Evening star., 1928-05-06
CLASSIFIED
BY EDNA FERBER

Henry Comet knew little enough Of the
airl's life outside the five-room fat For
that matter. Mart'S social life was pretty
much a blank To them as we'll. There
they we're. the five of them, in a five
room fiat Parlor, front bedroom, back
bedroom. dining room, kitchen. Mart
slept on a bed-couch in the parlor. Mr..
and Mrs. Comet occupied the front bed
room Bobby and Din shared the little,
dark bedroom. with its single window
that stared hlindly out at the brick wall
OF an airleSS court.
1t was incredible that persons living
IN such almost indecent proximity
dwelling in such physical intimacy
should still be able To lead lives so re-
mote and detached from one another
Each had a separate and secret exist
ence into which the others did not pene-
tratc Even Din had hers. Din was a
ouie1. almost wistful child, given to
startlingly frank statements. She could
play by herself for hours, pale, self
contained. a trifie malicious, Sometimes
times she had for her feeling OF pro-
tective tenderness that surprised her.
Take Mart. In some way Mart had
picked up a knowledge of the cleo
tricianS craft. A few years at a decent
technical college might have made him
q trained and competent electrical en-
gneer But the Comets had had neither
the money nor the imagination for that
The boy was skilled, uncommunicative
His social life he lived quite outside the
family circle, Between him and Bobby
there existed q sort of fond feud
They addressed each other mainly in
terms Of contumely.
What you made up to repreSent?"
would be his comment. perhaps. on
BohbyS toilet for the evening
Any display OF emotion he considered
efTeminate, For that matter. there was
little or no demonstration of affection
in the Comet family. The children had
never seen q fond look or gesture be-
tween the parents Mrs Comet now
met with rebuff when she attempted to
take the long~legged Din into her arms.
A caress between Bobby and Mart was
undreamed of Yet for each other the
two had q certain hard and astringent
feeling Of affection.
MART ate at home. slept there,
ANA sometimes condeseended to a game
OF ball in the street before the house
with certain hard slim young men of
the neighborhood Like himself dex-
ferrous, swift. silent. He never took
Bobby out. It never occurred to either
Of them that he should Mart had a
quick. cat-ligc tread a good deal like
an Indians He was a marvellous
dancer His telephone communications
were mysterious. His outgoing calls
were not transacted on the home in
strument These he consummated for
the most part at the corner cigar store
at Sixty-sixth and Columbus You
saw him leaning indolently against the
glass door of the booth. a cigarette
waCglinc expertly in his lips.
But he had frequent incoming calls.
Mrs Comet was sometimes eXasperated
by the young ladies who called up, and
sometimes sorry for them rs MIR.
Comet in7 I'd like to speak To him.
Oh. isn't he? Are you expect
ing him? No , No. III
call again.
When they asked for Mr. Comet she
knew well that these high nasal voices
we're not craving the boon Of converse
ton with the sparse. dry, caustic figure
that was Comet pere. They wanted
Mart. Theirs was little enough salts
faction when they got him. Mart's
telephone conversation was as tight
and terse as Mart himself. II seemed
to consist almost entirely Of brief mega