Show kathleen hleen norris says which door Is yours bell syndicate av N ing ai I 1 J it ava dip I 1 an ai 11 X W I 1 t q it A it 4 10 1 41 S I 1 A ann went to him why george shame on youl well move right into jhb city ill have my baby to r nothing in a ward well cut expenses and well pay og in five years by KATHLEEN NORRIS WO men both in the T TWO early thirties were going home in the subway last night it was a bleak dreary night streets were dark and slippery with slush and the underground train was filled with weary home goers who occupied seats or hung on straps with the tired expressions of men and women whose day had been d dull ull and hard 1 one man was tom smith who rents four rooms in the bronx for 32 a month A parlor and kitchen on the street two bedrooms on air shafts bathroom some heat hot water included the smiths have one little girl eileen who is 8 jean smith is pretty nervous d dissatisfied Is she is tired of cooking tor for tom caring for him and eileen and doing without furs trips down town meals theaters she lives by a jealous and minute comparison of 0 her affairs with those of 0 her friends she has no code and no standards of her own it if some woman friend and most of them are some years older than she and all of them in better circumstances if some friend has a new blouse a new hairdo hair do a new dining table or car jean is wretched cold reception when tom gets home she Is often lying down reading or perhaps the house is cluttered from a bridge afternoon the air thick with cigarette smoke the women finishing the last rubber A daintily wrapped prize goes to somebody the guests depart with many kisses and thanks and jean wearily begins to straighten up the room tom has cold mutton beets sandwiches and eclairs eclaire for or supper a good enough meal if 11 jean had any appetite or any interest in it to his kindly inquiries she responds vaguely she disagreeable but she simply care what tom eats or feels or says or wants any more half the time her answer to his remarks is what it if things are uncomfortable tor for tom he accepts them in silence any criticism rouses jean to an angry summary of the situation she has given torn tom smith the best years of her eifel she has drudged dredged along in this rotten little place when ethel ha has moved into those new flats and GI glad d and billy are buying a house this can go on for a long time tom and subdued little eileen have learned not to invite it so tom reconciles himself to a damp disorderly bathroom sits cheerfully reading the paper in the cold dusty parlor when meals are late trots down to the delicatessen tor for forgotten butt butter ei or coffee takes jean to movies night after night tom complain but one day he revealed more than ho he knew of the situation to his friend george brown when he said hesitatingly you see I 1 have to sort of 0 think out the effect 0 of f what I 1 say to jean sometimes I 1 have to kind of feel my way browns are happy george brown the other home going man lives in the same crowded block with the smiths he and ann aan pay the name fame rent tor for the same space but there the similarity be tween the two families ceases ann WRONG WAY dues does cooking lor or your husband bore you are you angry because tom says you cant afford a new fur coat are you tired of constantly having to make the pennies a stretch t r e t ch c h then you should read kathleen norris answers to lo wives i aho are going the wrong way has a girl and a boy and she and their father rejoice in them and I 1 love ove them and they know it george Is the all important head of the house bouse he comes home to warmth light welcome comfort it if there is good news ann loves to tell it she has a pleasant little custom ot of bringing him a cup of hot soup as he reads before dinner if theres worrisome news either from his end of the partnership or hers ann has a great way of minimizing it A sick child is either always better or just reaching the peak george its got to go up to go down ann has a dozen amusing anecdotes anecdotes of her day to relate I 1 if she is tired it Is just being be i ng orn corn c tort fort ably tired dishes take bout about a ten minutes in the brown house hous e after supper davy clears the table and nancy brushes the floor george comes into the kitchen to help not because she exacts it but because he likes to share so much pleasant activity and chatter sometimes he and davy work out arithy arithmetical et ical problems with beans on the k kitchen I 1 table domestic operation cooperation co the browns go to the movies once a week and look forward to it as a treat on sundays they always picnic in bad weather taking their sandwiches to a big museum or gallery and buying hot drinks in the cafeteria because with all the pleasure ot of their lives the browns are solvent and are saving seven years ago georges father died leaving him debts to talling more than and anns mother a helpless cripple came to live with them they had bad an eight room house in the suburbs u then when he realized that their house of cards was coming down around his ears george hated to go ga home and tell ann her mother needed medical care and nursing a new baby was coming and he was overwhelmed with a debt that represented his entire income tor for a year and a half I 1 ann went over to him where he sat despondently finishing his bis story and knelt down and put her arms about him and said why george shame on you youl well move right into the city ill have my baby tor for nothing in a ward well cut out furnace and commutation and taxi expenses and live right near the office and well pay that all off in five years we have each other and the babies and I 1 CAN take care of mother and the great blessing so you and ill go house hunting tomorrow and start all over typical american success story well you know the rest it is the story of 89 99 out of every amerlean american stories of success anns mother was the only one who minded and george and ann strong to in confidence and laughter and their mutual love stood that heroically tor for the remaining few years of her ufa life the debts were paid off in less than four our years fur for saving became a vort cort of game and an unexpected commission swept away the last third of them in one glorious wave |