The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

PAGE TEN «HE DAILY TIMES-GAZETTE <ATURDAY, AUGUST 7, 1948 Today's Short Story THE HOPE CHEST By Laura King landlady was out, so the proprietress of the curio shop in the basement of the old brown- stone house let Marcia in to wait and found her a chair. It was a fragile Sheraton, but the girl who perched restlessly on its edge was almos. as fragile with an old-world delicacy which might have stepped out of her grandmother's generation. "You've been here long?" far- cia asked, attempting conversa- tion. "Yes, but not in this particular basement." "The landlady , , .?" Marcia. "She always returns by dinner- time. You're welcome to wait. The shop doesn't close until six." As if to reassure her, an old- fashioned clock struck five. Pressing a button, the proprie- tress lighted a number of lamps on shelves in the two front win- dows. Street lights, like giant fireflies, started to blink rhythm- ically across the winter dusk. Marcia stood up. "Maybe she'll be late. Maybe I shouldn't stay." "You want a room?" "I'm not quite sure. I have a room at the hotel." "That sounds as ¥ youre a newcomer." "No . . + I've been here three months." "Then it's more than just a sightseeing trip?" The curio lady's face was kind, not curious. Without realizing it, the girl began telling this chance acquaintance with the friendly eyes about Aunt Gert with whom she lived in Virginia till she left for college . , . about the mother she barely remembered . . . about the dreams which had brought her to New York. Then the words tumbled out. She could sing, but a girl needed mone; to be coached. "Aunt Gert, who was like a mother, went last winter," she added slowly. . "And your father?" Marcia , answered, "He never came back from the first war." "But you look such a young- ster, . ." . Marcia nodded. "And that has also handicapped me, looking for a job." "What you need is a hope chest . . J" The words brought a flush to Marcia's cheeks. "He's gone. We had a quarrel and . . , well, it's all over." The curio lady took a box of lacy ivory from the high shelf, touching it as though it was a flower. "I didn't mean that sort of a hope chest," she said. "I meant one like mine. My father bought this for me, years ago. It came from this very house." "Oh!" There was a new light in Marcia's eyes. She leaned for- ward to listen, "There were two beautiful sis- ters living here before the. first war. One was married, but they say both sisters loved the same man, and that the husband went to Germany as a war correspon- dent because he couldn't decide between them. He was killed, rumor says he exposed himself needlessly, and eight months after his death the wife gave birth to a baby daughter." * Marcia touched the casket with her fingers that trembled as she quickly drew them away. "You knew them?" she asked. "Pleasantly enough to nod to them. We moved in a different world, but I admired both girls end defended them when gossip started." Marcia's blue eyes looked al- most black in their intensity. "You were telling me of the ivory box. Did it belong to one of began them?" "Yes. My father bought it at auction when the; sold the place. Years later I found a letter under the lining of the lid." "A letter? To whom?" The curio lady looked at the girl intently, her eyes filling with compassion. She began gently, "If the boy you love found he really loved someone else, could you stand it? Bear it gallantly?" The girl's head lifted. "A man might" find himself in love with someone he hadn't known about until after he was engaged--or married. If he tried to do the decent thing, it wouldn't hurt me half as much as if I knew he had faced it with courage." Silently the curio lady opened the box and lifted out an envel- ope. She looked at it as if try- ing to make up her mind, then took out the letter and wordlessly handed the age-yellowed paper to Marcia. The girl let her eyes run quickly through its short 1.essage. "Oh, it's true. It's true," ske cried happily. A moment later she was explaining, "My mother was Marcia Lane. This was her home. Aunt Gert told me of their life together here. At first I couldn't bear to come and see it, a rooming house. But tonight I wanted to come here , . . to fol- low them." The kind eyes of the curio lady searched the girl's face, then said, "Forgive me for bringing up the scandal." "You mustn't mind," the girl told her. "Gossip has always fol- lowed my family. Before I was ten a girl at school told me How my father had run away and let himself be killed because he was a coward. But now I know he wasn't. His letter shows how fine he was. Listen ..." She read aloud, "Loved one. Because you have lived on this earth and looked at its beauty the world is very dear to me. Have no fear that I shall be un- duly reckless. If I do not return in the flesh, I shall find you again, somehow." Marcia looked up, her eyes flashing. "Knowing that, I shall be able to win. I'll find that job. I can make up with Bob again because he has that sort of love, 00. I can..." "You're very sure, my dear? You don't even need to see the envelope to know the letter was addressed to your mother?" Proudly Marcia nodded. "He loved her, said he would come back." Nodding, the