The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-08-06

I tissue paper over 1t and fastened
the lid. Shed take the dress back
to the store tomorrow. The $25
that 1t cost would buy war bond.
The simple act of remuneration
helped little. But sch was still
too restless to read or listen to the
radio or write letters, the activi-
ties that usually filled her even
ings at home. She had to keep
moving or she'd cry, and she
didn't want to do that
She and Ned were unusually
close for brother and sister. Per-
haps the fact that their mother
had died when they were very
small had had something to do
with drawing them closely to-
gether. At any rate she had al
ways patterned her behavior after
Neds and she felt compulsion
to do SO now. He was happy and
eager about going into the Army.
She must at least try to be happy
about it.
Slipping into robe she went
into his room. She hung up the
clothes that he had left scattered
around the room when he dressed
for dinner. She turned down his
bed, laid out his pajamas, tidied
his desk. Above 1t in a crescent
were ranged the pictures of some
girls. Barbee knew most of them.
There was pretty red-haired
Madge Sanders, dark Carrie Craig,
blond Joan Carbry, that rather
plain looking girl who had the nice
personality, Della Overstreet. Ned
dated them all occasionally, but
went with none of them steadily.
In fact he took Barbee to dances
and parties more often than any
other girl.
And that brought her right to
her big problem. She was going
to miss Ned terribly. She simply
couldn't NOPE around the house,
worrying about him, waiting for
the postman. Shed have to do
something. Do something to help
win the war.
Her spirits scared and then sank
with new depression. What could
she do? She had no practical train
ing along any line whatsoever. An
expensive girls finishing school
didn't fit one to help win a war.
Her chin took on determined
slant. After all there must be
something she could do. She was
young, healthy. strong. And then
she remembered hte conversation
at dinner. Charles had been talk
ing about chemistry course to
train women for war jobs. There
was the solution to her problem.
She saw Charles about it the
next morning. Shed gone over to
the chemistry building early and
had to wait. She was in conference
with the professors of the chemis-
try department and a government
man from Washington. His face
lit up when he came out into the
hall and saw her. He was also
surprised.
Il haven't much time, Bee.
We're organizing the course I'm
to teach. What was 1t you wanted
to see me about?"
She told him briefly.
He didn't react as she had ex-
pected him to. His voice was
troubled. Il don't know, Bee. L
I hardly think this is the thing for
you"
why not?"
He explained it patiently as one
would to child. THE women we
trai here will go into laboratories
In war plants. The Jobs they &C
cept will be hard, dirty, sometimes
even dangerous. That isn't for a
girl like you.'
Charles didn't know her very
well, Barbee decided A hard lob,
a dirty job, dangerous Job was
just what she wanted. Ned had
made his choice by going in the
Army as a private. Well, she
wanted to show him that she had
the stamina to do a hard fob, too.
Later she heard Ken Carter refer
to this quality as "guts," and was
to wonder what Chrales would
have thought If she had used the
expression that day.
But she didn't know Ken then
didn't know his pungent way OF
talking. she only knew what she
wanted.
Ito BE Continued)