THERE was something wayward in
Jarvis Peabody’s blood. He had an eye for
a pretty girl.
Aside from this, Jarvis Peabody was
the soul of ecircumspection. At twenty-
seven he had, to all appearances, settled
down. He was coming along very well in
his job, and there was every chance that
one day soon he would be sales manager
for his firm. He was neat and clean and
had no habits which, nowadays, cou 1 be
called bad. To add further to his stability,
he was engaged to Miss Corleen Farra-
day, and their marriage became more of a
certainty each day.
But even after his engagement Jarvis
Peabody betrayed that instinct of his. He
would look twice at a pretty girl. And
whenever he didn’t look twice it was that
he was taking just one prolonged look
which would be more than the equal of
twe.
Naturally, Corleen Farraday was an-
noyed. As their engagement ripened, her
pique grew more pronounced and .t
length Miss Farraday drew the problem
into the open.
“Jarvis,” she said one evening when
they were having supper after a rather
sentimental movie, “Jarvis, we're really
going to be married, aren’t we?”
“We certainly are. And not later than
next spring, too. Only this morning the
boss was saying—"
“Then,” Miss Farraday interrupted,
“don’t you think it’s time you stopped
flirting 7”
Jarvis Peabody was aghast. He was in
love with Corleen and had been in this
condition for some time. Moreover, he had
given vent to numerous expressions of
his love so that surely she was aware of
it by this time. “Flirting?” he repeated.
“I’m afraid I don’t get you.”
“Perhaps you don’t call it flirting. But
that’s my word for it, Jarvis. I mean your
habit of giving the eye to every attractive
girl you nappen to see. Then—if she
notices, and she’s a flirt, too—you smile
at each other.”
“But y--*
“And,” went on Corleen imperturbably,
“you are unquestionably the greatest
handkerchief, compact, and purse re-
friever since Sir Walter Raleigh.” She
sighed, “I don’t know why, but when you
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are around women it seems literally to
rain handkerchiefs, lipsticks and com-
pacts.”
“I TRY to be polite,” Jarvis said.
Corleen shook her head. “No, it’s more
than that, darling. You can no more resist
flirting when you see a pretty girl than a
politician can resist making a speech
when he sees a crowd. I'm sure it’s per-
fectly harmless. But it’s not very reassur-
ing to the girl you plan to marry.”
“] guess youre right,” Jarvis said
lightly. “I'll just have to watch myself.
You know darned well you're the only girl
in the world for me. I'll just have to be a
little careful.”
“I’m going to ask that you do even
more than exercise caution, Mr. Peabody.
The New Year is coming along, and I'm
goiug to ask you to make a resolution.”
Jarvis raised his eyebrows. “My gosh,
Corleen, nobody makes resolutions any
more!”
“Oh, yes, they do.*And,” she added,
“some keep them, too. There’s nething
like a nice New Year with which to stax.
afresh. Why don’t you resolve that after
midnight of December 31, 1938, you will
never, so long as you live, flirt with a
girl?”
“Well . .. I'd like to make a provision
in that.”
“Yes?”
“You are to be excepted.”
“I'm very serious about this,” Corleen
mentioned. “Are you?”
Jarvis Peabody nodded quickly. “Of
course I am. I'll take the New Year reso-
lution—and what’s more, I'll keep it.”
“Good!” Yet there was a faint touch of
skepticism in her tone. Jarvis Peabody
noticed it, but made no comment.
With the traditional guile of woman-
kind, Corleen now brought the conversa-
tion into less personal channels. As will
happen with people in love, time passed
quickly. At length the waitress, a tall lis-
some blond, anxious to start homeward,
brought the check.
“Will there be anything else, sir?”
“No, thank you,” said Jarvis Peabody,
looking straight into the wide blue eyes.
And then it happened. The blond lissome
waitress dropped her pencil. Jarvis dived
and came up triumphant. “Here you are.”
“Qh, thank you so much.”
Corleen sighed. Aftex all, the New Year
was a few days away.
BUT IT DID come along, as the New
Year inexorably will. And the plans of
Jarvis Peabody and Corleen Farraday
were large indeed.
“We’ll put it on right this New Year,”
Jarvis said. “We’ve lots to celebrate. In
the first place, 1939 is the year we’ll be
married. In the second place, everything
looks swell for the business. Thing. are
coming back with 4 bang. Darling, you
and I are going to welcome the New Year
the way a New Year ought to be wel-
comed!”
So Jarvis engaged a table in the Pea-
eock Room of the Golden Club. And what
is even more, the table was right at the
edge of that smooth white oak sea where
the featured dancers would float in a soft
spray of calcium light. The dinner he had
ordered in advance by telephone.
Corleen was a bit dubious about Jar-
vis’s plans. “The thing we want to remem-
ber now,” she warned, “is that a blowout
like this would buy a nice upholstered
wine chair for the Peabody living room.”
“Gosh,” said Jarvis. “We can worry
about that when the time comes. This will
be New Year's Eve, darling. And wait
until you see the program the Golden Club
has lined up for that night. They’ve signed
up Cintra Crandall, and—"
“Somebody you know 7”
“No. But I saw her picture in the lobby
when I reserved the table. She—"
“Never mind, darling,” said Corleen re-
signedly.
But, despite these premature wifely
misgivings, Corleen looked forward to the
New Year’s Eve at the Golden Club. She
had bought a rustling Gainsborough
by NARD JONES
gov RiGHT 1938, EACH WEEK, INC., 82 ST. PAUL ST. ROCHESTER, N. Y.
When the floor show wunfolds
ed itself so «close to their
table it was as if this was all
for them. Corleen admitted
Cinira Crandall was good.
‘RESOLVED
gown. It had a lame jacket studded with
tiny stars ...and no girl with a gown like
it would want to be anywhere on New
Year’s Eve except where she could be
seen by the greatest number of people
in the shortest given time. As Jarvis
said, they could worry later,
WHETHER it was the magic of musie
and New Year’s Eve, or the excellent food,
Jarvis Peabody was not sure. But what-
ever it was, he had rarely felt gayer, ox
more at one with the world. He and Cox
leen floated through many a dance,
buoye. along by the high spirits of the
Golden Club crowd. And when the floor
show unfolded itself so close to their table
it was as if this was all for them. Even
Corleen had to admit that Cintra Crandall
was excellent,
When the entertainment was over, Cor-
leen said, “It’s too much to ask that any
woman sit for three hours without repair
work on her face. You'll have to excuse
me, darling.”
“Your face doesn’t need repairing,”
Jarvis said, rising. “But if it will make
you feel better to try . ..” He looked at his
wach. “Just half an hour until 1939, dar-
ling. Be sure to be back in time.”
“Never fear. I want to watch the glori-
ous change that comes over you when
your resolution goes into effect.”
Jarvis nodded. Then, when she had
gone, he sat down rather soberly. What,
actually, was this resolution he had made.
Now as he regarded it at closer range it
grew more insidious than it had seemed a
few days ago. He had resolved, in point of
fact, never to look at a pretiy girl after
December 31, 1938.
Somehow, even on so glorious an occa-
sion as tonight, the thought saddened Mr.
Peabody. The noise and music of the
Golden Club were suddenly oppressive.
He decided to have a cigaret in the come
parative quiet of the men’s lounge.
HE HAD GOT through the milling mob
with all the grace and some of the rough-
ness of an open field runner; he had al-
most reached his destination when he be-
came aware of a young woman directly
in his path. Well, maybe not directly im
in his path at first. But son.chow Jarvis
found her directly in his path the nemi
Y
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