curio lady folded the yellowed envelope and let it slip into the wastebasket. "You may keep the letter, my dear," she said. Then, hearing the door above open,' she added, "There's the landlady now, if you still want to see her." When Marcia had left, the curio lady slowly tore into tiny bits the envelope which carried the single word "Gertrude" on its face. (Copyright), "| cost-of-living and with the party's | opportunity of leading the govern- | CANADA GETS MOST OF ITS WS. DOLLARS FRON FOREST EXPORTS i /1947 VALUE OF EXPORTS 10 U.S. Ppa "Pulp and Paper Others 2 PPPOE O06 yy. wt €Animal 'and Vegetable Products) Non Feiious Metal {Iron Products (Non-Metallic Mineral Products' [Al other Products THE FOREST PROVIDES ONE QUARTER (OF CANADA'S PRIMARY -PRODUCTION : Ben rn & 8 {war =saa NEY » > & 3 iid Nearly 200 Now Before By D'ARCY O'DONNELL Canadian Press Staff Writer Ottawa, Aug T7--(CP)--The Na- tional Liberal convention moved inte its final lap today and indica- tions there will be plenty of bang- up action before the final planks are nailed in the platform and a new party leader chosen. A ginger group of young Liberals served notice Friday they are not going to be satisfied with a plat- form of "platitudes." Other dele- gates served notice they are not going to take "no" from men whom they feel should contest the party leadership. It was anyone's guess as to what would happen before Chairman J. Gordon Fogo bangs the gavel on the speaker's rostrum and declares the convention over. So far the resolution committee has sent 13 resolutions to the con- vention floor and has had two of them promptly thrown right back in its lap. The two dealt with the views on National unity. As the night sitting adjourned, the resolutions committee was still faced with close to 200 resolutions How many of them would be thrashed out and sent to the con- vention as a whole was not known. At 2 p.m. the discussion of party policies will' stop to permit the nomination of candidates for the leadership and the election of a new leader. Mr. King made it clear in his farewell speech that he will 'not accept any draft. He told delegates that this was the last time he would speak to them as party lead- er, but he promised them he would continue to serve the Liberal cause in the performance "of less exacting and responsible duties." Mr. King said he felt the new Prime Minister "should have the ment in parliament before appeal- | ing to the country in a general | election." His last official act as leader | performed, Mr. King sat back 'and | listened to speeches by his cabinet | stalwarts, Liberal leaders in the provinces and some of the party's younger element. He heard the party organization committee win approval of a reso- lution calling for the holding of | national conventions every four years in different parts of the country. The same resolution, pos- sibly acting on Mr. King's criticism of the present lack of party or- ganization, recommended the ap- Resolutions Convention ganizers, a public relations officer and a press relations officer. Don MacKay of Calgary who noted the resolution aid "as a sym- bol of national unity the Liberal party favors a distinctive Canadian flag," started a hot debate. He said the resolution did not go far enough. Canada needed her own flag, her own national anthem, the power to amend her own constitu- tion and a campaign to instill in all citizens a definite spirit of Ca- nadianism. John Chipman, a delegate from the Liberal Club of McGill Uni- versity, went even farther and moved an amendment which said that Canada's flag should not in- clude either the Union Jack or the Fluer De Lis. A short while earlier, James Pat- terson, another McGill delegate, minced no words in criticizing a resolution on employment and the cost of living. He said the young Liberals were "fed up" with plati- tudes. That resolution, too, was re- ferred back to the committee. A few hours after Mr. Patterson made his statement, four other young Liberals were called to the platform and they said they wished to disassociate themselves from his remarks. To this Defence Minister Claxton || replied that he believed the duty of the convention was to formulate in general terms a platform which could be shaped into a "real fight- ing platform" before the next elec- tion is called. Discussion was interrupted briefly while F. Gordon Bradley and Joseph Smallwood, confederate leaders in Newfoundland, addressed delegates and told them of their success in efforts to have the island colony become Canada's 10th province. Old Cemetery (Continued from Page 3) mals from straying therein; and and fences thereof in good order keep the cemetery and the buildings and repair." The Act provides that for every default, "the owner shall incur a penalty not exceeding $10 and after conviction thereof shall incur a further penalty of $5 for every day during which such default continues." Cemetery Care Regulations It is pointed out that the fence around the old cemetery rotted away years ago and the cemetery is wide open to any stray animals. Besides being unsightly; the cem- tery is a menace, neighboring resi- dents claim. A few months ago a small boy fell into a pot-hole in the burial ground and lay there for