Evening Star Newspaper, May 16, 1937, Page 91

May 16, 1937 work weez amateur! Beside, eet ees ze same all ovair! Dees strike ees at ever’ alalier in Paris! We are in one bad feex!” *“Hum!” said Arizona thoughtfully. “That’s a bull’s-eye all around. Because after all, if i you're bucked off by this, Mr. Poilesse, so am I. And so are Spratt’s, who have timed their dl Paris Fashion Show right after yours. If I go 4 food is swell. I'll bet if your cooks ' by that name,” said Arizona. W ‘| drew back in sudden alarm. “I | will tell you how you can make 1 (ume you air wearing!”’ back without a collection I'd better head home for Yuma instead of New York. How long do you figger these sewing-girls will stay in the grave?” “Ah!’ The Frenchman shrugged. “Who can say, wiz ze country so upset? Perhaps forever! It ees a crisis most grave.” “I wish you'd stop talking like a church- ard!”’ Arizona protested. ‘‘You'll have me singing ‘Oh, bury me not’ in another minute! e question is, what to do?”’ His eyes had been on her with steadily lgrowing admiration. ‘“We might,”” he ven- ured, ‘‘have dinner tonight, if mees will per- mit. We could consult further, and perhaps ou would like to see somezing of Paris, non?"’ “Oh, sure!” said Arizona heartily. “I knew a cowpuncher back home who was over here in the war. Spike Kane. Did you ever happen to meet him? No, I suppose not. But Spike told me I ought to see this Left Bank business of yours. 1'd like that because I deal a middling good game of Faro myself. And — oh, yes, French poodles. You know, those dogs with doorknobs on ‘em. I'd like to see one of them.” “Mademoiselle!” said M. Poilesse with dignity. “‘Tonight you shall see ze Paris of ze French. And anyzing else ze heck you please!”’ The evening gown Arizona chose from her Hollywood collection was a glorious brocade that clung to her lovely figure a trifle more revealingly than she would have liked. “But if I happen to get any soup on this kind of goods, it won’t show,”” she told herself consolingly; “and so Colbert or Garbo, or . whoever gets it, will never know the difference!” Then she swathed herself in the matching wrap, gave her glorious golden head a final shake and went down to greet the completely stunned dressmaker, whose soul was promptly torn between drinking in the details of what she wore and worshipping at the shrine of her own beauty. Even in strike-ridden Paris, the Ritz Bar, the Reine P¢dauque, Maxim’s, functioned en- tertainingly. And by eleven-thirty Arizona and the bearded Frenchman were on genuinely friendly terms. Seated beside him on a han- quetle at Harry’s New York Bar, Arizona’s eyes and lips both smiled her appreciation. “Eh bien!”’ said he. ‘‘And now what do you sink of Paris, hesn?"”’ “For a place that’s been used such a lot,” said she frankly, “jt’s stood up real good. And the could get hold of some real Ameri- can recipes, it would be wonder- ful?”’ “Ou-la-la!”’ said he, laughing. “I once knew a Cherokee chief “Ou-la-la. Big buck, he was. Which reminds me that I sure hope I can show you around my part of the country sometime. I don’'t know how I can ever thank you for this lovely eveniny, Monseer Poilesse.” Suddenly his face grew dark with emotion and he leaned to- wards her with fire in his eyes. I will tell you how!” he said in a hoarse whisper as Arizona me ze mos’ happy man in ze world!” “How?"’ Arizona asked faintly. “Tell me where you get zai cos- Hardly able to believe her ears, which had H been prepared for quite other matters, Ari- | zona merely gasped without replying, while Poilesse went on, his voice broken with emo- tion. “Ah, but do not keep me in ze agony!” he | implored. “It is superb! Absolument quel- quechose de nouveau! Ah! Quelle chic! And ze little gray robe — doze one which you wore theese afternoon! Tell me, dear Mees West, where in all Paris did you get heem?”’ Suddenly Arizona pulled herself together, the germ of a wicked idea growing in her mind. It was perfectly evident that M. Poilesse never dreamed that her clothes had THIS any but a French origination, which was in itself amusing enough. And if she could get his unqualified approval of her trunkful, that might somewhat compensate for her either having to greatly delay her return to New York, or to go back empty-handed. “Well, Bluebeard,” she said cheerfully, “I see you've caught me with the closet door open. So I guess I’d better come clean and confess 1 got plenty more where these two dresses came from. Nobody has seen 'em but you, and 1 have a full line, from bathing suits through the cocktail hour, up to night club nighties. What’s more, I have a curb bit on the lot, original sketches and all. Would you like to look ’em over?” *Mademoiselle ees an angel from Heaven!”’ he declared kissing her hand. “I shall be shown zem secretly, n’est-ce-pas?”’ “Sure thing,” Arizona agreed. ‘‘At my hotel, ten o’clock tomorrow morning. And now, bong swor, let’s call it a jour!” M. Poilesse was promptness itself, and by eleven-thirty next morning the show was over. Arizona had modeled herself to a frazzle, feeling ‘“‘just like one of those clothes-hosses at the National Show,”’ as she put it mentally. But M. Poilesse had remained disappointingly silent throughout the performance, the little of his face that was visible above the beard, a white and silent mask. Every atom of his previous enthusiasm had vanished, and when the last garment had been trailed about before him, M. Poilesse had picked up his gloves, his cane, his silk hat and his beard and gone his way, politely, but with unmistakable - haste. And without anything remotely resembling his official stamp of approval! “Guess he was just kind THE LITTLE PORTER COLLAPSED BESIDE THE TRUNK, AND ARIZONA SAT UPON IT FIRMLY, SHAKING HER FIST WEEK of shootin’ up the town last night!”’ Arizona informed the gentleman chambermaid whom she summoned to help her pack. “It was his night to howl and I was green enough to believe him!" . “Ah! L’amour!” sighed the gentleman chambermaid sympathetically. “It is not always gay!”’ “Love!” snorted Arizona. ‘“Me love that stack of alfalfa? Nix, pardner, I have a friend back home who's got that gent beat high- wide-and-handsome. All that’s worrying me right now is what I’m going to tell his poppa.” “His pappa?”’ exclaimed the gentleman chambermaid. “How extraordinary are the customs of the barbarous Americans!” Fortunately the last part of the sentence was said in French and so was lost on Arizona, who, by this time, was at the telephone, deep in a struggle to make M. Lelong, High Com- manding Porter in Chief, understand that she had a trunk to go to America by the Great Quickness, and that it must depart at once. “What time does the train alley?” Arizona wanted to know. ‘“Two o’clock? Willthatcatch the Normandie? Okay, pardner, mercy! In fact mercy on both of us, because if she doesn’t make the Normandie, Colossal Studios will be standing in both stirrups, yelling plenty!” When the trunk was finally locked, labeled, and entrusted to a couple of M. Lelong’s menials, Arizona dusted off her big, beautiful hands and, arrayed in the humble sports clothes which were now her only garments, descended to the dining room and ordered lllustrated by Williom Revsswig Mogotine Section 5 herself some lunch. Her manner was curt. “A steak,” she commanded ‘“‘without any @ la’s on it. Just a plain slice of cow. Some salad, and for dessert, a herd of those little intoxicated doilies you call pancakes.” A little later, fortified by this repast, Ari- zona gathered up her big white hat, stuck it firmly upon her golden head and prepared to sally forth to what she called the “shooting- galleries” Lafayette, in search of clothing. Until she received instructions from Mr. Spratt as to her next move, she would, she decided, have to wear something. And if her instructions were to await the end of the dressmakers’ strike and the delayed opening of the spring shows, she’d need quite a ward- robe. And how to wangle it out of a bunch of people who couldn’t understand their own language, even when she spoke it, was going to be a worse job than hog-tying the liveliest dogie on the range. However, this test of her courage was delayed by the unexpected re- appearance of M. Poilesse. The great dressmaker rushed across the lobby to Arizona, his face beaming once more. Even the shock of her present costume failed to dampen the enthusiasm with which he greeted her, and nothing would do but they repair at once to the darkest corner of the de- serted writing room. There, with an air of great mystery, first looking carefully about to make sure they were unobserved, he disclosed the reason for his extraordinary excitement. “Mees West,” he said earnestly, “I have struggle wiz temptation, and I have fall! That collection of yours, you swear it ees original? That nobody see him but me and the great artist who create heem?”’ “It’s true, or I'm a hoss-thief!”” Arizona assured him solemnly. “Why?” . *‘Because I buy heem!” said Poilesse. ‘“‘Mees West, thees ees one moment lerrible. 1 am an artist, me! And to sign ze painting of anozzer’s work — ah! That ees terrible! But ] am alzoa beeg business man! I have a contract to show a collection — voila! 1 have it not! But zis one of yours ees so fine, so chic, I am proud to say, (Continved on poge 12)