The Washington times., 1931-05-15

made into a talking picture by
Metro GOldwyn Mayer with
Marion Davies in the leading
rOle.)
The consciousness had long
since begun to dawn upon
Jenny, in whom the impulse
to climb was an acquired,
rather than an inherent char
acteristic, that she had started
off, socially speaking, on the
wrong foot.
The advent of the John G.
Raricks. from out of the Mid
die West, had not been a plan
ned campaign, for the reason
that the need for strategy had
simply not occurred to her
until the propitious moment
had passed and the house of
Rarick had settled.
subsequently her mistakes
had been fast and successive.
After the dust of the publicity
attending the purchase by John
e.. Rarick of the famous Ficke
mansion had been laid, Jenny,
appalled, by the lull, had
snatched, with more nervous
ness than diplomacy, at old
relationships, mostly families
OF wealth and no particular
social position, whose migra-
ton from the Middle West had
preceded theirs.
Thereafter. the Raricks bob
bed about in uneven waters.
sometimes riding up to quite a
social crest. but in an cratic,
unstable way that was precarl-
Gus. and then, Just as likely as
not. sliding down again into
the valleys between the waves.
Not In the Swim
No gainsaying the fact that
the Raricks were invited to six
houses outside the social regis
ter for every one within.
Jenny's awareness of social-reg'
lister determinations did not
even begin to dawn upon her
until we'll after the move, when
that dawn came up like thun-
der.
The time was not slow in
coming when she was to en-
counter the difficulty Of round
ing up a formal dinner COM
posed of the people she came
gradually to realize were the
right ones. and when she was
to scorch under such mortit1ca-
tions as sending out 36 invita-
tions to the alleged right ones
and have % regrets come home
to roost heavily upon her heart.
It was not exactly in the
spirit of snubbing. The Raricks
were not sufficiently in the
running for that. It was just
that in settings where even
great wealth required proper
exploitation, the Raricks had
somehow not arrived right.
Clever Neighbors
What brought this home with
sudden acuteness to Jenny was
the fact that the Isaac Slo-
Gums, whose wealth and social
connections back in the ST.
Louis days. when they we're
neigh bors in Westmoreland
Place, were comparatively negli-
gible, had moved East consid-
erably after the Raricks. and
were now moving securely and
consistently in social circles
which Jenny achieved only
sporadically.
Betty Slocum's careful social
sense had accomplished that.
She had planned ahead. She
had surveyed. and ended by
employing, at vast sum, the
services of woman of i'm
peccable social position, whose
chief financial resources flowed
IN bountifully in return for
acnieving a wedge for the So
cially ambitious.
n.
best that could be hoped for
was less uneven shedding.
The mistake had rebounded
most cruelty on Jennifer. Pas
sionately Jenny had wasted
heartburn on the futility of
wishing that Jennifer and Avery
had been born to her IN re-
verse order. An eligible son,
Romehow, millions in his off
ing, would have accelerated So
cial matters.
AS ii was, Jennifer. always
popular, whirled nevertheless in
three worlds. A Bohemian one
which her set invaded in "slum-
ming parties; an outer fringe
one which represented wealth