Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1932-11-18
Rocking
Chair
By JANE OSBORN
eby Mcclure Newspaper synGieAte.
WNu Service

effort to be back at commencement
time. Last June it was 1922's turn to
come back and the usual arrange
ments were made to provide for their
entertainment during the gala week.
Cynthia Burton was making prepare
tons for the Sunday tea party which
her father. Professor Burton. always
gave for the men who returned.
Saturday morning Cynthia was beat
cookies for which the Burton tea par
ties had long been famous. Ten years
ago she had helped her mother with
these dainties and since her mothers
death she had taken a loyal pride in
making them in the precise old-fash-
toned way.
Stella Alden. her cousin, sat beside
her cracking nuts that were later to
be chopped and used with cream
cheese and other things for the filling
of the sandwiches next day. She had
stopped on her way to Cynthia's at the
railroad station on pretext of getting
a time table and there she had seen
some of the boys of 1922"
IF the gang isn't all here" she
said, at is almost all here. You've no
idea how some of them have changed.
/ was talking to Harry Wallace-'mem-
Der Harry? Well. he's quite gray hut
terribly good looking. And Fred's COM
ing-going to put up at the inn be-
hoe hrnttnht r.+sfn
Bruce and Granger Yates and Piggy
Brown are all hack. Carrot Jones and
Spinich Smith are comng-and some
one said they had heard in a round
about way that Rocking Chair was
coming. Member Rocking Chair?-
Cynthia looked mp with a suspicion
Of smile "Yes-I do. But / don't
believe he'd come. He's been in South
America ever since he graduated.
Queer fish. wasn't he?" from Stella.
piggy Brown said he hadn't heard
anything about him-couldn't even re-
member why they called him Rocking
Chair. Nobody could"
Cynthia knew well enough but she
didn't say so. In the days when the
1922 men were still undergraduates
Professor Burton had held open house
for students every Sunday afternoon
and there were always fifteen or twen-
~ who availed themselves Of his hos
pitality. Cynthia's mother poured the
tea in the old drawing room while
Cynthia, rather shy girl under
twenty, had brought the TEA things and
the sandwiches and cookies from the
kitchen. And almost every Sunday
for two or three years lank. rather
awkward boy had sat at one side of
the drawing room in the old-time rock
ing chair. drinking tea, which he could
not endure. for the sake of the cookies
and other dainty morsels that went
with ii. He continued to come because
each Sunday her mother had held his
clumsy, brawny hand in hers aud made
him promise to come again the next
week. and there was mute look Of
gratitude in his deep gray eyes as
he looked down at her.
On the campus, in the dormitory-all
about the college town--the tall. awk-
ward student who was working his
way through college was known as
Rocking Chair And Rocking Chair he
had remained in the memory of class
mates. Most of them could not even
recall that his real name was Ben
Owen.
Since then, of course, rocking chairs
had gone very much out Of fashion.
And Cynthia had met with no opposi.
ton on the part of her father when
she wanted to carry the old rocker up
into the attic
Having cracked and shelled the nuts
Stella made excuses. She wanted to
dress for the ball game that afternoon
She thought from something that Piggy
said that perhaps he might call her M.
So Cynthia went on alone with the
preparations for the next days spread.
Sunday morning Cynthia went IN
into the attic and in a dingy corner
found the old rocker so covered with
dust that 1t needed a thorough soap
and water scrubbing before she called
her father to help her carry it down
to the old drawing room. There were
tears in Cynthia's eyes because the
sight Of the old chair recalled so WV
idly her mothers understanding smile
as an awkward boy had looked visit
fully at her so many years ago.
Fifty returned graduates crowded
joyously into the spacious old draw
ing room the next day and those who
could not find seats sat on cushions
on the floor. A tall distinguished man
Of thirty odd sat at one side Of the
room ina shabby old rocking chair. A
group Of men had gathered around him
while with brief, terse responses he
told them of the railroads he had
helped to build in South America.
They had not even known that he was
in charge Of the gigantic undertaking
OF which they had heard so much,
Stella edging up to Cynthia as they
brought In the plates Of cookies and
sandwiches whispered with awe: ITS
Rocking Chair. Isn't he stunning
and so distlnguishedw
Rocking Chair fingered after the
others had gone. AS he took Cynthia's
hand In his there was the old wistfuI
look in his clear rray eves