' me.

"Well?" says she, as we swings into Central Park. "I trust you
approve?"

"Eh?" says I, comin' out of the trance. "Oh, I get you now. You're
waitin' for the applause. Let's see, are you on at the Winter Garden,
or is it the Casino roof?"

"Now don't be rude," says she. "Whatever made you think I'd been on
the stage?"

"I was only judgin' by the get-up," says I. "It's fancy, all right."

"Pooh!" says she. "I've merely had my hair done the new way. I think
it's perfectly dear too. There's just one little touch, though, that
Marie didn't quite get. I wonder if I couldn't--you'll not care if I
try, will you?"

"Oh, don't mind me," says I.

She didn't. She'd already yanked out three or four hatpins and has
pried off the zippy lid.

"There, hold that, will you?" says she, crowdin' over into the middle
of the seat so's to get a good view in the mirror, and beginnin' to
revise the scenic effect on her head. Near as I can make out, the hair
don't come near enough to meetin' her eyebrows in front or to coverin'
her ears on the side.

Meanwhile she goes on chatty, "I suppose Mother'll be wild again when
she sees me like this. She always does make such a row if I do
anything different. There was an awful scene the first time I had my
hair touched up. Fancy!"

"I was wonderin' if that was the natural tint?" says I.

"Goodness, no!" says Gladys. "It was a horrid brown. And when I used
to go to the seminary they made me wear it braided down my back, with a
bow on top. I was a sight! The seminary was a stupid place, though.
I was always breaking some of their silly rules; so Mummah sent me to
the convent. That was better. Such a jolly lot of girls there, some
whose mothers were great actresses. And just think--two of my best
chums have gone on the stage since! One of them was married and
divorced the very first season too. Now wasn't that thrilling? Mother
is furious because she still writes to me. How absurd! And some of
the others she won't allow me to invite to the house. But we meet now
and then, just the same. There were two in our box party last night,
and we had such a ripping lark afterward!"

Gladys was runnin' on as confidential as if she'd known me all her
life, interruptin' the flow only when she makes a jab with the
powder-puff and uses the eyebrow pencil. And bein' as how I'd been
cast for a thinkin' part I sneaks out the bag of gumdrops and tucks one
into the off side