The Dayton forum. [volume] (Dayton, Ohio) 1913-1949, 1937-10-29
One : There Was
. North and a
/" South, !" but
Love Knows No
Boundary Lines

DETH CARTER lay on her back on the
- porch glider. Her golden-tan arms
were flung under the black riot OF her
curls and her blue eyes were half closed
against the bri1liance of the September
afternoon.
were churning about with the strength
or her hatred. But they were. She said.
evenly. Il, for one. am not going TO pay
one speck of attention to that Cabot
Long. He's a Yankee nobody, and ]
think he had lot OF nerve coming down
here Building those hideous mills and
causing that horrible influx of mill
workers! They're as sorry a looking
horde as ] ever saw In all my life. And
those smokestacksl right in the midst
OF our homes and gardens! ughl'
Hes mighty good looking though
drawled Patsy Keith from the shadowy
iyy-covered corner Of the porch so
tall and blond and athletic. !"
athletic and howl" snapped Beth.
Patsy know what Beth meant by that.
Cartersville. which normally should have
been quiet. with round OF placid amuse-
ments had turned into veritable PROV
ing ground for Olympic champions under
the Yankee Long regime. Cabot Long
had introduced water polo. curling, Ia
crosse and tennis tournaments TO his
Southern neighbors And oddly, the
whole toWn-with the exception Of Beth
had followed the newcomer in a solid.
idiotic phalanx Of hectic endeaVor
Wen, you can't deny tha. he has lots
OF money" Patsy went on. softly. And
money down here il very refreshing,
sugar I'll admit that his house doesn't
exactly match the antiquated piles of
bricks in which we all live. But Id trade
this pillared number any day in the week
foi the Long mansion. Imagine six bath
rooms with the plumbing actually work
ing And knotty pine recreation room
with built-in bar. / think could bear
up nobly without ancestral ghosts prowl
Ing about at night, clanking their chains,
and what have you. And besides, Cabot
might have brought along a Yankee
ghost or two. just to keep in step with
I'D. lAIClC h1G 0lQ kdIiiltltS--Sti4i lllIiS-
trious ones north of the Mason Dixon
Line. And understand Cabot comes
from one Of them The Massachusetts
Longs. darling
DETH CARTER sat bolt upright on the
A1 porch glider at that. Her blue eyes
blazed and her dark curls seemed to rise
on her scalp "Really?" she snorted
Well, If that's the wa, you feel about
1t ALL why don't you marry him? Why
don't you help him turn our precious
little Southern town into a dirty COM
mercial Yankee dump Why don't you
have dozen Yankee brats and 60 back
TO Boston with them some day and learn
to talk through your nosel don't sup
pose, snorted Beth, that your ancestors
turning over in their graves would mean
n thing to you?"
mo" said Patsy. amusedly, lit
wouldn't. The exercise might do them
good"
"Patsyl"
The war between the States was
fought years ago" said Patsy. suddenly
serious. My grandfather died at the
Battle OF Charlottesville. Yours at Bull
Run And Cabot Longs at Gettysburg
So what?"
For one long momen. Beth sat look
Ing at her lifelong friend with cold, in
credulous eyes. Then those eyes filled
with tears that sparkled like diamonds
on her incredibly long lashes She got
up from the porch swing with slow de-
liberation. She said. icily. Il never
thought I'd hear words like those from
Y Patsy Keithl'
And without another word she
crossed the porch. her small back rigid,
he4 dark head high
Patsy said. softly. from the depths OF
her corner: Don't be a goof, Beth
Cabot Long wouldn't give me a second
look He's probably head over -heels in
love with that blonde bombshell who
comes down from New York every week
end TO see him. Why fall out over man
who doesn't even know we exist?"
pUT Beth didn't answer. Not even
when Patsy called after her, when she
said: Beth. please let's not quarrel
Cabot can't see any OF us, really He
thinks wen all lazy. That we have en-
cephalitis. That we hire hookworms SO
well have a legitimate excuse to browse
In the sun. And why should you get
stirred up about him, anyway? You're
marrying Rod True next Spring. and
he has everything you love- Family, ira
dition, illustrious ghosts prowlins about
hiS house :"
And hookworn. / suppose!' snapped
Beth finally.
"Beth''
But Beth was gone She Topped into
her car and stepped on the starter
viciously. She swung out from under
the low branches Of magnolia into the
open road
For one brief second she thought. I'm