Show TODAY'S TODA YS Y'S SHORT STORY I F Fiction jet ion by Americas America's Greatest lesl W Writers I by br th th Frank A. A Mann Cs CO F INSOMNIA By Elizabeth Newport Hepburn Faulkner was walking doggedly up up- town Th The doctor had said four Cour miles milesa a day possibly day possibly on the tho theory theor that a aman aman man mcm thoroughly tired Inbody Is less apt to work his brain bt-aln In the small hours of oC tho the night For several se months Faulkner had been behaving In this absurd fashion working all day and staying awake all night As he ho swung now into Broadway the tho question which for months had hall stung and tortured him stung and und tortured him anew When a man has once made malle a failure of ot his life lire Faulkner asked himself how howit 1 it Is ho to know that ho will not repeat the performance Faulkner know himself himself him him- self to be e In love lo with Mary Hart Hart lie he wanted to marry Mary Hart But how howIn howIn howin In hl high h heaven hea was he to know whether Mary Iary loved him Obviously he might ask her to mar marry him and she might accept But how was ho lie to be e sure that she Bhe cared as ashe ashe ashe he c cared as ns he had believed that Helen cared long IonS ago After r all was he be not the most gullible man on earth where women were Moreover el he was successful eminently eminently emi emi- eligible and too deeply committed commit commit- tc ted l to middle age to be marrying a n charming young oun woman woman except except for this very Thero There was no use uso conjuring up Mary Harts Hart's honest smile her clear kind eyes eyt's her reputation for fOI sincerity Lon Lona Long a ago o he had been made a fool of OC b by byone byone one wom woman n a woman who had married him and lived lIell with him and finally died under his roo roof without ever er In hl having loved him He Ho had been cheated once and he lie had no faith In his own on acumen his own rusted Instincts At this stage tage of his reminiscence he lie found suddenly that he had been cau caught ht In the tho tide of oC young oun girls just emerging from the theatres where the they had been en reveling re in various matinee performances Ho lie was waR brought back to the ImmE immediate pre present ent lJ by a pressure upon his hla arm and a laughing breathless breathless breathless breath breath- less voice which proclaimed distinctly After racing nearly three blocks s Ive I've c caught you OU at last last and and theros thero's a policeman policeman policeman po po- po- po Just behind U us who ho Is morally certain ho he ought to run me In He Ho turned to face the tho radiant trIumphant triumphant tri tn- trI trI- young oung person who now clung to his arm with a possessive daughterly daughter daughter- l ly little air all which nonplused the stupid officer whom Faulkner's obvious lou pleasure pleas pleas- uro ure and his still more obvious ious respectability respectability had convicted o of a particularly heinous blunder The policeman swung back Into the tha crowd crowd and Faulkner r felt himself transferred from a world of at self distrust to a firm solid earth arth all radiance and sunshine and youth 1 4 U ta hU zua talking excitedly She plunged Into the depths of ot her own problem with the frank egoism of ot petted girlhood and equally equall frank Crank confidence in her companions companion's companions companion's com cant panion's pardons ability to understand and bpi help her You see Bee guard guardy mother hates it it- it she says I 1 shant shan't have ono one penny if I Ido Ido Ido do It It but but I just will And you know better etter than any anyone ono one how hard Jack JackI works works what what a solemn judicial corkIng corking corking cork cork- I ing brain he ho has has for for all his hair curls curiE like a buby's baby's and he looks so 1 0 dreadful t who started him In I young oun It was you OU life he life he couldn't have studied led law I If tho the office but buthe buthe you ou hadn't taken him In he ho ha has made good you ou snoW now he has hasl Plc Please 80 say I ma may marry him soon soon soon- without waiting until he is rich and und undray gray ray hea headed led and fossilized and fat and andI I lone one of oC those l lean ln d dreary ar spinsters that mako you rou want to cry for their lost youth Faulkner laughed and guided her into a 3 cross street where her eagerness would bo less conspicuous What an nn absurd Infant you OU are Dorothy As If It you OU did not act as you OU see seo fit tit whatever your mother or your poor guardian may sug SUb gee gest s L She shook her head petulantly Fancy mother suggesting stin She al always always always al- al ways acts as if it society and propriety and financial solidity were omnipotent gods and sho their high priestess priestess' My 1 ly religion Is knowing know how to love 8 and how to be happy happ And Im I'm going to marry Jack permission or no permission slon sion mone money or no mone money the tho very ery day dayI I come of oC ago age Then well we'll ha have hae e m my thousand a