The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1932-06-16

V tiers were inclined to agree
that of the two, Marion had
the better mind. Luella had simply
used hers to better advantage.
As a matter of fact, compared with
the erudition of her twin, Marion was
sorely lacking. Life had turned out
that way for her. In the beginning,
the two sisters, hand in hand, neck to
neck, so to speak, had begun what
was to be their four years course at
the ste e university for which they
had DO qualified with honors.
OF the two, 1t is probably true that
during the first year, Marion's college
standing was a peg ahead of her sis
ter's. Not that it was scarcely worth
recording. Marion would have been
the last to encourage that. For all
practical purposes, the two sisters
ranked about on a level. Super In
telligent girls, carrying on the fine
Intellectual traditions Of their father,
whose geographical textbooks were in
use throughout the country.
It was at the beginning Of her
sophomore year that Marion, sudden
ly, and like a bolt out Of the blue,
threw over her academic career with
out so much as an ounce of apparent
conjunction, and returned one eve
ming to the modest fiat she shared
with her sister, married to young
automobile salesman she had met at
q charity function.
For the first, the incongruity of this
marriage seemed apparent to every
one but the young pair most concerned.
Pale, thoughtful, studiouS, and even
precious Marion Studdiford, married
to the rudy young man Tom Ford,
whose shoes were so glossy, whose
hair was so glossy, whose linen shone
with even a separate splendor and
whose use of English in a man with
whom she was not in love, would have
caused the erstwhile Marion Studio
fords ears to shudder.
It was a matter, however, of full
three years, before the wells Of illu-
sion began to tear themselves from
the eyes of Marion, and she began to
awake gradually, terrifyingly, to the
strange truth that in marriage, this
vigorous, boyish, refreshing young
man of her ideals, had become no
more than the too corpulent, slightly
vulgar, blatant young salesman whose
horizon was bounded by rubber tires.
It was not the kind Of realization
that came over night. Slowly, like q
reluctant tide, it crept upon her, wash
ing misery into her soul, drenching
her waking, and even her sleeping
hours, in tumble of regrets. Regrets
for what might have been. Regrets
for freedom that was gone. Regrets
for the birthright which she had for
feited so blindly, and into which
LueIla had meanwhile come in full
prime.
Not that she would have exchanged
with Luella. After all, to be dean Of
women in a large college, portentious
as it might seem, was scarcely the
destiny that even Luella, at thirty,
must have planned for herself.
Marion wanted more than that. And
yet-had it been in her power to
choose, over and over again she would
have selected for herself the destiny
that was Luella's, rather than her own
as the stagnating wife Of her rudy
vulgarian.
At least to Luella's life there was a
dignity of achievement and congenial-
ity Of environment.
From her own kind, almost over
night, as it were, Marion, after her
marriage became outcast The friends
who had known her, university col
leagues, the members of her social
group, simply did not speak Toms
idiom.
Fool! Fool! Nature had trapped
Marion. At twenty three, the entire
course Of her life had shifted away
from the fine true course of her SIS
ter's. At thirty. Luella, all on her
better than Marion's, had achieved
position.
Not, as she told herself again and
again. that she would yearn for the
rather frigid dignity that went with
Luella's position as dean Of women,
but just the same, life could be no
more barren for Luella, unmarried,
than it was for Marion, married to
Tom.
On the contrary. for the freedom
that was Luella's 1t seemed to Marion
that she would be willing to sacrifice
actual years of her life. And the
horrible part of it was Toms inno-
cence of all this dismay. He was like
q small boy, content with his lot; con-
tent with his wife; content with his
playtoys of cheap automobile and ex-
pensive radio. Life was good; Ma
rion was good; automobile tires were
lucrative. All was well in his world
He was killed outright while demon
strating, to customer. the perform
ance of a set Of his own tires.
To Marion, who had repeatedly,
throughout the years of her life with
him, contemplated the hour when she
must destroy his house of cards, by
revealing her state Of mind, his death
came as release, and yet, at the same
time filled her with a sense of recti-
tude that took away stings Of con-
science.