Houtzdale High School - Jack O Lantern Yearbook (Houtzdale, PA)

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Vmv THE JACK O' LANTERN gllllg igreifg glllapper miie For the last two weeks Carrol Dane had outwitted death, through pneumonia in a fight for the life of her young husband. Seated beside his bed she reviewed the startling events of the preceeding days. George a young artist, had contracted a severe cold by work- ing in his dingy studio, long after the embers in the ugly old fire-place had become white,-in fact he had worked into the wee small hours of the morning. To all Carrol's protests he had said. Don't worry your pretty head about me dear, just you go and get your beauty Sleep. be- cause you know when I become really great I expect to hang your por- trait in state and should anyone ask to whom I owe my success I shall say, My Pretty Flapper Wife. How often the last few words ran through her mind during these terrible days, My Pretty Flapper Wife. George had been promised a very successful future by J adson and Schuyler great critics of art with whom he had come in contact during a visit to the Villa of Harold McDonald, a former class-mate, providing he'didn't marry one of those Terrible American Flappersf' As Fate would have it George met, The Terrible Flapper, fell in love with her, and after a very brief courtship married her. Many times during their honeymoon he had often called her his Flapper Wife and had often sung the song My Flapper Wife telling her between breaths that the song was written for her own lititle self. The Honeymoon came to an end as all good things must, and George and Miss Flapper Wife became the much married Danes, plus the romance which does not always last. George was the official bread winner and Carrol became chief cook and bottle washer. She had not received a hint of financial difiiculties until one day during the .jelil-ium,George had seemed to be greatly troubled and had repeated again and again, Give me one week more, just one week please. I do not care about myself it is Carrol, my wfe. Please gve me one week more I will sell my beloved picture. Dr. Chase had insisted on having a nurse for Dane. Carrol had pleaded with him telling him that a nurse was an impossibility because of their financial difiiculties, and that she could care for her husband as well as any nurse. He had shaken his head very slowly as he re- called how he had first seen her, a iiapper, how well that little quota- tion, Beautiful but dumb, seemed to suit her. She was clad in' a pair of knickers, a mannish shirt golf socks, and sport shoes. Her coal black hair was cut in a Peter Pan style which allowed her naturally curly hair to have its own way only on the top of her head. She was very deft in her makeup. Her lips formed a perfect Cupid's' Bow. All of this Dr. Chase noted and was about to declare that she could never take ..41,... . .4 l ' ,,-........zDh:..au.gQiB... ,'

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L V, THE JACK 0' LANTERN gg gg - The next morning Anita appeared as usual. Mrs. Weston did not say a word- about the happenings of the night. Instead she telephoned a detective agency and hired the best detective they had. The detective was a tall, heavy set man, with a black moustache and eyes that seemed to read your very thoughts. He stayed at thc house as a visitor, supposedly an old friend of Mrs. Weston's. Anita's actions were explained to him and he watched her closely but he could not find anything out by her actions. The first two nights he was there nothing was heard. The third night, however, just at the last stroke of the clock at midnight, as usual the screams were heard. The detective listened, thought a minute and then rang for Anita. He rang several times but she did not come. He went up to her room, opened the door, and what he saw there made him gasp in surprise. There on the floor lay Anita, a great stream of blood on the carpet where she lay. Someone had stabbed her. But who? Did this have anything to do with the screams? No, they had been heard for some time previously. He went over to her, listened to her heart and found that it was still beatinglslowly. He raised her up and she opened her eyes with a great effort. Then in a voice almost too low to be heard she said, UP --in - attic - gave - slow - poison - to - avenge-, then her head fell back and she became silent. She can't die now, said the detective, or this will be a .mystery unsolved. He waited a few moments. Slowly her eyes opened again and she said, her voice still weaker, To - avenge - my - father - I got - him - here - kept - him - prisoner - in - attic - screams - were - from - pains - caused - by - slow - poison. Again her eyes were closed. Try to talk just a little more, he said. Who stabbed you? She looked up once more, He - came here - to-night then her voice trailed off. She was dead. H The detective left the room and was going downstairs to tell Mrs. Weston when he heard a noise back of a curtain hanging in the hall. He hurried back, looked behind the curtain, and there lay the body of 'lnita's slayer. Her poison had at last done its work. Slowly the detective went downstairs to tell Mrs. Weston of the terrible tragedy. He hated to tell her of this awful thing. When he told her she just sank to her chair, weak and trembling. ' - He went back upstairs to see if he could find a clew to the identity if the man. He searched his pockets and there he found an envelope with the man's name written on it. On the envelope was written, Mr. Weston. He took the envelope downstairs and showed it to her. She looked at it and there in letters that trembled before her eyes she read, Mr. James Weston. My God, my son, why I thought they told me he died on an expedition to Spain. Oh God, help me, and with this she sank to the iioor, never to rise again. -D The solying of the terrible mystery of the Weston Mansion ended in a terrible tragedy. , , . 4 . .HELEN K. DICKEY ' -40.-- I W AAL' -4--Ana --x1...3ggfi5,,,,,,Y iQ' Ju

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g ,THE .JACK of LANTERN g by care of young Dane when his glance rested on her eyes.. Yes, they were grey, bluish grey shaded by thick black lashes which seemed to droop, then to curl suddenly, as though they were magnetized by her curling hair. These characteristics made little impression on Dr. Chase. He had seen pretty eyes before, he looked further 'into the eyes. They disclosed determination, pleading, pluck, love and that stick to it look which many flappers lack. He had always prided himself on being able to read-the qualities of a person in their eyes. This girl's. eyes give promise of a wonderful woman. Well he would try her, maybe, she' would be' capable of handing the job. Very well, we wll try you. I suppose you have already guessedthat your husband has pneumonia and he will need the most careful nursing we can give him. After he had given her orders for the care of the patient until his next visit, he left the small apartment, still asking himself if he had done O1 111311 allow A Flaperf' to nurse a serious case of pneumonia. . The days had dragged on. With the aid of Mrs. Moreiarty, an lirish woman who came a few hours each day-Carrol had given the pa- tient the best possible care. The small apartment was filled with the scentof drugs. Bottles of all descriptions were set in a neat row on the small table beside the sick bed. A large tube of oxygen had been brought to the studio, to have in case of emergency. The latter, however, was not -needed because of .the wonderful nursing which the Flappr had given the patient. Dr. Chase -had made one more score in his belief that he could read eyes. i On theeninth night Carrol had waitedrbreathlessly for the Crisis, doing to the smallest item all that the doctor had told her. At mid- night Dr. Chase had motioned her from the sick room allowing the old Irish lady to care for George. When they had closed the door of the sick room, he spoke to her ina very quiet but happy voice. Well my dear, we have won. Your husband will live, and I wish to apologize to you as well, as to all 'Flappers' because you are certainly better fitted to thename of woman than those weaklings with which Society is over- run. Not once in those terrible days dd you lose your pluck and it is to this that I owe the life of your husband. He is resting quietly and I must insist that you give that tired little body of yours a chance to catch up with the work whch you have done. Mrs. Moriarity wll call you if it is necessary, but, 'II am quite sure that there will be no need to disturb you tonight. The following morning Carrol had made a grand search for the picture which she knew George had completed. While searching, for it she came across a bll from their landlord stating that immediate pay- ment must be made or- -the last words seemed to be made in deep black letters- the law will deal with.you. How well she knew what it was to have theulaw take care of things. Just recently two families in this very building were attended to by the law. Their furniture was put out on the street and the me were put in jail. Iron bars seemed to dodge back and forth in the room. Her determination came forward again. -42.-f- is . ....-...aS.Q- -age M... ,