| Show tI 1 f r m a L 1925 by byn fl n u i I i I I BEGIN HERE TODAY Barbara lawley 25 wants to see life She breaks her hel engagement to I Bruce Reynolds an architect who is isa isa isa a partner in promoting Vale Acres civic realty project Barbara Barban gets ajob a aJob ajob Job on The Salt Lake Telegram Barbara while covering a suicide story finds a red scarf she links with a dress belonging to LYdia Stacy rich widow Irs Stacy who has met Bruce through Vale Acres Acre is attracted to to him but when he her advances she advances she she tells Andrew Andrew Andrew An An- drew McDermott editor of The Telegram that the firm is croaked crooked A member of Bruce's firm absconds and Bruce Is indicted Barbara unknown to Bruce forces Mrs Stacy to testify and clear him by using the red scarf as a threat VIoletta Cranby factory girl writes wrIte to Barbaras Barbara's lovelorn column for advice on how to win a social superior Barbara advises her and the marriage of Violetta and Bruce i is is a result Barbara Balbara shares an at apartment with McDermott daughter daugh Fancy Barbara warns Fancy incy of ot the fri frivolity of Jerome Ball man about town she met through Bob Jeffries police reporter but Fancy elopes elope with Ball to New York Barbara l Is lonelier than ever when a child is isborn is isborn isborn born to VIoletta so she takes a lu JOo on Footlights Magazine New York Greenwich Village disillusions Barbara Barbaro The people she meets ar are superficial Elizabeth Furnival a spinier friend of Barbaras Barbara's commits commit I suicide and Barbara begins to leafor fear lea for her own safety Barbara meets meet Fanc Fancy and Jerome and and they talk o of Salt Lake Barbara in a rush o ol of homesickness goes back The Telegram Telegram Telegram Tele Tele- gram prInts a story on her visit he he goes to her old home in Bountiful Bounty ful and rents a room hoping to fin find peace She returns to the hotel to for tor her baggage intending to return n t to Bountiful that night NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY CHAPTER It took tool Barbara some time to as assemble assemble assemble as- as and pack her clothes When she was ready to leave the room 1 it was nearly 7 1 o'clock The rhe orchestra was playing when be Rb entered the dining room an anthe and the hum of ot voices over over the tables table was broken by occasional peals o of laughter Barbara found a table h in inthe Inthe the center of the safe and sat down looking around her The room was pleasantly full o of diners Barbara ordered a hearty heard dinner and sat back baek to watch th the people The orchestra shifted from fron its ts frenzy frenz of saxophone and oboe ti tia to toa toa a muted Strauss waltz Barbara ate leisurely When she checked out and sent a bellboy for a cab there was just jus time to make the 9 o'clock bus bUBo She tried to catch glimpses of th the along alon the way but there they was no moon and the bright lights light inside the car made the world outside outside outside out out- side a sea of blackness She was was' vas vas- set down in Bountiful after the thc lights had been turned of ofin off offIn in the corner store Barbara turned toward her he- street and met a still denser blackness She looked about nervously ner There Then was no sound or movement any any- where Barbara walked slowly at irs stepping carefully to avoid puddle puddles and broken pavements But as sn an entered the heart of the blackness she began to walk wall more rapidly There was vas a long stretch of roa road without houses and here she almos almost ran her h he heart art rt pounding painfully her footsteps resounding against th the stillness At last a denser shadow indicate indicated the spot where the first house stood sto d and Barbara lessened her pace pac Here and there a dimly lighted window window win win- dow stood out against the gloom gluon but for the most part the had put out its lights and gone t to tobed bed bed e Barbara opened the gate at he her mothers mother's home with eager hands hand and lifted her eyes to the door Henat Here Hen at least there was vas a light but i it shone strangely red through tin the glass panels at the sides of thi th door Barbara ran up the creaking wooden steps and searched for th the bell Despite its silence of the aft afternoon afternoon afternoon this time it rang with a aloud loud jangle that made her star start back When nobody came she did no noring noring not ring it again but tut knocked somewhat t faintly on the door At last sin she herd he d the same lumbering step steps that had heralded the landlady tha that afternoon The door swung and Barbara saw the hall A scarlet glass bulb on the central centra chandelier cast a light that light that was th the color of blood over the entire hatIn hallIn hall hat In one cornei corner it shone upon a leaning and was va caught up more vividly still in the thi mirror at the top The torn rug waa was wai wasa a pattern in var varying ing shades o 01 murky red and the staircase rose rosi out of scarlet shadows to a landIng landIng landIng land land- Ing turned and disappeared li ii gloom The woman oman had had begun to climb the stairs and now turned back t tc look at Barbara again again as Barbara Barban moved to follow he herIn her hen In the upper halt hair Barbara agate stopped Here a dim light burne in an bulb In one corn come of the hall lay a pile of broken furniture fur fur- A laundry bag hung on thedoor the thi door of the room that Barbara mother had used for a sewing