n. year ear anyhow we anyhow wo cant can't starve starve and and Mary Marj- Hart will b give bo o us supper Sunday nights and well we'll do without a maid or even cen a a. general ral Faulkner gave sa el a fatherly grunt grunt- quite conscious that unobserved ed by the girl 1111 he was flu flushing hotly at the name of ot his lady of dreams What would Miss Hart say m to such rebellious sentiments and such a mad mall plan of ot campaign 1 ho he asked trying to tomake tomake tomake make his tone severe ere and anu meeting with indifferent success The girl laughed laus Oh Mary would scold of ot course course- at the things I say but she will approve of oC the things I do 10 She bellev believes v there thera Is nothing In the tho world so awful as doing doing do do- ing what mamma would l like marry lIke marry ing for tor things She's She had plenty of or chances herself but she aho would rather stay an old maid male forever ore er and ever ever I r thought said Bald Faulkner that un un unmarried unmarried un- un married women nowadays were not old maids maids but bachelor girls Mn Mary ry R nays Ras 8 a bachelor bachelor girl JIrl has ha a l career or a fortune and that t sh she having hav hay In In ing neither is just plain old maid But I I I I I think that playing big Ing slater sister to Jack and anil making a splendid n l 1 man mart manof manor martof of or him so 80 that he ho 1 Is now ow u ft L real law y hu lawyer r rIn rIn In your our office is career J enough h for an any woman She's only eight years earR older than Jack too too and and Ive I've told her that ho lie Is just to go o on loving 10 h her r more and more even en after he has me J. J Faulkner chuckled at tho the youngsters oung t rs r's air ail o of matronly comprehension and ho lie patted patte tho little hand 1 lying on his arm Ill do 10 what I can for Cor your our Jack m my dear 1 t r. And I have hare been considering the tho n advisability I of oC t somo young oung youngblood youngblood blood into th law firm possibly firm I pO nn-pO possibly I hi a n little arrangement like that might help sign resign l your our mother to the lie inevitable The girl tnt tinned her hel shining yes eyes upon him him antI and th thy they y SWA swam in suddenly In tears leaN Despite the childish fuce ace she he suddenly seemed a n woman oman passionate competent exquisitely full o of promise Guard Guardy you lou are alc a plumb archangel And you will make mako Mary 1010 utmost l l as all happy hUpp as os you ou make us But 1 I cant can't wall walt wait I must get et on lie sub anti and rush home homo Faulkner retained her arm aria for a moment He looked absurd absurdly shy but buthe ut utho ho he tuk asked his hili question lU as boldly as ho coull couIl Child oure youre you're young oun to he be so coat coat- lent How lion do 10 you ou know you von have hav found the roal ral thing How How can you rou I bo ho FO 50 sure stare not only nitty of oC yourself hut but of oC Jack She the turned an astonished he face to his then h her r young oun vision seemed to pierce tho the cause of oC hi his middle a aged perplex perplex- I it hp he had heard the tragedy Cly of his lila i marriage to n i woman woman selfish hard I I a Untrustworthy a woman at limo of oC her marriage e In love lo with a another I I minI min I see soe what you 1 menu guardy I I When lawyers are always bein being n. n asked to untie matrimonial tan tangles when tangles when people n are arc rc wanting every o day 1 a to get t I unmarried I dont don't believe heUe 1 was sure of Jack Jack anyway anyway until Oll one nice day a moro than tItan two years ago ngo o. o You know guardy how men hate Irate to make spectacles of ot themselves es I 1 guess all people as l re reserved reserved re- re served ns as Jack Jock nn and l Mary Jar loathe heln being male made conspicuous It was at the football foot foot- ball bail game ganie ame Jack got hurt I saw a them carrying him hini off oct on a n stretcher n and I Iwa Iwas Iwas was wa horribly frightened Wo So 0 were just jUl l len en enraged and and I made an Idiot of my my- self elf I run ran down t through h th the crow crowd and insisted d upon being bein allowed to go goto goto o oto to him of oC course cours all the boys under under- stood When hen he lie came to there I wa was crying erring like mad and arid there were a lot of oC men and antI tho the doctor The Instant he lie had harl his liLt eyes ces open of or course cours he saw what a hol holy show chess I hail had mado of myself my my- self self and and he not a n bit dead But nut ho lie jUst laughed up at m mo nie and anti kind of oC snapped hl lila his fingers Ingers at the tho whole gang an and ignored nored tho the doctor lie He said out loud Tm Im all ri right ht darling just larling just t ns tic If It darling were ucro my m m Christian paine name Faulkner r did not smile somehow ho he saw Q aw as the girl irl had r recognized at tho lie f lime how very cry much this little speech hail had meant coming from that hl bin big un unsentimental un- un sentimental youth Jack Hart Bart For