The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1931-12-18
CHAPTER w
s..
The ctress


AS rule Edith hated Thursday. 1t
was Norma's afternoon and evening
out, and she and mother had to cook
the dinner and wash up afterward.
But today they were making a lark
Of 1t. Dad had telephoned that he
wouldn't be home to dinner, so they'd
had just what they liked; chicken
salad and rolls and two mince turn
overs from the community kitchen,
and cocoa that they'd made at home.
They had lot to talk about, Edith
did anyhow. She was full Of the
senior play, 'The School for Scandal"
They had been rehearsing all the
afternoon. Edith was Charles Surface.
The comfortable, rather jolly feeling
remained as they set about washing
the dishes. Mother looked so pretty
In that dutch apron. She was a peach.
It was fun to have her all to yourself,
even since the new change, back to
more like his old self, that had lately
come over dad. Dads conduct was
still perpiexing, but it didn't make her
blue any more. But of course her
fears and worries about him and
mother had been largely ignorance;
the idea that Mrs. Ingraham might be
going to have baby, or that there
was anything queer and unnatural
about dad and mother sleeping In diff
ferent rooms. Since an amazing talk
she had had with her science teacher,
speculations Of that sort had been
relegated to the world of mere childish
nonsense. Ed had been right, of
course, last summer when he had told
her she didn't know what she was
talking about. She wished she'd be-
1eved him then.
What a lot of fun 1t was to act, and
how much more fun 1t was going to be
when they really gave the play in cos
tune. Everybody agreed she was GO
ing to make perfectly corking man.
She thought she'd like to be an actress.
Her mother called her back.
sThere!" she said, when the last dish
was dried and put away, "that wasn't
80 bad, was it? How would you like
to do it every night?"
She was in the act Of answering the
FIRST question carelessly, off the top Of
iier mind, when the import Of the Sec
ond stopped he- short. Mother meant
something by mat unless she was just
teasing. She didn't look as If she was
teasing. She didn't wait for an an
swer-there was just time for the look
to pass between them before she went
on. Because we're going to try 1t.
I'm letting Norma go. I gave her two
weeks notice this morning"
Edith wouldn't let herself under
stand. II thought Norma was pretty
good,~ she said.
"Oh, yes" her mother agreed. eve
aren't going to try to get anyone else.
We're going to do 1t ourselves for a
while make picnic of 1t like to-
night"
Mother, has anything happened to
father? He hasn't-he isn't-going
away or anything?"
Her mother laughed as she said no
and Rugged her. "He's gone into a
new business. that's all. We hope it's
going to make our fortunes"
aWell, If it's going to make our for
tunes" Edith began, but her mother
interrupted.
''Father's resigned from the insur-
ance company. He had to, because the
new business will take all his time.
and Of course that means that his sal
airy stops. And it may be quite little
while before the money from the new
business comes in. He didn't want me
to let Norma go. He said he didn't be.
lieve 1t would be necessary, but l
thought we'd rather begin now max
ing money go as far as we could, than
wait till we didn't have any. 1t makes
II feel more as If we were helping.
want you to look at it that way, too.
so that he won't feel unhappy
about It."
That was all reasonable enough. of
course. And If they were really going
to be rich in the end. OF course they
wouldn't mind doing the homework.
Only mothers assurance didn't sound
convincing. Why did she try so hard
to keep Edith from being frightened
about 1t, unless, down inside, she were
really frightened herself? She felt
knraalH turning uerfecflv cold inside