THE GLEBE VOLUME 1 NUMBER 6 MARCH 1914 SUBSCRIPTION Three Dollars Yearly THIS ISSUE 50 CENTS ERNA VITEK By Alfred Kreymborg ERNA VITEK ERNA VITEK BY Alfred Kreymborg NEW YORK ALBERT AND CHARLES BONI 96 Fifth Avenue 1914 Copyright, 1914 by Albert and Charles Boni ERNA VITEK I Three young men, the best of friends, a painter, Bainbridge Breen, a writer, Eric Nielsen, and a composer, John Carstairs, were arguing that three-faced conundrum, morals. Quite an accident had provoked them to it: a waitress, Erna Vitek. From picking at her they had launched into axiomizing, only to come back to her. Her morals were the vital topic of the evening. Carstairs' studio provided the _mise en scène_. "Well, we've hit a conclusion at last," said Breen with an air of comfortable finality. "Carstairs calls her moral, I say she's unmoral, and Nielsen that she may be moral, unmoral or even both." "Yes!" "Now, we've all conceded that Erna's not immoral--at least she doesn't lead a life inconsistent with morality?" "Yes!" "Very well then," Breen concluded contentedly. "Now let me make a proposition." "What kind of a proposition?" Nielsen quizzed in droll tones and looked at Carstairs, who was frowning. "There's very little to it. I can dish it out in a few words. It's simply this: that we put Erna to the test." "What do you mean?" was Carstairs' immediate challenge. "Don't worry!" Breen responded blandly. "I'm not going to injure the girl." "Well, what did you mean--" "Merely this," the painter interrupted quietly. "I don't believe that any of us know her very well. She's only been working at Landsmann's a few months. Of course, Carstairs, you've taken her out on one or two occasions, so you've had an opportunity of studying her at closer range." "Not of studying her!" "You don't study her, certainly. You--er--what would you call it, Nielsen?" "Why, John has been burned a little by the divine flame." Carstairs blushed angrily. "If you fellows intend to be personal--" "Never mind, John," Nielsen cut in. "You must allow us the occasional escape of some of our surplus wind. Now, let's drop these bravado poses and get down to business. I want the rest of the proposition. We know that we're to put Erna to the test. Now, Breen, tell us how."