Show egin the e T Telegrams Telegram's 5 New Serial N daj Find P J Y 7 You ou f By y MARGARET 1 CHAPTER ONE I Eileen Gardner small slim sUra arresting in Jn spite of her conventionally conventionally conven conven- plain organdy graduating graduating ing gown took her third bow for forthe forthe forthe the Shadow Song from Dinorah Di norah orah and slid demurely to her place in the long row of graduates graduates graduates ates on the university platform IThe The applause was longer than It had been for anyone else It would be She was her years year's prize graduate and naturally she knew it Most popular girl Run Run- up ner-up for prettiest girl Most likely to suc succeed ed And though And though this was not in the yearbook yearbook- girl with more kinds of future spreading before her than any other ether man or girl in the long serious faced young row She had pushed ever everything thing but the moment out of sight these last few hectic days But now graduation ov over r song done in inthe inthe inthe the blankness of relaxation her problems those excellent choices I s sat t literally before her in the I audience and demanded thinking about unless S she h e wanted to listen Isten to booming reverberant reverberant reverberant rever rever- berant voice introducing the commencement s speaker p pea e a k e r at l length It must be somebody big it was his special manner I for or donors and world Eileen noted I Her eyes so extravagantly lashed and big in her small pointed pointed point- point ed face that the last thing people I 1 t took ok her for was a girl who'd ever seen the inside of a college focused on her problems down I there there in the audience Large and live and much in earnest Afresh fresh fesh from applauding her with proprietary admiration there they sat in the faculty group in inI inthe I the he seats for relatives in the 1 teats seats for just audience j Aunt Louise her eager thin face under its gray blond-gray waves wavE'S lifted toward her still The Wei Wei- i- i gands ands untidy artistic intent intent- she with exuberant curls and three strings of beads over a too- too bright blouse he small and mousy and wife-adoring wife holding hands of course as ever And Andy y young ung Jordan Estill his thin intelligent intelligent in- in glassed eye-glassed face a little tired from too many examination examination examination examina examina- tion papers but flushing now as asI ashe ashe I he caught her glance Three roads Lou tou Always Sc Scared red of Living I I Eileen always f felt e 1 t somehow more up grown-up than Aunt Lou with her eagerness over this cause and that cause her passion for culture her working hard-working enthusiasm enthusiasm enthusiasm en en- for her job of second- second grammar-grade grammar teaching A Au Aunt u n t Lou had always been just a bit In spite pite of her bright intensities ties ties- ties scared scared about living Or so so-it so it se seemed med to a girl who had at the moment an embarrassment of sliver ilver platters on which life was b being ing handed her VAunt Aunt lAunt Lous Lou's platter perhaps L wasn't wasn't exactly silver A sound Sheffield plate more It vas was the choice of positions which a girl as high in h her r classes as Eileen can always command a position Aunt Lou as she said reverently reverent reverent- ly wouldn't have dreamed of at atthe atthe atthe the start It might said her aunt prayerfully prayerfully prayerfully prayer prayer- fully lead anywhere a secre secre- to the university's head of publicity who wasn't called exactly that but actually was Any amount of amazing contacts A stepping stone to being a career career career ca ca- ca- ca reer woman here in Denver one of the city's leading citizens by bythe bythe the time she was 35 Eileen could go on living with her aunt and her aunts aunt's friend Miss Helen Doran who taught kindergarten They could take an apartment with one more room so Eileen could see her friends all by herself Aunt Lou coaxed beaming Nice being a career woman of course And today you didn't have to sort of take vows of celibacy the way Aunt Lous Lou's generation had You could go dancing you could have small discreet cocktail parties you could marry Or you could marry without any careering at all She glanced at Jordan again and again his sensitive color mounted It had been hard to keep him him away from the point till graduation was over And she knew she couldn't deflect things much longer That way lay being the pretty young wife of one of the cleverest cleverest cleverest clever clever- est of the English instructors Do a little time part-time secretarial work to make the home fires a little larger till the first baby came Settle in with the university university university sity set push your husband be becharming becharming becharming charming at faculty teas it sounded like a good enough life and the girl next her quiet Lucille Lucille Lucille Lu Lu- cille Anders who was exactly fitted for it wanted it as brought by Jordan Estill very much indeed More than Eileen did And the Would Rather Take Chances on If she he hadn't pretty nearly promised Aunt Lou to take the shed she'd be inclined to take a chance on on the Wei Wei- gands Her eyes moved to them They had their heads together The They were whispering And Eileen thought she knew what about They didn't often come scouting together for that little radio station station station sta sta- tion of theirs odd miles away But they had yesterday They had telephoned her about an audition And they had heard her today on the early part of he program heard her sing tI the e. e Shadow Son Song Son from Dinorah Dinor hand h- h and applauded like mad They actually had been whispering whis whis- whispering whispering about her Lucille Anders beside her pinched her hand Look she muttered Did you see the They've been whispering ever since you sang a and n d nodding