Ol Olan an Instant the Irl snuggled led a A. abare abare bare hare hand hanl against Faulkner's and words seemed to ri hover on her lips but were not spoken cn Then sho lh he left him with ono eric quick glance lanc and Goodbye guardy Jard good good goodluck noel luck luel to you rOil a AM as she sprinted boyishly for or tho the nearest arct subway station Faulkner understood that she sho meant to 0 telephone her tidings s to Jack at tho the earliest po possible moment Half an nn hour later Inter passed tho the great r at bronzo figures of tho the St St. GAul Gaudens n group roup In the park with only a cursory glance though he ho loved IO It It aslie ns as ho lie loved c 1 nil all things which seemed to him at once virile anti and beautiful What lIat he hc wanted was an Insight ht Into the heart of or a a. woman woman woman-an an Insight h be beyond be- be yond question question and and even cn as ns ho iii thought ht of or Mary Hart with thrilled pulses cR and ancl n new a-new souse sense of ot hope hop born horn hornor of or Doroth Dorothys Dorothy's young oun optimism ho he su suddenly sud sud- denly lenly saw Rat Mary l herself a n little little- ahead I of or him crossing lie Iho wI wide e crowded street f Faulkner Faulkn r plunged Into a R. m melee meleo of ot traffic just ns as the policeman blew biew his whistle His Ills knowledge of ot danger camo came only onh with tho the persistent tooting to of oC a 1 strident horn th then lien n nn nR he be drew back to escape the plunging in of a frightened frightened fright fright- ht- ht ened horse a great reat touring car bore boro oro down upon him with the tho relentless s brutality brutality bru bru- of fate I He Ho was dra dragged g d upon the ground the tho tearing rending sen sensations as ot of some horrible rack should have havo brou brought ht him merciful oblivion But consciousness persisted and above e the clamor of oC mens men's voices oleos he heard a womans woman's sharp scream He lie felt himself torn from rom tho the clutch of or the lie Juggernaut and half dragged half carried to the sidewalk Presently he ho was lying lin upon tho tIm thoI as asphalt asphalt I as- and a woman Kneeling beside him a n. woman oman with a n deathly face and great burning e eyes It was H certainly Mary Hart hut Hart hut th she might be bo merely mereb frightened the frightened tho look In her eyes pity Then ill m. m wounded suffering he heo wa was jO joy burned through him For this Mary Ian was ns no long longer r gentle kind Impersonal Sho She was a n. woman oman torn with Uh terror which only comes come to those who taco oeo Idan dan danger er to the well weB beloved edl I Faulkner knew knet the dizzying surprise of ot tho the kiss kisson on hi his lips and then at last he fainted tainted Mary laT Hart heard a n newsboys newsboy's shrill explanation to the tall policeman who towered above c the two prone figures Hes her man I seed him chasm ch her the lie street just as the theother theother theother other cop blew his And Arid sho ic turn turned d and saw aw him and ran rm back after I I I I him and most got sot hit by th the wagon wason herself Half an hour later a big bib com compete ter ei young surgeon was looking curiously i I Mary Hart Sho was certainly certainty hand hani sonic some although in no obVious or OT Cor coi fashion Ash Ion but what tt him much than her bet moro inure beauty r s' m tho the fact that she had entirely forgo force ten herself Sho would be h I capable of or going homo home through tl tJ- streets with that Rm smear ar of or du dun a blood across her taco faco I la he going to die The The- young doctors doctor's voice olce wu n-as fun full r cheerful scorn Well VElI Miss Hart If it ft I couldn't pi pia U t ta a n. patient through a n. low fow trifles like dislocated shoulder and a cut I would resl resign my Job On the tho CortraT Cot coi traT Instead of ot dying ho lie I Is hi Qui gui conscious and he sends you ou a m me sage a Miss Misi Hart blushed hed the divinely she r r r. that Impetuous kiss kles but s 11 did not repent Tho The message doctor ohe he he d d. coolly and tho the Intern Intent waitt for Cor the tho explosion of ot hl his bomb with t s Impish small-boy small delight Ito Ho warts wants to Just when jwill j Tt will marT marry him rf 7 This time Mary did not blush at a aThe aThe aTho The Tho doctor octor nonplused o whether sho Iho often orten received of or marriage e b by proxy prot But nut he t I el elded led that hi his p patient had most 41 dJ criminating taste ta-ste. I Mar Mary Hart deliberately ly wiped off h hI and looked at nt tho doctor with mth flicker of laughter In her oyen I l Kindly tell him doctor that thill I 1 iha marry him tho the lay day 11 after ho leaves leans t 11 hospital 1 And say to l him m thI thI th tho thoI I detest deteel waiting And when the house hout surgeon or p ell this thin message to Faulkner Faulkner- tb battered and bandaged tat nod his head on lii his hilli and straightway went to sleep u v slept tho whole night through for t tJ first time Um in three months months' |