Evening star., 1939-08-06

- bright April sun, and paused moment,
as if she we're waiting for someone.
This was to give Peggy Hutton and the boy
friend time to pass her. She felt silly hiking
along all by herself, and they at her heels,
giggling and gabbling about Senior Week.
Everyone was pairing off, walking two by two,
like the animals in the Ark. Everyone except
few lone freaks like herself.
Not that she cared, really. 1t was just the
looks of the thing. Take the Senior Ball. She'd
as soon sit home and read book as go She
would, really. Even if she had someone to 60
with, and was sure of her dances. Dances are
overrated, anyway. Crowded, noisy hot. Why.
even the big successes 60 late and dash OIL III
cars, and end up in beaneries and lunch Coun-
ters for hamburgers and ham and eggs and
things Dances couldn't be worth all the fuss
made about them. Plain logic told you that.
But to have to admit that you weren't going,
which was to say that you didn't have date.
Elizabeth's lip twitched, and she bit it.
firmly She said to herself We'll, you know
you aren't going, and you know it's no good
anyway, and that's that! Heavens sake!"
She turned off the road, and the grass was
soft and green under her feet The acacia trees
we're in full, downy yellow bloom, the heather
was at it's purple BEST and Strawberry Creek
that would be subdued and shallow once sum-
mer got under way, was gurgling arrogantly
today 1t was swell campus really. A person
could be awfully happy if -. Well, it wouldn't
be long now! A job, and money of her own
Out in the world, where brains counted, and
you could make place for yourself.
Peggy and the boy friend, and another girl,
Connie Geary, were heading back her way.
Peggy waved and smiled, and Connie said.
Hello, Elizabeth"
Nobody ever called her Betty. She had done
everything she could to make them, but they
never would. She used to speak of herself as
Betty, quote conversations in which other peo
pie addressed her as Betty, or sometimes Bet,
or Betsy - but it wouldn't take.
Father always mentioned her at least once
in his freshman botany class - there was no
use begging him not to - it was just one of his
annual jokes, and she had to bear it. She had
even tried asking him to say, my daughter
Betty" instead of "My daughter, Elizabeth.
But though he promised, he always forgot al
the critical moment. Mother was even worse
She said What name, Belly! So Nimpy-
nampy Of course I'll not call you that! Your
name is Elizabeth"
Oh well, it didn't matter. You weren't young
forever. After a while you passed the stage
where you had to have dates and formas and
all that You could lead a very interesting
useful life, once your wasted, unhappy youth
was behind you, and even become rich and
famous. You might even marry, and have d
child And there's one thing Elizabeth thought
with rush of tenderness for this child she'd
have some day, she'll never, never, never be
forced to 90 to the same college went to!
Though it would be all right if she did. No
body would remember Elizabeth Henry. BY
that time Her daughter could lead her own
life, and it would be life. Everything she
wanted A decent allowance, new formal
every year, thousands of sweaters hundreds of
sporty skirts!
The whole tragedy was in having to follow
in the footsteps of mother who was born
leader and ran everything in 1915 and just
couldn't realize that things weren't the same
anymore.
Elizabeth said hello to two goofy- looking
girls who thought they knew her. and stared
resentfuly after swell looking boy whom she
did know, but who had forgotten he knew her
She almost smiled as she thought again of her
mother, who boasted that she knew everybody
in her class, and everybody that was anybody