like mad Arent Aren't you the lucky girl Born lucky Eileen whispered whispered whis whis- back No use going into anything here with liable to stop any moment and leave your voice audible and alone It wasn't as simple financially as Lucille thought it was was Lucille Lucille who would never have to worry about money as long as she lived voice slowed boomed more softly Miss Edith Whom you know I need not say by reputation he ended as a tall blond woman crossed the stage with a near-dramatic near verve and dash Eileen did not know her at least could not place her at all Middle-aged Middle more or less of course she course she wouldn't be haunting haunting haunting haunt haunt- ing commencement days as a principal sp speaker aker otherwise but slim smart striding easy-striding in her perfectly cut black with its Us single string of genuine pearls Something about her suggested the hunting set from English novels house Country-house stuff diamonds diamonds diamonds dia dia- monds and imports after hours The name had a vague familiarity familiar familiar- ity at that Somebody Aunt Lou believed in Miss was speaking now She had a trained voice clear and dynamically charmin charming You think you young people of today today- ileen Eileen had missed something That because we won you equal suffrage because we freed your youth boys and girls both a generation ago everything is won Beauty Rode Stallion For Women's Vote Oh yes That was why Aunt Lou who had worked for suffrage suffrage suffrage suf suf- suf- suf frage herself in her girlhood was wasso wasso wasso so rapt It came back dimly to Eileen who was not especially interested that Edith had been the young beauty of the suffrage movement That she had ridden a white horse down Fifth avenue a year or two before before before be be- fore Eileen was born at the head of a procession of women who were worrying about whether they could vote or not You think you have equality of the sexes Miss ringing voice went on You have nothing of the sort Not so long longas as one girl among you feels that she must use trickery pretense ends by-ends to win one man among you instead of saying frankly to him I love you We can be happier happier happier hap hap- pier together than apart will you marry me And not till any man among you dares to say to the girl he loves I cannot earn for two Marry me and carry the financial till till I am on my feet Not until It It sounded to Eileen like non sense She felt like rising and waving her hand and saying Dont be silly Heaven knew you didn't have to use trickery or what have you on Jordan In Eileen's experience experience experience ence so far the trouble was to keep them from getting to the point where they asked you for then you hadn't them as friends any longer And as for a man asking you to marry him and support him well him well today if anybody anybody anybody any any- body had a job you did what you c could o 0 u 1 d and didn't make speeches Plays Hookey From Graduation Guests By the time her mind had returned returned returned re re- re- re turned from her own problems the applause for Miss was crashing out The speech was over The college orchestra was playing Victor Herbert in a re relieved relieved re- re way Then came the di diplomas diplomas diplomas di- di and the class was mixIng mixing mixing mix mix- ing with the audience Eileen skirted the president and his guests carefully She was about to play hookey There was a quiet almost furtive furtive furtive fur fur- tive small party invariably given commencement night Those Inthe in inthe inthe the secret knew Those who weren't asked were left wryly to suspect It was for the years year's speaker and a selected group of university and city celebrities The pick of the graduating class were invited as a crowning honor The house of a millionaire patron patron patron pa pa- tron of the university for the university was fortunate in its millionaires would be lighted up There was to be an orchestra in inthe inthe inthe the ballroom there would be refreshments refreshments refreshments re re- re- re there would be a chosen group of the city's Important important important tant people moving in and out And it was an understood thing that it was in an elegant and superior way a species of hiring fair If you wanted a contact with somebody who might get you a job you went to the Onder- Onder N little quiet evening par party y if if you were asked Eileen Eleen had not intended to go goat goat goat at all Some of the group she belonged to and to-and and led were led were pulling pullIng pulling pull pull- ing a quiet little tle af affair air of t their er own At least it would start by being quiet Jerrys Jerry's had little tables and paper napkins and a dance floor and a small but keen jive band and very good beer And Jordy Eileen Jordy-Eileen Eileen smiled a little on the steps as she strayed 4 I 4 E t 4 t TJ 4 I 7 4 j- j e V Vc c s sw S 'S S w S 'S 4 S S 'S w S S. S j c. c 4 Eileen W was S led to ta tall fall II smiling Miss down to where her aunt stood stood- could choose b between tween the fleshpots fleshpots flesh- flesh pots of of- old Egypt Egypt old the he head d trustees the elegant orchestra and the caterers' caterers ices and nd dancing with her at Jerry's Jerrys Jerrys Jer Jer- rys ry's the thump and wail wall and wiggle wiggIe of the three-piece three negro band Sh She greeted her aunt excited and tearful l in th the crowded aisles waved to Jordan bolted back to th the dO cloakroom Kroom om and was off i Or nearly Just as she had al almost al most gained the door one of the faculty wives put a hand on her arm and said Just a minute Eileen Eleen the president wants you That was that She smiled brightly and let herself be led to where the president stood beside tall smiling bright-smiling Miss wm Willes Willes- s- s don rn Copyright 1939 40 Margaret S To be continued t |