Evening Star Newspaper, March 30, 1930, Page 100

LANGUAGE AND LOVE Sylvester Was a Dia- mond in the Rough, but It Didn’t Take Helen Long to Find He Was Better Than Her Friends Who Had No Diamonds at All—This Is a First- Run Story by a Special Contributor to The Star’s Sunday Magazine. ILL, at last it was over. Thank relieved tg*%ighr that. It was the were, and all of them had Sylvester. S discrimination and carnation were all the same to Sylvester, because his line was bricks 6 maké yp their minds, onie way or the other.” “"Helen resolved never to see him again. Cer- nly a person who had such a genius mis- 0 ing long words, and using frightfully guage. ‘But proper or improper, Sylvester insisted 2 being a companion. He would drop dround unexpectedly the minute he got into town, say he was fust lonesome for a little company, and before she could think up an me excuse, rush her off somewhere for " Aild now the college crowd had met him. Vexie Pritchard, Edith Roberts and Nellis Hahn, girls with whom Helen had swapped dance pariners and from whom she had bor- rowed themes, had looked him over and com- 4 lbert Hahn, . hn Builders, Inc., and Edith Rorerts’ , Mr. Garrison, would probably be fiat- tered. Anyhow, Helen was glad Sylvester's English had behaved so well, and was little repared for the shock she received the nest “Helen, I think your boy friend is just o rec ,” it was Vexie Pritchard’s voice over the telephone. “That bear-trap handclasp he gives you when he tells you how glad he is to lgI;e your acquaintance really ought 4o be _How dare she laugh at Sylvester’s maaners! n forgot that she had once laughed at 1 herself, 4 9Ot course, you couldn’t take him seriously, anyhow, so there’s no r why we can't "Indeed, thought Helen, but said nothing, for Vexie was chattering right along: “Mr. Garrison is the man who writes that ‘Met About Town” columm in the evening > THE YWUNDAY ‘STAR, WASHINGTON; ‘D. C, MARCH-'30, 1930. And she didn’t take him seriously? Why, there wasn’t another person in the whole world whom Helen Clark could have any time she wanted him, and all the time if she could stand him. paper, and Edith Roberts Is dying to have him do a funny write-up on Sylvester.” There was & very weak “really” from Helen. “Yes, don’t you think Sylvester would be - did. She felt a little stab of pain as she membered the evening he had dropped she had struggled so hard all and pronouns and was feeling alone and out in . the cold. “We'll be a couple of old fogies, we will,” § vester had consoled her, and she corrected his mistake as usual, but loved his voice. “You mean ‘old Cronies,” don’t you, Sylvester? I hope I won't be an old fogy for a long, long time.” th-d-untn.bo. And she didn't take him seriously? Why, there wasn't another person in the whole world whom Helen Clark could have any time she wanted him, and all the time if she could stand him. mark of Sylvester’s for his column, she thought, and she was exactly correct. “Mr. Gasrison writes the ‘Met Abouf Town’ column,” enlightened Nellis, but. Sylvester didn’t know and didn’t care. He was just as pleased to continue the young man’s acquain- tance as if Garrison had been on a cement truck or the police force, and he proceeded to fix the radio with as much indifference. to him as if he had been on another planet. Efigia ; i : 2 ERE e TR L Be 691 I 3 I i z %) 4 g ; preventitives about me. If I like a person, Fd as soon lend him money or lose a night’s sleep for him, see?” Gilbert saw. He thought it was great to have some one like him that way. “Well run over and play some rummy and stuff while you're adolescing,” Sylvester prom- ised readily, and then remembered to do it. It was while he was being so beautifully kind to Nellis and Gilbert that Helen allowed Syl- vester to talk her into a diamond ring. “Might’s well let me build you a house and get you all fixed to take care of me if I happen to come down with something some day,” he said. Gilbert told him it was great sales stuff and was quite sincere in his congratulations to Helen. Vgxm PRITCHARD and Edith Roberts were ‘" the ones who suffered from the shock. “Don’t tell me she’s going to marry into that vocabulary?” gasped Edith, and Mr. Garrison got a bright idea for his column. He called it “Vocabulary vs &nk Account” and. gave out such surpflalngiy good advice on the business — By Margaret Suffolk of marrying that the Lovelorn Column became lous. “Let's throw a real party