Evening Star Newspaper, August 1, 1937, Page 87

Avgust 1, 1937 Back Yard Idyll Continved from poge five She telephoned to Bailey's Store. He had gone. She telephoned to the Y.M.C.A. He was not there. She’'d have to go through with the date then. But it was the last one. And there’d be no more sitting out in the back yard. She hoped she could kind of break away from seeing him so it wouldn’t hurt his feelings. If she couldn’t, she’d hate it; but, after all, the crowd was — her crowd. By the time Jim Rainey arrived, Isabelle was in a fine state of nerves. As he came up the porch steps, she greeted him with a high-pitched un- natural vivacity. Then, for some in- explicable reason, her voice hurt in her throat as she saw he had on a new tie. It was a horrible tie; gaudy and cheap like the only other one she had ever seen him wear. “Hi!"”" he said. He seemed . . . happy. He sank down into a chair and sighed enormously. “I’ve sure been on my horse today. Been downtown and bought myself a new suit. Inci- dentally, I went by the Ritz-Imperial. The bill changes tomorrow. What say . we go tomorrow night?"’ She drew in her breath sharply, and her expression was for an instant appalled. She grasped at the first thought that came to her: “But, look —don’t you think maybe you're getting awfully extravagant, going to the movies and new suits and all?”’ He laughed, pleased at her concern. “Listen, I've saved my money since I earned enough to save any. I went a long time without going any- where.”” He added, a quiet pride in his voice, “'I can afford it.” “But you're spending money all the time!”’ Oh, why wouldn’t he let her get out of this without hurting him! “Yeah.” All laughter had gone from him, and his face had stiffened into the expression he had worn that first day when she had ordered him to take her to the movies. His eyes were lowered and hers went down to see what he stared at. She found her hands clenched into fists and pressed hard together in her lap. “You don’t have to squirm out of it,”” he said. ‘‘Just say you don’t want to go.” ‘“Why, don’t be silly!"’ She couldn’t look at him any more, with his mouth in that straight line across his face like he was hurt and mad, or maybe both. Already she had done this to him. And it was nothing to what she was going to do. Suddenly she knew she couldn’t do it. Let the crowd make fun of her. All right, let them. But they’d better not laugh where he could hear them! “You,” she said, ‘‘getting mad just because I give you the lecture you deserve about your money! If you won’t listen to it, maybe you will listen to my idea for tomorrow night. You see, well, I mean’’ — it was hard to explain and make it seem natural —*‘ the girls are giving this sort of party at the country club for the boys coming back from camp. It’ll be dif- ferent — I mean fun — and I thought we might go if you'd like to.” He stared at her as if he hadn’t heard her. Then as if he didn’t believe her. Then he smiled, and she felt better than she’d felt for ages — since this morning. ‘“Well, gee!’ he said. ‘I sure would like to go.” ’ “It ought to be fun with the whole crowd there and all.”” Unconsciously Isabelle lifted her head as if she were already facing the bombardment of silent ridicule that would be her greet- ing from the crowd . . . Her head was held even higher when finally the moment arrived, and she appeared in the club’s small supper room. Everybody else in the crowd was there. Isabelle had purposefully been late in order to get it over with at once, each and every incredulous and derisive look. She paused for an instant in the doorway, her arm through Jim Rainey’s; her hand, by sheer will power, remaining relaxed upon the cheap material of his coat. She was going to die, she knew it. She had been out of her mind to have thought of a thing like this. And now here she was, with the girlsand Kenny, Wally, Clifford and the rest of the boye looking at her like a herd of something with their mouths open. But if they laughed — The instant of silence was broken by a titter from Kay Oliver. Then Clifford Reed yelled, *“‘Jim, you big slug!’ and went to Jim Rainey.Wally and the rest of the boys rushed for- ward and surrounded him. The girls were left forgotten — except for Isabelle. Clifford, his arm around Jim’s shoulders, turned to her: ‘“Nice work, my girl! We’ve been trying to get this Rainey guy back into the crowd ever since he left us flat in high school. But every time we said the word ‘girl’ he walked out on us, till he finally got away from us completely.” Clifford slapped Jim’s shoulder, his grin impudent and delighted. ‘“How were we to know you were holding out for — "’ He didn’t finish the sentence. He merely looked at Isabelle, and his look finished it more gallantly than any words. Isabelle murmured, ‘“‘For heaven’s sake!” and smiled at him and Jim and all the other boys. Boys could certainly surprise a person. They were strange people and sometimes pretty marvelous — not un-American