The Washington times., 1931-06-10

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heart.
There was a card rushed
into the hand that was flung
high over her head as she lay
on the chaiSe-longue. It was
part of the damnable wrong
ness. It had added to her
impending state of high nerv-
BUSINESS to receive this invita-
ton from Mrs. Grant-Speigel
to weekend at her place in
Lenox beginning the very day
that she had arranged with
DR.. Noon to enter the hospital.
An impulse to cancel her 4
o'clock engagement with Ra-
mon at the tearoom the next
afternoon flooded over Jenny.
But even as she considered,
she knew that, punctiliously.
dragging herself up from the
chaiSe-longue, she would be at
the appointed place at the ap-
pointed time.
Revision of Self
It was in the intervals be-
tween seeing Ramon that re-
vulsions like this could some
times overtake her. RevuIsion
of self. A commiserate desire
to creep back somehow into
the old unevil life with Rarick
that dated back to the days
when she had first set up
housekeeping and had present
ed a first child to the serious
young man who. with his feet
on the clay banks OF the
Meramac and his eyes on the
Pyrenees, had wooed her.
Jenny, who had no God in
particular, except one she resur-
rected for herself in time Of
great stress, felt suddenly and
terribly the need Of God and
Rarick. Her emergency God
had last been on her lips in her
paroxysms Of grief and pity
over Avery. She was about to
have need Of Him again.
His name bubbled along her
lips in tears. God, get me out
of this. God, pull me through.
God. make a better person OF
me. God, I need you. God,
spare Jennifer any shock. God,
forgive me all-everything. And,
strangely, paradoxically, even
as she lay there, chastened Of
mood and supplicating: God,
keep me well and desirable to
Ramon.
And, of course, she did see
him that following afternoon at
4. AS a matter Of fact, she
sent a chauffeur to her mil
liners so that she should have
to wear a new tall and narrow
Russian turban of black krim.
mer that glittered down the
front with a long dagger Of
diamonds. Ramon might t1nd
it effective and amusing.
A Strange Face
Her white face, long and mar.
row as the hat itself, not a rim
of hair showing, was almost like
a transparent face, on to which
had been hung a deep-crimson
butterfly made Of two painted
lips. Strange, glittering Jenny,
at whom people stared without
admiring.
AS usual, on the edge of one
more experience Of seing Ra-
mon, her revulsion fell away
from her and became anticipa-
tion that tingled.
Riding along in a Snide taxi
cab toward the place Of their
appointment, the ordeal before
her began to set itself like a
stage.
Contrary to his habit Of late.
Ramon was in the tearoom
first, seated at the small table
toward the rear, under a wall
bracket of one incandescent
bulb with a pink-paper tissue
shade. They could count on
this place to be fairly empty
at this hour. She could smell
cigarette smoke and see the
black shellacked armor Of his
hair as she entered.
Their public habit was to
shake hands formally. It struck
her with chill that the hand
which had used to cling to pro-
long that instant was some
thing inanimate that had to
be propped around her own,
like a dead one.
II want good hot tea quick"
she said, and drew off the
long, beautiful gloves which
she always wore in heavy, loose
crinkles along her forearm.
II cannot stay to tea," he
said. shortly.
The pain in her heart and