for them when Gilbert gets well,” suggested the man who was writing the book on philosophy, and Vexie Pritchard began to wonder whether he, too, expected to make a living selling Slyvester's line of chatter. “Gee, it’s nice to have friends like that,” and ther: was real appreciation in Slyvester's voice. He told Helen to be sure to wear her new earrings, and he spent the whole afternoon buying a derby and sitting in a barber shop. Helen thought when she saw him that he looked like a little boy with a very clean neck. “Those friends of yours sure did a lot for our little old love affair,” he gushed. Then he was silent so long that Heleh won~ dered if he could be thinking up a lot of choice words to give them in his 3 “You know, I can't help thinking about Vexie and Edith. They're such good kids and those boy friends are ok. and dandy fellows. Too bad they can’t fix things up so they'll be all hotsy-totsy like us.” “Why, Sylvester,” Helen besgan, but just then Bdith and Mr. Garrison called for them in time to relieve her embarrassment. Apparenly it was understood to be Mr. Gar- rison’s party. Helen felt he owed Slyvester Gilbert thought is was fine. He slapped Sylvester on the shoulder and told him there wasn't an.idea on earth he 't sell. “Why, I bet if you tried, you eyen sell fectly well that Garrison hadn’t the price of a setting. “Or my sweet papa a wedding ring,” said Vexie Pritchard, and the wonderful book-write ing man looked extremely annoyed. “That was unkind,” he told Vexie, and sug- gested that they dance. " “Now I ask you, what could be kinder than & wedding ring?” demanded Sylvester when tae other couple had left the table. “You tell him, he’s so innocent,” said Edith Roberts, and she and Garrison'also joined the dancers. “Well, you see, Vexic knows the only kind of wedding she can have is some sort of com- panionate one, because the boy friend has a wife who won't divorce him,” informed Nellis. Sylvester’s face was a picture—of horror. “A wife who won't divorce him,” he cried, “and here he is, head over heels in love with a sweet girl like Miss Pritchard. It was evident there was no excuse to e found in his orderly mind for such conduct. “Well, what I think there ought to be for such people is some sort of compassionate di- yorce or something like that.” Helen's eyes met Nellis’. Neither of tnem dared risk a glance in the direction of Gilbert, but hastily excusing themselves, went to the dressing room fcr a real good laugh. “zm they came back, Gilbert and Sylvester % were busy buying and -selling bricks. Sylvester was adding up a column of figures on the tablecloth. 38 “But are you allowed to do that, dear?” mo‘ tested Helen, with alarmed eye on the ruincd “Allowed? Sure—who's going to stop me? ‘Why, right here in this one dead is enough profit to buy out this place and most of the people in it.” Y Vexie and Bdith had changed partners and were still dancing. When they finally came back to the tabie, Sylvester looked up with a startled expression, like some one who had just discovered that it's terribly late, and said: “Gosh, I forgot we have to be getting along. Want to come with us, Gilbert?” Surely, thought Nellis, Gilbert would have manners enough to remember it was Garrison's party and stay until it was over. But Gilbert bluntly responded: “Sure I want to come with you. Good-night, Helen remembered that it was Garrison’s party, but she noticed that Sylvester paid the bill exactly as though he had been expecting to do it, and no one protested. Outside Sylvester drew a long breath. “Fresh air,” he sighed. “Gosh, we needed that. Why, I swear when those people came back to the table and I saw the Pritchard girl put her hand on Helen’s shoulder—it just boiled me over. The idea, people like that, marri~d and all and running around with no divorces, and that big fourflusher Garrison, giving parties with his pockets empty. I tell you, I couldn't wait untis I got these nice little girls of ours through that osculating door, Gilbert. “You .and me both,” said Gilbert. % “Not an osculating door, Sylvester—an oscil- lating door,” corrected Helen,- noting again that he had a wonderful chin, -« - “Anyhow, you know what I mean. One that turns around and finally puts you on the out- <Helen knew. It was an osculating door she had on:her apartment. She' leaned ‘against It while she gave Syivester the best kiss she'had-- and not because he had been careful about (Copyright, 1930.)