like some people. Her happy glance swept across the room to Susie Clayton and Kay. ‘‘Hello,” she said, and turned back to Jim Rainey. My, but this was going to be a wonderful party! Another adoenture of Isabelle Cummings appears next week. THIS WEEK When four black paws and two small feet Grow weary treading path and street, When boy and dog have wandered far They drop to rest right where they are. Then no reward of food or fun Could tempt the dog to leap and run; Fatal Foolishness by PAUL W. KEARNEY T'S SILLY to drown. Silly? Certainly, because in most cases there is little or no excuse for it. For example: A 35-year old vacationist drowned in Kinderhook Creek, New York State, last July when he went in the water right after a heavy meal. A stomach cramp got him; he went down only twenty feet from the bank; and although his wife was standing right there watching him, she couldn’t do a‘thing. In Atlantic City a girl wading knee- deep in the surf stepped into a hole and drowned. Only three feet from shallow water, she lost her head and virtually drowned herself through her futile exertions. In Prospect Park Lake, Brooklyn, a l4-year old boy who knew how to swim was drowned in eight feet of water not more than a hop, step and jump from shore. So it goes. Approximately 7,500 drownings every year. On the 4th of July, more water accidents proved fatal than all other types combined, excepting only automobile crashes. The vast majority of those who drown know how to swim. That is, how to swim well enough to get into trouble. Why in thunder is it that the fellow who can swim only fifty feet invari- ably swims fifty feet out from shore? They are the lads who run the life- guards ragged, because when they reach the end of their swim, tired, they turn around and discover that it’s an awful long way back. So they foolish when you realize three facts about these accidents: 1. Most drownings occur near shore. 2. Most drownings occur in small lakes and streams rather than the ocean or our largest lakes. 3. The two most common causes are fatigue and stomach cramps. Fatigue is most frequently brought to the critical point by the wild efforts arising from panic; sometimes it re- sults from poor judgment. On Lake Champlain a few summers ago three young men were dumped out of a canoe by a sudden squawl. Two of them could swim pretty well; one couldn’t swim a stroke. The two who could swim started for shore, fully clothed and were drowned; the one who couldn’t grabbed the overturned canoe — and was saved! Unable even to attempt it, he was spared the . foolishness of trying to swim with his clothes on. Stomach cramps, the other big cause of drownings, are even less ex- cusable than fatigue from panic be- cause they are commitled by going in Magoazine Section Photo by Hermann B. Deutsc)- DOg TII' ed — by ARTHUR GUITERMAN No grand parade of any size Could make the boy unclose his eyes. A bit of shade, a vacant spot, And there they’ll sleep, the world forgot, — A world that wishes all its joys To friendly dogs and little boys. It’s Silly to Drown the water too soon after eating. Never swim for at.least fwo hours after eat- ing — longer, indeed, if your meal has been one of those picnic con- glomerations that would produce gas in the Trojan Horse! Don’t, however, get the erroneous notion that muscle cramps in the arms or legs are serious — they aren’t. They can be darned uncomfortable but that’s about all, yet many a novicetias been so scared by a muscle cramp that he came near drowning in his fright. If you know all these things, there’s only one thing more to say: in case of rescues remember the Red Cross rule — swimming should be the last resort, not the first. Reach the victim a pole, an oar; toss him a rope; hold out your shirt for him to grab hold of — but don’t go in the water until every other expedient fails. In short, use your head and keep out of trouble. For that’s the A-B-C of water safety. And those who don’t know their A-B-C's are dying at the rate of 7,500 a year. Geed Ken-L-Ration NO O'I'IIR DOG FOOD CONTAINS decide to touch bottom and rest a bit. But when they reach down with their feet, there is no bottom and the water is up around the nostrils before they realize it. In such a situation any sensible swimmer merely buries his face in the water, throws his arms forward and comes right back in the swimming position ‘“‘with the greatest of ease.” If he’s too tired to swim, he rolls over and floats until he is rested. Foolish, certainly, not to know how to take care of yourself before you venture into the water. And doubly It costs you no more for this super- food. Earlyne is a concentrate of proteins, minerals and irradiated yeast. Feed Ken-L-Ration daily. WRITE FOR FREE GIFTY FREE' DEPT.T18 « CRAPPEL BROS., INC. ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS Kfl -I-RATION CONTAINS Cwtlyrec Drawn by E. Nof MADE IN AN EST. OPERATING UNDER FEDERAL MEAT INSP. THEN — BUT MAKE HIM QUIT SNORING” ‘“‘ALL RIGHT,