The Wilmington morning star., 1947-06-25
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Lady Angkatell vaguely.
But who else is coming besides
the Christows? Henrietta, I sup
pose?"
Lady Angkatell's face bright
ened.
"Yes-and l really do feel that
she will be a tower Of strength.
She always. is. Henrietta, you
know, is really kind-kind all
through, not just on top. She will
help a lot with poor Gerda. She
was simply wonderful last year.
That was the time we played
limericks, or word-making. or
quotations-or one of those things,
and we had all finished and were
reading them out when we sud-
denly discovered that poor dear
Gerda hadn't even begun. She
wasn't even sure what the game
was. 1t was dreadful, wasn't it,
Midge?'
"Why anyone eve comes to
stay with the Angkatells, 1 don't
know" said Nudge. "What with
the brainwork, and the round
games, and your peculiar style of
conversation, Lucy"
Eyes, darling, we must be try
ing-and it must always be hate
full for Gerda, and l often think
that if she had any spirit she
would stay away-but, however,
there it was, and the poor dear
looked SO bewildered and-well-
mortified, you know. And John
looked so ~%dreadfully impatient.
AND 1 simply couldn't think of
how to make things all right again
and it was then that I felt SO
grateful to Henrietta. She turned
right around to Gerda and asked
about the pullover she was wear
lng-really a dreadful affair in
faded lettuce green-too depress-
ing and tumble sale, darling-and
Gerda frightened up at once; it
seems that she had knitted it her
self, and Henrietta asked her for
the pattern, and Gerda looked so
happy and proud. And that is
what I mean about Henrietta. She
can always do that sort OF thing.
It's a kind of knack."
''She takes trouble said Nudge
slowly.
Eyes, and she knows what to
say"
"Ah, SAID Midge. "But it goes
further than saying. Do you know,
Lucy, that Henrietta actually knit
ted that pullover?'
ooh, my dear" Lady Angkateu
looked grave. "And wore it,"
"And wore it. Henrietta carries
things through
"And was it very dreadful?"
"No. On Henrietta it looked
very nice"
.'Well. of course, it would.
That's just the difference between
Henrietta and Gerda. Everything
Henrietta does she does we'll and
it turns out right. She S clever
about nearly everything, as well
as in her own line. I must say,
Nudge, that if anyone carries us
through this weekend, it will be
Henrietta. She will be nice to Ger
da and she will amuse Henry, and
she'll keep John in a good temper
and I'm sure she'll be most help
full with David
David Angkatell?'
eyes. He's just down from OK
ford - or perhaps Cambridge.
Boys of that age are so difficult
especially when they are intellect
ual. David is very Intellectual.
One wishes that they could put
off being intellectual until they
were rather older. AS it is, they
always glover at one so and bite
their nails and seem to have so
many spots and sometimes an
Adams apple as well. And they
either won't speak at all, or else
are very loud and contradictory.
Still, as l say, I am trusting to
Henrietta. She IS very tactful and
asks the right kind of questions,
and being a s%culptress they re-
spect her, especially as n
doesn't just carve animals or
children's heads, but does advanc-
ed things like that curious affair
in metal and plaster that she ex-
hibited at the New Artists last
year. It looked .raher like a Heath
Robinson step ladder. 1t was call
ed Ascending Thought or some
thing like that. It is the kind OF
thing that would impress a boy
like David. I thought myself
it was just silly"
"Dear Lucy!"
"But some Of H%enriettas things
I think are quite lovely. That
Weeping Ash tree figure, for in
stance
Henrietta has a touch of real
genius, I think. And she is a very
lovely and satisfying person as
WELL" said Nudge. Z,
Lady Angkatell got up and
drifted over to The WINDOW again.
She played absentmindedly with
the blind cord.
sewhy acorns. I wonder?" she
murmured.
"Acorns?"
ION the blind cord. Like pine
apples on gates. I mean, there
must be a eason Because II
might just as easily be fir cone
OF a pear, but It's always an
acorn. Mash, they call it in cross
words you know, for pigs. So
curious, l always think"
Don't ramble off, Lucy. You
came in here to talk about the
weekend and l can't see why you
are SO anxious about it. If you
manage to keep off round games,
and try to be coherent when
you're talking to Gerda, and put
Henrietta on to tame the intellect
ual David, where is the diff
ficulty?"
"Well, for one thing, darling,
Edward is coming"
ooh, Edward. Nudge was 81
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