The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-07-18

dress of fine dark serge with thin white ruffles across the neck and around her wrists. The clear con- trast suited her. Her sense of drama was gratified by good clothes and good grooming. She was the successful young business woman, setting and costume com plete. But the plain polished wall nut, the easement cloth curtains, the dark rugs, the call-button, tele- phone, letter baskets-these might just as well have belonged to a successful young business man. It was perhaps an unconscious tri- bute to the rebellion of Ann Yer onica against a man-made world though Jane did not read Ann Yer onica now-which kept James office like mans. Also 1t made her clients a little more easy in their minds about doing business with so young 8 woman.
 After the Thorpe episode was completely over and Amy had taken the child, Jane had started out for herself, a perilous proceed ing for one with only a small circle of friends and acquaintances, since the real estate business counts so surely on such contacts. Yet Jane had done fairly well. Now and then she acted confidently for Kandels', and MT Handel had urged her to come back to his office, but she would not do that.
 Gradually and persistenly she had worked up a definite line for herself among the small landlords and her progress had been steady, her profits slight, but sure. It had meant week after week, month after month of hard grind 10, 12, IA hours a day. Not that Jane ob- jected to the grind. She wanted to be so tired at night that she would neither think nor remember. She welcomed an anodyne for re- gret and humiliation. Regret for her foolish surrender to Roger Thorpe, humiliation and anger for having, as she saw it, abased her. self to Amy, permitted Amy to in- suit her.
 Amy had told her to stay out of her life, never to try to take the child. Jane hated the recollection of it, the submission to Amy. She should have been as bitter with Amy as Amy had been with her. As for staying out of Amy's life why, 1t was Amy who had better stay out of hers, Jane's-hadn't she begun by taking Howard Jackson, away from her? And now, her child?
 Time had blurred and faded these resentments, pushed them ,r+o tLa Tonp,a aca1Ir. ance had returned with her estab- lished business, her growing bank account and her own private dis cretion. She had taken another apartm elevators and an alert hall force. She asked some of her best clients to dinner now and then and was asked by them in return. She went to the theater and to an occasional concert or art show with a woman friend, Miss Jardine perhaps, or some other chosen for polite reasons, but her work was her first interest and nothing pushed 1t aside.
 Sometimes all that nonsense about Roger Thorpe, and the child, and even Amy, took on a quality of unreality. Such things surely could never have happened to this brisk resourceful creature who lived so sensibly, so openly. with no hint of romantic adventure.
 Nevertheless, Jane had not gone back to Marburg. There was no reason why she should. Miss Rosa and she were better friends at a distance, and this was the first time Rosa had ever sounded a note of distress. Knowing her aunts disposition to ride down both phy- sical ailments and mental perturp- ations, Jane knew there was some thing serious behind the present appeal. Miss Rosa was not one to make a fuss about nothing. Shes not really old" thought Jane. "She never tells her age, but she can't be more than 61 or 62. So she surely must be sick. And this Massey partner must have bothered her more than she says. shall have to look into that"
 (Copyright 1894. by Sophie Kerr)
 (To Be ContinuedD