The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1930-04-10
The Perilous
Romance
By BEATRICE VANDERBILT

r.
(Copyright.)
0T WANT you to marry me, Loretta
L Poole" said the perfectly strange
man at the studio party.
Loretta had never been to a studio
party in New York before. But the
tall, gorgeous sophisticated Irma who
shared her apartment and worked In
the same advertising firm with her,
had brought her on an impulse Of the
moment.
Loretta had been casually intro
duced to the man earlier In the eve
ming, but had not caught his name.
He was tall and lean with a slight
dark mustache which gave him an
air Of kindly cynicism. He had stood
a bit apart from the others-the long
haired men who raved on NOrdicism
and the doom of the theater-the
white-cheeked, red-lipped girls who
necessarily smoked and talked without
looking at person. One red-headed
girl in green had risen, sung snatch
or two of a song, and sat down in
the middle of a bar with a weary, ooh,
IpunkT"
This man was little different. And
now he had incredibly asked her to
marry him, standing beside her on the
small grilled balcony off the studio.
and looking down into what used to
be stable yard, pale in the wet light
of blurred moon.
Loretta had not had a love affair
in her twenty-four years. She had
never even been kissed. One day,
playing at "forfeits" in the school
yard, Jack Moselle, the bad boy Of
town, was offered the penalty of either
kissing Loretta Poole or drinking
down glass of water with live ant
in it. He had chosen the latter-he,
the scum of town, who lived across
the railroad tracks, whose mother was
a washwoman and whose father was
spoken of only in whispers by the nice
people of town Jack Moselle,
who sulked in the back seats of the
classroomS, coming sometimes to life
in English class to give a moody, dis
concertingly original recitation that
made the teacher afraid to call on
him again. This town bad boy had
chosen not to kiss her! Loretta had
never forgotten the humiliation of it.
Il want to marry you," the man re-
peated.
Loretta protested that she did not
know him, that she had just met him,
that he must be little out Of his
head. She did not add, "And 1 don't
even know what kind of a man you
are. You may be all right-and you
may not be-"
"Give me time" she begged bewil-
deredly. "Let me know you better"
''If you don't answer me now, shall
never ask you again." he stated def
nitely.
, Wild thoughts raced through Loret.
ta's head. This would probably be the
only romance of her life. Did she
dare grasp it? This man might be
anything. Would she risk him?
81 WILL" she told him, suddenly.
sob, please" as he moved towards
her. She retreated to the crowded
room, while he remained on the bal
cOny, smoking.
! "Wh-who is the tall thin man with
the mustache?" she finally summoned
the courage to ask of girl who wan
dered by.
''You mean Grandin Crane?" came
the answer. "The writer? Why, he's
the only real celebrity in the crowd"
Loretta breathed deeply. She knew
of Grandin Crane. She had read his
novels. After a time she humbly
sought him on the balcony.
81 know you," she said. "And !
don't see why you want to marry me-"
because I love you" he returned
with intensity, "and always have"
always? You just met me-"
81 met you," he said, smiling, Gin
the seventh grade l used to sit In
the back of the room so I could watch
you. You hated me. You were the
little lady. Your mother wouldn't let
you have anything to do with me. l
was the town bad boy-from across
the tracks"
"Jack Moselle!" exclaimed Loretta.
He nodded.
"T'm sorry to have tricked you into
marrying me. You never would have
knowing me-"
"No," stammered Loretta, then ad-
ded, "But why wouldn't you kiss me-
that time? You preferred swallowing
a live ant"
81 loved you too much to humble you
by kissing you-then. Am I humbling
you now, Loretta?"
Humidity