The Washington times., 1936-12-05

| the ironing DOarO.
Queer, distorted thoughts went
whirling through her head. What
would Lowell think II he knew
she'd taken the news dry-eyed, that
she'd eaten her dinner, washed the
dishes and was going to iron q
blouse, just as If nothing had hap
pened?
His Adele de whatever her name
was, had probably never washed .
dish nor ironed q blouse in her
life.
Wonder what it would be like
to have everything. Never to have
to do q thing for yourself, never
to have to work. To have . maid
to bring your things and wait on
you!
Therel She'd wasted all this
time, looking at the iron Just as
if it would heat without being
plugged in. A little exasperated
because she'd been complimenting
herself on being sane and sensible
and taking it so beautifully, and
all the while standing like an idiot
waiting for an unconnected iron
to heat, she switched on the cur.
rent, went back to the living room
to wait.
Shed forgotten to turn the
radio off. It was still playing
softly. A man was singing. Some
sentimental catchy tune:
And when I grow too old to
dream,
It'll have you in my heart"
When I grow too old to dream
I'm 10, and I'm too old now,
she thought. I'm 10 and it's all
over. The boy I've loved ever
since I. was old enough to know
anything at all has thrown me
over. He didn't even write me
a last goodbye. He didn't even
say he loved me, that he had ever
loved me. He just wrote a letter
that could be printed in the news
papers or shown to lawyers. He
just wrote a safe letter, that was
as kind as he could make it, with
out taking chances. He did that
to me. Lowell. And I'd have
died for him. Faced torture.
Starved. Suffered. Anything.
CHAPTER XIV :. .,
For the first time the enormity
Of what had happened was borne
upon Jan.
She'd grow old and bitter and
careful, too. Shed go to work
every day, and come home every
night, and wash and iron and
brush her hair and do her nails.
Shed go on, from day to day, to-
morrow and tomorrow and for
ever-too old to dream, and only
bitterness and pain in her heart.
Tears poured over her an
guished twisted face. Sobs tore
themselves out Of her wrecked
body. She sank to her knees be-
fore the chair that had been
grandmother's, trying to stop the
Sobs, to cover her face, forgetting
that there was no one to see, no
one to hear.
II knew you'd catch your death
on that roof last night" Evelyn
said when she came to wake Jan,
found her hoarse and feverish next
morning.
"It seems to have settled in my
eyes," Jan said. trying to open
them, letting them droop again,
because the lids were so hot and
swollen.
'It's settled all over you, if you
ask me-" Evelyn complained, bus
ting to make her comfortable,
happy as she always was, when
there was someone to wait on.
Lying there, not really caring
that she wasn't going to work, Jan
wished she'd get pneumonia and
die. It would be as comfortable
an end as any, and she certainly
did have a cold in her head, be-
sides those awful eyes. What fool
she was to cry like that. What a
fool anyone was to cry about any
thing.
Afternoon brought a letter from
Francesca, the first since her brief
note from Yokohama, announcing
Dorathea'S arrival.
Jim and I are quite delighted
with her." she wrote. "I was rather
prepared for her beauty, as I had
heard enough about that from the
family. Every letter I ever got told
me that 'Dorathea looks just the
way Evelyn did as a girl How
ever both Jim and I were a little
disappointed that you were send
ing her instead of Jan, as I'd gath
cred from your letters, and the
news of that unfortunate affair of
Dorathea'S, that she was the un-
happy, dissatisfied type.
"On the contrary, she's so eager
and thrilled about everything that
even Jim adoreS her.
"Jim'S great crony, Freddy Van
Dyne, was at the dock to meet us
when we came back to Manila, and
they're off for a drive somewhere,
now. Freddy is fairly swept off
his feet, and Dorathea's manner
is far from disintereSted.
Freddy is our most eligible
bachelor, really a good catch, and
it wouldn't surprise me. She's so
spectacularly lovely. I can't un.
derstand why she wasn't a Sensa-
tion in San Francisco. Every
where we've taken her people
have fallen all over themselves
just to get look at her. And
with it all, she's so sweet and un-
affected.
Ito Be Continued)
CCopyriEht, 1875. by King Features