The Washington times., 1936-10-27

for him one afternoon ana 1ouno
her in the little front room, pour
ing tea out of a cheap Chinese
pot, for the Sonora Kramer, wife Of
that Carl Kramer who had bought
her silver service at auction and
leased her old home from the
bank who took it from her.
He told Caroline, who was an
noyed that he hadn't called her at
once, and given her the chance to
rush right over with Ards. "It
would be so nice for Ardis," she
said, land who knows? Something
might come Of it,"
But it was Edith and her girls,
Alice and Anne, who were the
most impressed. Since her mar
riage to penniless Ellery Lyons.
and the dwindling of the Failey
estate, Edith had had to drop out
of the old social life.
Using i'll health as an excuse for
her withdrawal, she pushed and
prodded the girls on, and made
the society columns and the towns
weeklies her Bible. Not Socialite
whose history she couldn't recite
back to the second and third gen.
Grafton.
carl Kramer" she explained,
lis really nobody, though of course
he's filthily rich and heaven only
knows what those Guatemala
plantations of his are worth. But
she's from one of the few South
American families that really
count. Her sister, the younger
one, is that Princess Sarony you
see in all the magazines.
''Elena-the Signora Kramer,
really married beneath her, you
know, though of course the
Kramers have those Guatamalan
holdings for three generations and
they've all been educated in Eu-
rope, and been everywhere.
I'm surprised that they're not
educating the boy in Europe,
though I suppose they will send
him again. He was in school in
Switzerland for a couple of years."
Jan listened, silent, thrilled.
She didn't really care that
Lowell Kramer had been to a
school in Switzerland and had an
aunt who was called a princess.
She liked him just because he was
himself. a quiet dark-eyed BOY,
who liked her. But she knew that
they'd have made fun of his queer
accent and his stiff little speeches
if he hadn't been what he was
someone that nobody would think
of making fun of, no matter what
funny things he said.
The things that she'd dreamed
Of on the train coming west, were
coming true. She was still "the
plain Keith girl" but that didn't
matter now, because a boy liked
her.
When the girls at Miss Carver's
school, where Uncle Peter grudg-
ingly sent her and Dorathea, with
his Ards, began planning parties,
she didn't have to depend on
mother or Dorathea, she had her
own partner to aSk-Lowell Kra-
mr..
Wrapped in her own plans, she
scarcely needed what the others
were doing. Perched on stool in
the kitchen, Smelling peas, she'd
sit by the hour, Smelling peas, hull
ing Strawberries, while they chat
tered like two schoolgirls.
It was to grandmother that all
her secret plans were told, her
fears, her hopes, her dreams re-
lated.
Aunt Caroline said that I could
have white lace dress that Ards
had last year. She says it's made
over taffeta slip. and it has a
pale blue satin sash, only she
doesn't think pale blue is very in
tereSting on blonde, but I can't
see why not, do you? Nom says
everybody at Miss Carver's will
recognize it. Do you think they
will?"
"Um. no. not if we alter it
a bit"
That's what I said. Grand
mother, isn't it all right for your
own aunt and cousin to give you a
dreSS?"
"Of course it is, sweet"
But mother doesn't like it,"
well. your mother and Caro-.
line"
Grandmother, I don't like her,
either. I mean, not the way you
ought to like your aunt by mar
riage. I don't like Uncle Peter
either and sometimes I get so
MAD at Ards, but nearly always I
like her lots. Dorathea says it's
all because Uncle Peter has to
help U.S."
Silence from grandfather, fixing
meat balls for dinner.
"Grandmother you don't
mind because we've gone on living
with you?"
Gracious no! Whatever gave
you that idea? Why Of course I'm
glad to have you. My own fam
ily!"
Ito Be Continued