some time before his calls for help were heard and he was rescued. In the opinion of one citizen, if the conditions were cleared up in the cemetery and a small park es- tablished, it would remove an eye- BUSINESS pointment of the "best available," party organizer, two assistant or- Bn ------------------ LOCAL Wants To Rent HOUSE OR APARTMENT FOR 3 URGENT !! Phone MR. VANCOURTE 4904 ER MANAGER sore and enhance property values in the neighborhood. A similar condition existed a few years ago in Dunbarton, Mr. Crouse said, but the headstones of the pioneers were saved by cementing them to a cairn on a new site with proceeds from the sale of the old cemetery site. He thought that per- haps something along this line could be worked out for the old Wesleyan Cemetery. The cemetery is now owned by Simcoe Street United Church and the trustees realizing its neglected condition, have appointed a. com- mittee to look into the situation. It is expected that the committee will bring in its report at the next board meeting of the church. 8ince the Cemetery Act comes under provincial statutes, T. D. Thomas, M.L.A. for this riding, was asked if any action would be taken to remedy the situation. Mr. Tho- mas said he was unaware of the conditions which existed in the old Wesleyan Cemetery but would have the matter looked into. "I haven't heard anything about this," he said, "but I will consult with the authorities and see what can be done." UNACCENTED LANGUAGE Unlike the English language, the Japanese has little or no accent upon individual syllables, except where certain vowels are prolonged. Winnipeg Craftsman "Paints" With Hair Winnipeg--(CP)--A first glance at John Woerlee's pictures shows them to be the work of a talented man whose hobby is painting. A closer examination is necessary to learn that the pictures are not executed with a brush. They are not paintings; they are mosaics made of human hair. Mr. Woerlee uses hair of varying shades, pasting it on glass for a background. It's detailed work, but the artist has plenty of patience. He's a retired wigmaker. The av- erage length of a piece of hair used for a picture is one-quarter of an inch. The hair is imported from Switzerland where the Swiss ob- tain it from penal and other in- stitutions. It is before being placed on 'the market. In gluing the hair on the background, Mr. Woerlee uses a mixture of fish glue and egg white which he makes himself. He uses a small pair of tweezers to "paint" his pictures. It's unnecessary to use any arti- ficial coloring or paints, he says. It's possible to obtain hair of al- most any shade. "Picked Up" The work has always been Mr. Woerlee's hobby. No one taught it to him; he just "picked it up" while in his-native Holland. On the wall of his living room is a picture of Manitoba's Legis~ lative Buildings. The reproduction --a good one-- measures about two by three feet, and is complete in detail, irom the large columns at the buildings' entrance to the small rails on the balconies. Another example is a Dutch landscape, with a windmill in the foreground, canals in the distance. This offers more color and depth. Another of Mr. Woerlee's hob= bles is woodwork. He has made nearly all the small furniture in his home. Mrs. Woerlee says her husband is "always busy," living up to his philosophy that no one should be idle. He came to Canada in 1923 with his wife and their two hil- dren and began work at a "air goods establishment which he later bought. -------- LIVESTOCK BUYER DIES Montreal Aug. 7--(CP)--Arthur Walker, 61, livestock buyer for Canada Packers Ltd. and a vetere an of 45 years service in the packe inghouse industry, died suddenly at his home here Thursday night, He is survived by his widow, Stella, and two brothers, Henry and Fred, both of Peterborough. --_-- -- H--" ---- | publicon a wide range of electrical products GENERAL PRICES REDUCED on prices on Radios and those Appliances on which the government excise tax has been reduced or removed. This will result in substantial savings to the for the home. Visit your neighborhood G-E Dealer and ask him to show you the line of General Electric Appliances and Radios at new low prices. CANADIAN GENERAL ELECTRIC i Head Office: Toronto ELECTRIC APPLIANCES and RADIOS Canadian General Electric announces reduced Sales Offices from Coast to Coast BIG EXPORT ITEM Canadian rayon fabrics went to 66 different countries during 1947. Young Man WANTED AT ONCE! Le TO 30 YEARS Good opportunity and secure future for the right man who is willing * to learn men's & ladies' retail ready-to-wear bus- iness (if not already ex- perienced), and to even- tually manage new and modern up-to-date store in Whitby. All Réplies Confidential APPLY M. BRESLIN BOWMANVILLE (TrLE Eh, AS red U. 8. Patent Office. LY \ WE'VE COME TO TAKE LITTLE IODINE HOME~ ' UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND OUR CONTROL + ACRISIS IN THE FAMILY~ VERY WELL, Z| ILL GET HER 'READY J) (1 FEEL A LITTLE GUILTY, SENDING HER OFF TO CAMP CUTTING UP LATELY~WE A GOSH, THE HOUSE SEEMS AWFUL QUIET WITHOUT IOPINE- Terr 2777 227) 7 Va 2 9 AND THE ¥ A THREE-HOUR PRIVE TO THE CAMP «+ WE CAN AT LEAST SEE THAT SHES ALL RIGHT- SHES COMING HOME WITH US THE HECK WITH THE MONEY SHES OUR CHILD~I WAS