Evening star., 1941-04-20

an annual custom ships put show after the
and you're homeward bound.
Laura Lees eyes shone. She had played few times in
Little Theater group back home in Rube City She wanted to
go the stage professionally.
haven't got much tact said, well, has this -
Rube City got theater? Is it big enough, mean"
why it nearly hundred thousand and quite modern,
she laughed. you it got its name from prominent
pioneer family named Rube not because it in rich farm
ing section My father put through big power project
that all the farms have electricity and - She laughed
again and said she sounded like the Chamber of Commerce
Then her aunt who had chaperoned her the trip came to
get her
Before she left Waly made date to meet her in San
Francisco afternoon And that evening, after he'd
been painted with iodine and marked Duty, he gave us
the lowdown on the cruisers
1t seemed somebody in Washington hoped that if old
Fodder Belt Dempster home town honoed the senator
might drop his obsuconst tactics The way things Stood
he couldn't batteshp did his any good
and he hoered his head off about taxes time two
ocean Navy mentioned.
He leads a whole bloc that the way Wally
explained The junior senator from his Howe is his
would be in favor of the Navy Program but he does
MT dare go against old - Laura Lees father.
The guys nuts" Spud declared
oh can understand his viewpoint" Wally said He's
after appropriations for other things like high
that will help shippers get the wheat out OF the country
And it's pretty hard for man who never sees the Navy to
understand why he should pay taxes on it..
could it in his eye said, Don't give the old ma
arkey Waly. You're sunk. Whatever that girls old man
does going to be all right with you"
Did you anybody like her, Peewee? he asked
Shed make hit Broadway! I'm going to see that she
does. /"
That's fine cut You're gunners mate first class
You can stay the outfit and make chief but you can't be
in the Navy and promote stage not own
And you 60 the Outside, what will you do! Get job
ore-sighting Little Gem air ri1es?"
Waly was dreaming Il won't stay n, he said I've got
just year do and then she and will the stage to-
geher Did to you ne asked that there are
just thousands of girls in the Middle West who never saw
the Navy"
Sure" told him sarcasticay The AAA ought to do
something about They ought send sailors back to the
farms for period of leave liberty and overals!'
Way paid attention to this last wisecrack, which
thought pretty good He reached for his guitar - the
guy play anything = and said, Listen! l m working
a song about it. Goes like this
"Can yon blame the inland citizen
Whose heart is filled wth rancor,
On criticize the tanning
When taxes bring him UOe?
No proud array OF Nary ships
Can ride at anchor
In keokuk
Or Kankakee
Oh Kansas City, Mo.
There's no harbor
AT Ann ArbOr
That wiH float heauy cruiser
And heeU be no
Ships at Reno
Little Rock on Tuscaloosa
And think, oh think Vhat the ,consen miss
In an inland tO,0n like Madison Wis!
had to admit sounded like very catchy sort of song
and that was all encouragement Way needed He said
I've got to write another and chorus He began
scrbbng and looked up with that dream in his eyes. I'll
see what Laura Lee thinks of it, tomorrow She sings too
lrs funny the way things work out. Oh know now how
it all tied Laura Lee Dempser went back to Rube City
in love with the Navy as whole and with Way in partcu