us.

Transvestia

four, and the youngest of the brood. I guess I was my Mother's favorite, at any rate I received more of her loving care and attention than my older sisters, and was petted and pampered more than was good for me. Father worked on the railroad, a brakeman, and was out on his run much of the time. I really never became close to him. He seemed to favor the girls more than his only son, at least I resented his attention to them, although he probably spread his love and attention evenly among I felt that I should have the major share and so re- tired from as much as possible, growing up to envy my sisters and perhaps unconsciously imitating them a great, deal, to his puzzlement no doubt. And then it happened! One ice night he fell under the train and was killed. Mother was left with we four to care for, a formidable task in those trying times, when just getting enough to eat was a problem with many that we knew. My oldest sister had finished school and worked in a cafe. The other girls were still in high-school and after the funeral expenses little was left of the insurance money. My Mother found employment in a laundry and struggled to keep the family together, at least to see us all through high-school. So, it was a welcome opportunity when my Aunt Effie offered to take me under her care and let me live with them, working with the "show" during the sum-

mer season.

The Follies girls were recruited from among the un- fortunate who had gotten into some minor trouble in their home towns and welcomed a chance to get away from all who knew them, joining the Carnival for the freedom and adventure it offered. They were a fun loving lot as a rule, though hard and a bit bawdy under the standards of those days. I went through a deal of teasing and good natured fun which I rather enjoyed. They were always threatening to dress me up in one of their costumes and make a girl of me, and I pretended to shudder at the thought. And then one morning they did just that! When Connie came into the dressing tent I was wearing a can- can costume, my rather long hair curled with an iron and fluffed on the top of my head, my face made up com- pletely. The change was really startling when I faced myself in the mirror, and I must have worn an expression of rapture when Connie walked in. She did not recognize me at all!! The girls made no move to tell her either,

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