Evening Star Newspaper, December 19, 1928, Page 35

o > "THE BVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. ©. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1098, . THE EVENING STORY Her Duty. N Westport, where she taught nine months of the year, Milly Lane was Miss Lane, the primary grade teacher, who “had such a nice way with children,” and whom their parents looked up to. She boarded at Mrs. Bailey's with four other teachers of the Westport School and had pleasant companionship and many times. During those nine months at West- port she grew rosy, took on flesh, and crept out of her shell of shyness so far as to be able to laugh easily, talk and show some interest in life. Even with her red hair and spectacles she was rather pretty, because she had a girlish immaturity of build and expre sion in spite of her 28 years. Wil Fuller, the farmer who grew onions and sprouts in such quantities for the city markets that he was getting rich thereby, who owned the best car in Westport and the best house and the best piece of land anywhere about there, paid her as much attention as he did any one, perhaps a trifie more. It was generally supposed at Mrs. Bailey's that Miss Van Etten would | eventually be his choice, for Miss: Van Etten was handsome in a dark, dreamy way. However, nothing was settled yet, and if Milly Lane dare hope a little, who could blame her? Thus for nine months Milly led the life of a normal young woman who works hard, has good food, is respected liked, and even has a gleam of nce to light her way. Then about }he gnhu: ulu mek l‘:n ?:lflyvm‘nd she | queerest bit of humanity that could be found hersel eyville. found in the whole locality. For the Back in Valleyville in four rooms with her duty. Her duty was Aunt Mandy. |WOrst of Aunt Mandy was her looks. Milly had acquired Aunt Mandy by |But Milly had grown used to them. the direct process of inheritance. “The| A week after returning to Valleyville people who should have been respon- | Milly began to lose color and curve and sible for her had died or moved away |take on a saddened, repressed air that or eluded the burden in some way until | robbed her of all attractiveness. Aunt she had fallen to the care of Milly. | Mandy aroused far enough to say that Milly kept the four rooms for Aunt|Milly acted as if she were ‘“coming Mandy, provided her with fuel, food |down with somethin But _Mrs, and clothing and hired Mrs. Dunne | Dunne, kindly old soul, understood. downstairs to see that these were| “Mandy's*a trial to the flesh,” she properly administered. For Aunt|said. “I feel sometimes as if I'd just Mandy had never been strong either of | love to try to shake a little sense into mind or body, and now that she was|her. I've expected all Winter she'd getting old she simply sat down and burn me out the way she’s poked the stared her time away. Always sitting, |fire. And she’s taken to wandering always staring, arousing a little if |off lately—taking walks, she calls it. spoken to, then sinking back into the |Jt fusses me to death to see her go weaving and tottering down the street stare and_inertia. When Milly came home to Aunt|with heavy trucks and autos passing Mandy she was @& Cinderella fleeing | every moment. Some day she won't get from the ball, with this difference, she |out of the way of one, and then——" had no magic slipper on her foot. In|As Milly shuddered, Mrs. Dunne patted her shoulder. “There! oughtn’t to of Valleyville she was the daughter of a faflure and the custodian of thelsald anything like that. Are you going back to Westport to teach next year?” Milly gulped. “No, I sent in my resignation yester- day. I—I'm going to try to get the McClure School, then I can be home nights and over Sunday. I just feel T've got to stay with Aunt Mandy and —and look after her. You've done won- derfully, dear Mrs. Dunne, but it's my duty and—" She paused. She couldn't say that she could no longer keep up the expense of her fages. If she were at home she could save the price of her own board, to say nothing of car fare, Aunt Mandy would be better off. As for herself, nothing matered now. “Well, of course, you know best,” Mrs. Dunne said slowly. But she sighed as she looked closely at Milly's pale face. Now that she had forcibly detached herself from Westport and all that was there, Milly saw before her a dark nar- row alley which ended in a high stone wall. All that she could do was to go on as best she could with her duty. A few weeks passed. Milly watched | g Aunt Mandy as if she had been a child | sat on Mrs. Dunne's porch with her | or a troublesome pup] ut one after. nooli\ th;“fild ‘woman s::i!e :'.:ky edtar her | gathered and a night moth dipped into walk, ly missed her, MTS. | the sweet cups of the opening nicotines. Dunne if she had seen ser, and set out | =, heavy roadster whipped down the wildly in search. It was a torrid July afternoon and | Street and stopped at the door and a man got out. He was close to Milly wally'panted with ihe heat as she nnl own one street, up another, across a fore sh cognized third _She had come out bare-headed | ;’,’:l ';,"u'h:rp"km s “And you didn't know me!” he said, and the sun burned her head and shoulders. She sweated with fear. Sup- pose’ Aunt Mandy had been struck down |as he took the empty chair beside her. by some one of the flying cars! “Why, I'd have known that little red At last, fairly overcome with heat, | head of yours anywhere. Milly. what do she returned home to find Aunt Mandy | you mean by leaving Westport this calmly rocking in her favorite chair.|Wway? You've got to come back.” She glanced up in surprise. | "“I can't,” Milly faltered. “I've sent “Why, where you been?” she in-|in my resignation.” quired mildly. It was so hot that I, He laid his brown hand over hers decided not to go far, just over to Mis' it rested on the arm of her chair. Tolson's.” “You've got to come back because I'm Milly sank upon the couch, over- |going to take you—as my wife.” heated and exhausted. She closed her | It was an hour before Milly could eyes and did not move again for a long | understand that her lost romance had time. | reached out arms that had captured That evening when Aunt Mandy hac | her warm and fast. She was glad to let one to bed to sleep like a child, Milly | her head lie on Will's shoulder while he made plans. She had already told him headache and her problems. Dusk | about Aunt Mandy and the duty and all the rest of it, so there was nothing new of that kind ta say. “We'll let Aunt Mandy have a room of her own and the housekeeper will look after her if she needs it,” Will said. “And if she wants to take walks she can walk all she wants to on my land. You see, Milly, 'l just appro- priate your duty, and all you'll have to do is to love me and brighten up life for me with your little red head.” The following day Milly and Will were married at the parsonage. Then they packed the few things they needed, put Aunt Mandy in the car between them and flew back to Westport. Mrs. Dunne promised to look after the con- tents of the four rooms. “Ppor Milly!” sighed Mrs. Dunne. “I'm glad she’s going to be happy in spite of her duty.” THE END. (Copyright, 1928.) . Many American automobile execu- tives attended the recent Paris automo- bile salon. 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