room The landlady led the way to th the thedoor door of Barbaras Barbara's room but the gir followed slowly The room loom wa dark and the woman stumbled forward for for- ward Ouch drat them rockers sh ski cried as Barbara heard the impact of her shins against a chair I never never can find the switch in this the room room The faint light from th the the hall showed her stooping ov over r rubbing rubbing rubbing rub rub- bing her shine And if theres there's a a chair anywhere Minnie Crum ett shins will find it It Barbara stepped to the wall wan and anc pressed the light button The room roon was ablaze with electricity It shone on the startled face o 01 01 the landlady landlady For G wd's sake she cried how did you ou know where when that hellish button was If thai that dont don't beat all Barbara stammered a moment usually in some such position position po as that that she said quietly The woman withdrew stopping frequently to bend over and rub thE thi injured shin She said as shi sh reached the door You can pay mi mE tomorrow I always expect pay It Is advance She went out Barbara walker across the room and closed the door doo after ller her Then she turned about and sa sal down own on on the Iron bed and looker around the room in which she ha hat la lived ages ago The electric bulb was so largi larg that its light str struck ck painfully O 01 of eyes fresh from rom the gloom of ot Uv th stairs and hall Where the wa wall lights had been on either side of Barbaras Barbara's dresser there were now two black am anI frayed ends of wire hanging stirn from jagged holes in the plaster Between them stood a washstand o 0 golden oak Strips of yellow wal paper hung from the walls here am anc there Barbara stared at it dully It was the paper that she hal hai chosen for the room two years be tore lore o I The fireplace was dark In the cent center I of Its hollow there waa was a little pile of scraps with a tomato can on top On the mantelpiece above there stood a cardboard calendar calendar calendar cal cal- surmounted ted by a n picture ofa of 0 a a. plump lady dressed in Ina a a pink ballet dress The only other picture in the room was a chromo of some grapes and bananas The window windo boasted no curtains but a tattered green blind hung crooked at the top Barbara took In every detail of the scene She walked to the wIndow window window win wIn- dow and threw it open A rush ol of spring air came Into the musty room She stood staring out at the street treet Most of the houses across the way were quite dark but In two or three windows lights were still Visible From Flom up the street came the feeble feeble fee fee- ble yapping of a clog dog Whirling about with her back to the window Barbara Darbara again surveyed surveyed sur sur- ve ed the room The dingy gray counterpane was bordered by a ragged ragged ragged rag rag- ged fringe that dragged upon the floor Barbara undressed and got into I bed The blankets were thrown back over the he iron framework at the foot of the bed bell and her coat was spread o over her hel for tOl a covering co I The room was wa worse by morning light Barbaras Barbara's eye eyes opening fell first upon the tomato can can in the fireplace fireplace fire fire- place then upon the shiny grapes and bananas and finally on the pink dress of ot the lad lady on the mantel mantel man man- tel tel more violently pink Ink than ever under the morning sunlight She lay starIng about her too sick to move mo The sunlight crept across the dirty matting on the floor to the point where there had once been a rich blue rug for It to shine upon It crept on across the room toward the tho bed and Barbara watched it fascinated When hen It t had almost reached the theIron theiron theiron Iron bedstead d Barbara Darbara sat up sud sod clen denly But sh she did not get out of bed Instead she pressed a hand to her forehead and shut her eyes It was some moments later when she finally dragged one foot and then the other off the bed to the floor and crept to the wooden roc ting t- t ing chair on off which she sh sh had spread her clothes The process of dressing was a slow one Barbara Barara stopped now and then then by to catch a whiff of fresh air and feel the sunlight I that was pouring in There was no water In the pitcher on the stand She took it to the door The bathroom door across the hall hallwas hallwas hallwas was closed and sounds of ot splashing splashIng splashing splash splash- ing came came from within Barbara leaned against the door frame lookIng lookIng looking look- look Ing around the hall It too suffered from the daylight There were piles of dust In the In-the the corners which someone someone someone some some- one had swept there and then abandoned aban aban- I On the doors of the bedrooms Barbara saw cards tacked She ad advanced advanced advanced ad- ad slowly to the room that her mother had used as a sewing room In the window of this room the ca- ca nary cage hart harl always hung Its duos door had hul no card out oil o on 1 scrap of ot tablet paper a a 11 bent pin in a lL crack of the p pani pant e Ing Jio Biggs Diggs said the sera s r upon it Barbara looked again ug at the bat at iU room door but the g r She Se went back into Ii room and finished dressing 1 out washing her face Wh Vh a sl emerged Into the hall agai agal t 11 splashing still continued In tl bathroom Barbara went down the stal s search of ot Mrs A As s 51 reached the tle downstairs hall sJ heard a mans man's voice in the h b above raised in angry tone To be bo continued |
