Evening star., 1932-12-18

oNsTANcE PENRosE MELDEN
sank back into the boudoir chair of
heT room in the Hotel Larrenton
and stared in smaZement at the
a telephone. Fer the moment it
alcne was to blame Then she was
startled by the sound of delighted chuckle
that seemed to have emanated from herself
ard suddenly she remembered to be ashamed
Psnlose5 did not premise to call up unknown
at O'Clock on following afternoons.
Melden might she thought, undoubtedly would
but Constance wasn't really Meden.
Thoroughly aroused now. she hurried to the
dressing table and almost absurdy re-
heved to find her own reflection in the mirror
But the reflection not exactly her own
There an aliveness showing in that face
that belied the conventional cut of her con-
servative brown travelling ensembe-an amused
impishncss not at all suitable for the mother
Of two almost grown children. That mans
voice had done this. And for sCme uneX-
plainable reason she had allowed herself to f1irt
with it-actually f1irt! Oddly enough it gave
her gddy sensation of having been unfaith-
full to George Melden-as if any one could be
unfathful to husband who had been di-
vorced for three years. Even so, Constance
Penrosc Melden, who never had been unfaith-
full to anything ever. vas pleased.
What has come over me?" she whispered
Strictly speaking it wasn't such an abrupt
upheaval. AS long ago as this morning she re-
own dependable chauffeur at the wheel. she
had driven past the buildings of Hotchkiss
School, where only the day before she had
started George, jr., On the first lap of his way
toward Yale. Hotchkiss was not her choice;
the child had been enrolled there at birth by
proud father who now had no claim on him.
To Constance, however, precedent was prece-
dent. But how much more contented she had
been last year when her daughter Augusta had
entered the school of Penrose choice.
| lard upon this satisfying thought had come
the full realization that she was indeed
alone Then gradually, it if each taut
muscle of her body relaxed. For the first time
in years there nothing driving her on. So
she sighed and decided that the hills were re-
markably attractive with the first patches Of
Autumnal color them. She felt, with
surprise that she was looking at them for her
self 1mpulsvely, she lowered one OF the VIM
dows of the car that were always kept closed
because George, jr. was susceptible to draughts.
Like wine, the sunshine blew in to her.
Constance, who barely thought of wine. The
wind against her face was keen with Fall. 1t
had been enough to give he sudden distaste
for home
"Where are We, John?" she asked.
Nearing Poughkeepsie ma'am"
"You may drop me at the railroad station"
she said hurredly before she could change her
mind.
Two Constances seemed to hive boarded the
southbound express and the gay one was in
the lead. Net until the train had started did
she admit that she was OH her way to New
York City to spend two, perhaps three, glorious
days without soul knowing where she
An amazing statement for her rational self to
accept New York City had been no-man's
land since her divorce and George Meldens
taking over the New York Offices of Holden
Me1den & Co. A six-million -to-one chance of
meeting him again had been too much of
risk-the Penroses were not gamblers. But now
it suddenly didn't matter if she saw him. She
could even face Florence Ennerby again with
out a qualm. Friends had informed her that
the Ennerby woman and George we're often
seen together.
How odd that she could think of him merely
she once had known. He really
had bsen rather wonderful at first but SO
irres ponsble-not about his wok, but about
their lives He could not understand why she
must devote herself to the children. And for
a successful lawyer it was incredible how he
objected to methcdical management of
home The Penrose millions had annoyed him,
too. and the Penrose family smothered him, he
said Ridiculous!
The train had arrived at One hundred and
twenty fifth street before she had given
thought to where she was to stay. To be sure,
there was always the Larrent.n. woman
alone could feel perfectly secure thsre.
"Or could she?" Constance thought now.
remembering her telephone conversation She
was looking into the late afternoon traffic from
one of the windows of her tenth-foor room.
It down there on the corner that she had
chanced to meet Harriet Curran. They had
arranged to have dinner and to 60 to the opera
the following evening; and among other
things Harriet had told her that Billie Van
Deer had finally married Arson Ordway and
taken an apartment in town. She hadn't
bothered to write down Billie's number; she
always remembered telephone numbers. After