New Britain herald., 1926-06-25

ried across the lawn toward her. He paid the driver who had brought her, and gathered up her three handbags.
 Sylvia heard him explaining to Babs how he had waited for her at the station and missed her, some 1 how They were both laughing as they came up the walk and into |the glare of the porch-light
 No wonder he didn't recognize her" was Sylyia's first thought when her eyes fell on Babs. For Babs had changed miraculously in |the last four years. She was almost handsome.
 ] Her hair, that had been oily and ldanll as an Indian sQuaw's locks, had been bobbcd and permanently Iwaved.
 She had always had good features Iarhoueh her complexion had been load. But someone had shown her l how to color her lips and cheeks land 10 shadow her eyes, with brown powder. so that they looked large and soft.
 Her clothes were no longer as Terrible" as Sylvia had described them 10 Lolly. They were simple and clinging and delicately fragrant with some kind of spicy perfume. In short. Babs had transformed her self from an Ugly Duckling into a Swan, 10 say the least. 1H, from under her darkencd Iashes when she shook hands with him. And her eyes followed his tall figure as he started up the stairs of the Little White House with her bags.
 My dear" she said excitedly 10 Sylvia. when he was ont of hearing, My dear, I've never seen anything in my life half so good looking as your husband"
 For the life of her, Syyia couldn't have told you why her heart sank at inc words But it did.
 It was like lead in her breast, as she led Babs Delano into her living room.
 CHAPTER l.
 Bahs dropped down into a. low, flowered chair in front of the merry gratc fire thai cracked and sang lin the grate. She took out green enamel vanity case and carefully rouged and powdered her face,
 Then she leaned back. crossed her silk-stoclinged legs, and lit cigaret.
 Sylvia could scarcely believe her eyes. as she watched her. She couldn't believe that this handsome, worldly creature was really the plain Bahs Delano she had known lat library school, four years ago.
 "Babs. if I hadn't been expecting you today, I'd never have known you." she exclaimed, "You've chang ed SO"
 Rabs puffed a long gray plume Of cigaret smoke at the ceiling.
 "AH women have changed the last four or five years. Sylvia" she said slowly. "We've all taken to doing q lot of things that We shouldn't do Painting our faces, smoking cigarets, taking cocktail now and then, and other things"
 s Sylvia shrugged her shoulders. 'I don't smoke or drink" sine answer ed. rather sharply, "I guess I'm old fashiOnod-" She frownod, as sh" wondered what the "othcr things were that Babs didn't mention. She wondered if one of them was fall ing in love with other women's hus- bands.
 Ten minutes afterward she saw that that was exactly what Babs was doing.
 When Fanny in clean shirt and his newest necktie. came down to supper. she turned her chair toward his and smiled at him. flirtatiously.
 "So I don't look like my photo graph Ranny?" he asked him so coyly that Sylvia could have slap ped her face. She had always liked Rabs very much, but suddenly she hated her as only a mild, gentle woman knows how 10 hate.
 Fanny shook his head. You have two eyes, one nose, and one mouth" he said. "So has the face in the pho tograph. That's the only resem- blance I can see"
 Babs rose, with a silken swish of her skirts, and picked up her photo graph where it was standing, prop ped against a silver vase. Suddenly she tore if in two. threw the pieces down on the dancing flames in the grate.
 That picture was taken when l was twenty" she pouted, and 1 de- clare 1t makes me look older than l am now, at twenty four"
 At twenty-four. Sylvia stared at her in blank amazement. She knew that 3abs was thirty, if she was q day.
 She saw then what had happened. Babs had fallen in love with Fanny, with the suddenncss and reckless ness of an old raid when she finally does fall in love-and she didn't want him 10 know that she was old CT than he was. Hence the fis about her age.
 "Oh, the silly thing, Sylvia thought looking at her as she leaned toward Fanny with wide smile on her mouth. She seemed almost to have forgotten tat Sylvia was in the room.
 But Ranny didn't think Babs sil- ly, evidently, He listened to the flow of small talk that poured from the smiling mouth. with the smoothness of oil, as if he had never heard any thing so cntranCjEg.
 q like the way you look at things. Miss Delano," he said, when the meal Was half over, and Babs shook q playful finger at him.
 "Now, don't you dare call me Miss Delano' again. You call me Babs' I want you to call me 'Babs,' she told him.
 After supper. Sylvia pulled out a little smoking-table, aAd then wheel nd tb. t.o ,.ouop O,if pf tbn room