| Show LT ah L 49 k y ar av L lamb PIN by KATHLEEN NORRIS service copyright vy I 1 y rathleen kathleen norris SYNOPSIS the luck that had brought the boston lawrences Lawren ces to california just as the beginning 0 of the gold rush seems to have deserted the present generation from a acro acre ranch their holdings have shrunk to a small farm and the old family home in Clippers ville CHAPTER I 1 continued 2 the widowed elderly father did the best he could for them all ULM his oldest son was nearly eighteen and gall call a capable bustling house bouse manager two years younger then the big guns began to boom across the water the flags flashed in answer upon many a quiet flag polo pole in and patterson lawrence fifty eight years old put a copy of keats in one pocket and a copy of shelley in the other and hurried off to die of flu in overcrowded washington just as sure as his bis loyal children were sure that he was helping helpin his country and doing the patriotic thin thing theo then phil and gall had to shoulder the burden gail lawrence was supremely the girl for the job she was wa s squarely built womanly at sixteen brimming with interests activities am and enthusiasms by this time the once lucky law bences had almost no money phil had all but finished high school and all the friends relatives and neighbors said that certainly a bright fine boy like that ought to complete his course but as phil and gall quite simply agreed meals were more important than education so phil stopped lis schooling and went to work at t the he iron works and gall gail upon being offered a job in the public library library 1 accepted it gratefully they scrambled along to in the disreputable tepu table old house very happily they were always laughing singing going on picnics they were passionately devoted demoted to each other and everyone was sure that they would get along splendidly were they not the last of the lucky lawrences laurences Lawren ces surest of all was gall the resolute resola te undaunted optimistic mother and sister cook nurse and lawmaker in one life had been a story to gall for a few years and she had turned a fresh page eagerly every day she and edith were going to marry delightful men and phil should marry too and sammy should live in editha house and arlel ariel in galls and arlel ariel should write wonderful poetry there would be plenty of money for everything as there always had bad been soon but somehow it had not worked out that way gall had grown a little more sober a little thinner as the years had slipped by they bad all grown shabbier even to her poverty began to seem a serious matter phil to her concern had never quite seen the joke of being poor and being orphaned he had always been brief worried and unresponsive when uail gall had tried to drag him into her dreams and edith hated poverty too it hurt her pride she had bad grown quieter bookish intellectual something of a recluse sammy had bad done nothing except slide glide through his shoes and get U D minus marks in his studies and arlel ariel was completely spoiled they had bad all 1111 hailed balled her as a poet before she could fairly write she did write poetry and that was enough for clippers ville Clippers ville was not critical the challenge published eve everything ry arlel ariel wrote and arlel ariel was discontented proud and unmanageable altogether the outlook was discouraging r and promised to grow more so there were moments when even gall call could not quite believe in the luck of the lawrences laurences Lawren ces her twenty third birthday found her it fl quick witted eager capable girl secretly a little bit seared scared and doubtful doubty ua but outwardly say gay irresponsible and pleasant to look at like all the law dences even the boys never seemed to go through lumpy or spotty phases but were clean skinned and bright eyed through boyhood as through babyhood the older four had tawny thick hair bair which had tumbled all over their heads as children but which on occasions could be made to take more fitting positions ariel was different frail pink cheeked checked che eked and cream skinned with frightened big hazel eyes and a small mouth arkels hair was cornsilk corn silk golt gold phil worked in ID the iron works for el eighty city dollars a month th gall call was paid palf half that monthly for a seven day week in the public library ary edith made thirty dollars a month as assistant in the mok k 1 ol 01 I big store amy my was ing his school career at nineteen with eager labors labore as errand boy and general office help on the challenge and ariel was supposed to be in high school arlel ariel was now a fairylike seventeen and gall was twenty three today she had presents at the breakfast table in the good old lawrence fashion nobody knew where they came from or who paid for them but the law bences always managed to give each other presents on anniversaries then gall and edith rushed the breakfast paraphernalia into the sink ariel was off to school phil had disappeared sammy had gone first of all the two girls scrambled through the necessary kitchen work with a speed born of long iong practice the big kitchen was shaded was in order the cold water faucet dribbled suddenly audibly in the silence as gall gail and edith breathless and hot paused at the hall door edith crossed the splintery floor to turn off the tap then gall gail and edith went upstairs passing ahe open front door on th their air way they hesitated a minute looking into the jungle of garden there was a hush of s spring pring green grass contraband daisies and a burst of untidy bridal wreath down by the old fence look at the pear tree gall it just take your breath away they shut the door and went upstairs gall gail saying of the unmade beds lets flap em cm 9 editha face clouded a little she hated compromise and slover slovenliness illness she hated the hard conditions of her life that made some truce with them necessary the clock on the landing struck once for the half hour after eight she was due at the department store and gall gail at the library at nine well have to she conceded briefly sighing ill bet you they flap em cm in the mo moat 0 t expensive hotels gail stated dauntlessly t 1 I have worn my office dress to breakfast the older sister observed glancing at her cuffs she got a bottle of some cle cleaning cleanie anin ft extract and began to dabble at spots egg she said disgustedly her glance approved of E edith adith that looks better on you than it ever did on mary alary tevis 11 she observed edith studied herself in the mirror dispassionately 1 I never would have gotten it she said 1 I dont like dots but I 1 it t certainly has come in usefully the worst of mary tevis Is shell give you a bunch of thin things gs one time and then forget you for seven years I 1 gall gail having made herself comparatively presentable said briskly now when im rich I 1 shall have a list ot of girls D n such a shoe lacel abigail you ought not say that get ariel saying