laughed at his OBJ
vious condition and went after Gale
not so seriously as insistently. Girls
never resisted the attentions or the
| Pedler boys They were all too fine
| looking and amusing. Gale had re
sisted rather longer than Bill expect
ed. She told him after they were en-
ga sed if was because she did not dare
let herself carek for fear she should
care too terribly
Little safetyN first" said Bill;
Now that you do care isn't 1t fun!'
Not fun exactly
"Well-sort Of first cousin to fun?"
II don't think it's amusing at all, y
said Gale.
only care what you do concluded
Bill, land / want YOU TO marry me
as quickly as is humanity possible. L
can't wait-nor will I"
But there were preliminaries. none
the less. Even Bill knew that he'd
have to have a future or at least the
makings of one before he took a wife.
BY great good luck one of his friends
"a really good friend-was going to
California for the Winter. leaving a.
delightful apartment to be had fur-
nished for a nominal rental. That set
tied a dwelling place as far as Bill
was concerned. So when he had al
| lied himself to an automobile agency
as sales and advertising manager at
a fair salary he felt that he had peen
extremely provident.
But Of course they aren't our fur-
nishings." demurred Gale. land If Mr..
Allen comes back in March instead
| of Nay we'll have to move then.
Wouldn't it be better maybe to get
place Of our own-not so luXurlous,
but lust a. couple of rooms some
where. for a little, and collect fur-
nishings as we can afford them:
Mother can give me a few things and
| Uncle Rob is going to send me a
check We could begin to get our
own furniture-
II don't want YOU working TOO
hard lust now" objected Bill. why,
this apartment of Aliens is just a
gift of heaven. 1t has the loveliest
rugs, the best looking pictures
three bedrooms-wait until YOU see
it. 1 want to enjoy YOU for little
while. I want you to be princess. y
The shy little smile that Bill loved
| flickered over Gales face and they
decided to take Alien nat. AS lHcN
were to be married in November 1t
tided them over the Winter.
| ); * x
ICALE spent several afternoons in
the Pedler house and several
evenings. They were all alike. At
first when she entered the room or
when a meal began she smiled and
looked charming. AS the time went
on she became silent and comprehen-
sion went out of her face. The con-
versation was too fast for her. as
Norma said. AS insults were hurting
themselves iocularly to and fro, as
people interrupted each other to get
F! hearing for their egotisms, Gale had
| nothing at all to say. When one or
another said something about her and
her approaching marriage she in
variably crimsoned in A regular mid
| Victorian fashion.
"she is mid-victorian," said Nor
ma.
Early Victorian" corrected Pencil
ope.
Now Bill is more Edwardian. He's
at least one period later"
Edward was a gay rake, you know