Evening star., 1939-01-20
Mother Fixation.


About his time woman in>f-
viewer made great scoop by dis
covering the Master Directors Aunt
Julia and getting access through
her to Mrs. Whitlow. "A great man"
said the woman interviewer, loves
everything to his mother"
Never did I know any one sc
simple, so direct-minded as Rudolf,
said old Aunt Julia. Il was always
very, very fond of him. There was
something enchanting about him. A
naturalness. A straightforward.
ness. I should say he is the one
single human being 1 have ever
known entirely free from any COM
plex. He went straight to his point
whatever it was, like an arrow"
He was strange, thoughtful
boy" said Mrs. Whitlow. when at
last the woman interviewer had got
past Aunt Julia. Il would wonder-I
would ask myself-what is he brood
ing about? He was aloof among his
playmates, communing with him
self. His soul was like a star and
dwelt apart. Sometimes he would
ask questions that it puzzled even me
to answer. when he was still only a
little fellow of or g."
The woman interviewer's thoughts
fitted for a moment and In all
reverence toward another mother In
ancient Nazareth. She wondered II
IN this case there had been any
sort of Annunciation. But. that was
dif1icult to ask. you felt he was a
child of destiny?" she asked.
Mother Fixation.
HE had that something" said
Mrs. Whitlow :.
"He puzzled his poor father" i"
said Mrs. Whitlow. His father
never understood him.
Mother fixation," said the wom-
an interviewer. They say he has
never cared for any woman but
you"
Hes had so much to think about,
said Mrs. Whitlow, modestly.
1t occurred to Rud, when he read
this, that it would be q natural
and popular thing for her to visit
him. He had hardly given her a
thought for years. A mother fixa-
ton might not be a bad thing to
have. And it might be still more
gracious to entertain ALI and Sam
They'd open their eyes. He
would conspicuously do nothing for
them. So that there would be no
talk of nepotism. Would ALI turn
out to be as religious as ever? Sam
would be frankly envious and spite
full, but Alf's behavior was more
uncertain. He got Thirp to make
inquiries.
He has got rather fat, he is a
minor distributive official, and he
thinks you are anti-Christ :"
You know that neo-Catholic idea?"
Rud decided not to rediscover
Alf.
But he made large public visit
to his mother and talked to her of
what the world owed to her for
what she had done to him, and she
said he hadn't changed In the least;
he reminded her of how he used to
come home and tell her he was top
of the class at school; he had Just
the same eager, boyish expression.
How happy it used to make her!
Talks of Ailments.
She talked of some new mind cure
for her nervous dyspepsia, and he
told her that every specialist in
the world was absolutely at her dis
posal.
She spoke of various neighbors of
their early days. She did not know
what had become of his cousin Ra-
chel. She had lost sight of her
after her huband's sister died in
Australia.
do you still have those sick head
aches, Rudie?" she asked. Always so
suffering and so patient, you
were. ="
Because Of the effective control
OF the press exercised by the world
directorate during the period of
world readaptation, people at large
heard practically nothing about
this psychological eddy in
which the master director was spin
ming. Only some years later did
vague rumors Of it become current.
They did not know that he gave
way now to long spells Of Incidence,
with occasional interludes of re-
taxation under the complainant
management of Thirp. The world
as a whole believed him to be the
active administrator, as sexless as
modern God, who was, With Q