it gall mended her lace looked up with a flushed face you think arlel ariel was beautiful at breakfast ede oh yes she really Is do you think this may all be m my imagination but do you think ashes interested te in boys already their eyes flashed together consciously ly oh yes I 1 know she is I 1 edith a answered unhesitatingly 0 chels only seventeen I 1 I 1 well said edith who combined a recluses sensitiveness and temperament with an occasional flash of daring 1 I was fond of the boys at sixteen edith pretty as she was had never had a beau and gall gail knew it but it was the unwritten law of 0 sisterhood not to say so gall merely said perfunctorily oh h well yes so was II 11 but edith there seems to be something different in the way arlel ariel Is the younger sisters quick keen gaze gaz e was lifted E diehs serious look met galls gails consciously secretive she offered well I 1 well yes gall answered on a nervous laugh ariel will get married before alth either er one of us because we happen to be a little more particular 1 edith pronounced noun ced with tier her little air of old snobbery when edith said things like that it vaguely irritated gall gail she left edith at montalvo boulevard and turned up the ualle calle to the plaza where the library stood heavenly Ilea venly day gall gail said to francis wilcox the librarian fine what about those sll slips ps air answered without punctuation IL here the day had begun gall the street door and the usual waiting group of stragglers came in miss foster clamped the newspapers into their holders little rose kose cahill wheeled wire crates full 0 of f books to the different cases and gall gail took them from the barrows and filed thero them away in their places the dim big rooms saw various noiseless activities afoot gall thought of her youngest sister as the dreamy dim hours in the library began to slip by arlel ariel was less fitted than any of the other laurences lawrences ces for the struggle of life she was only an innocent bewildered child she wanted in fact all of them wanted leisure and beauty and luxury in life ariel seemed to want it more than the others somehow or la in some indefinably different way she seemed made for beautiful gardens beautiful porches spacious luxurious rooms she pined she drooped in the atmosphere of poverty griminess dullness thinking of all this gall abstractedly stamp stamped ed and scribbled and tossed the books about when the whistles droned dronek noon and a sudden responsive pang of hunger stabbed her she put on her blue hat and walked ip the street to to meet edith edith neat cool and clean lifted an ecstatic look to gall as she dewe I 1 1 ai 1 4 IN are stuck in Clippers ville nobody knows were alive af porously finished the sale of seven novels to a passing motorist the girls idolized and idealized each other and were proud of their friendship all the passion of the younger 0 sisters rather cold nature was in the look this was one of her awaited moments moment every day when tier fier flushed adored tousled gall came in and they went to lunch to together ether they went in at the side door to the home kitchen and let up the shade and beit began ga their preparations for lunch the kettle was boiling over a bead of gas for arlel ariel always came in promptly at twelve and had her lunch and was gone before the older girls arrived edith sat wearily luxuriously over rolls honey and tea her eyes absent her hand band idly stirring the cup gall I 1 was thinking that we ought to learn some moru more poetry as we do the beds member how we used to rattle it off when ye we were little girls oh do I 1 the lady of Sha ott lott and grandmothers story of bunker hill and the lost leader and jamea whitcomb riley P we ou ought ht to do it ag again a ini I 1 it was lots of f fun 1111 id like to learn toyes noyes FlIgh highwayman wayman and some of Hodg sons poems eve and the old bull E ede de do you suppose thing sll ever be any easier tor for us do you suppose well have clothes and a car some day and belong to a country club edith pondered it 1 I don t really know she said at last hesitatingly 1 I mean gall fumbled along wistfully poor people people who have a hard start do 1 yes I 1 know they do dol I 1 edith I 1 could stand anything fa tor r myself but it worries me about phil and arlel ariel 11 1 I 1 dont think phil minds abeln being poor so much not since hes been going with lily cass E edith adith offered well I 1 think I 1 want him to mindl I 1 dont think phil is ambitious gau gall countered with an anxious little laugh maybe were foolish ourselves edith said suddenly gloomy ma maybe abe our lucks changed fooling ourselves yes do you think we arell are 1 I dont think I 1 quite understand you gall said uncomfortably oh yes you do edith answered with a laugh you mean gall said soberly after a space that we arent getting anywhere well are we we are stuck la in ClIppers ville edith summarized it nobody knows were alive were not in debt because the doctors and dentists wont send us bills but we ought to be we any clothes any social standing P oh we have that ede I 1 well if we have if we are the lucky laurences lawrences Lawren ces if we were one of the most important families in california once what are we now chos going to marry us who Is there here for us to marry anyway to prevent our living on and on here old maids scraping along as best we can phil marrying that horrible mrs airs cass sam getting a job somewhere and going away arlel ariel committing sule suicide I 1 de I 1 suppose oh edith edithl edith I 1 gall protested horrified dont talk like that I 1 youre blue youre just tired today or its spring or something 1 why darling nobody knows where changes are coming from or when were having our hard bard times now instead of later t hats all aall I 1 well have dresses and country clubs and trips and and fun theaters I 1 mean and everything one of these days I 1 editha grave grav e intellectual face was doubtful youre twenty three she suggested significantly 1 I dont think I 1 mind for myself I 1 mind for you edith said as they walked jack back to work you ought to be having good times you ought to be dancing and going to little restaurants rants and and everything and so ou ought 0 ht you 1 gall answered cheerfully although b she felt a knife in her heart oh I 1 V I 1 edith dismissed herself if lightly attly and immediately fell into that silly strain for which gall could find no better expression than old maidy 19 1 I have a feeling edith went on complacently that I 1 will meet my husband and be married to him all in a very short time you know that fortune teller that was at mabels abells Al 10 1 I wish she talk that way it 1 gall thought suddenly hot irritable and diS discouraged coura ed she felt more weary and discouraged as she went on her way the long afternoon in the library dra dragged ed she felt bored A sense of injustice oppressed her twenty three and she might just as well have been fifty three TO BE CONTINUED |
