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The Seaforth News, 1929-08-22, Page 7Skeletons ,Her Grandfather Had to 13 Kept in the $ackgrounc; -He Would Spoil Everything By DOROTHY BRADFORD Maisie regarded hint the ant time he passed her an the promenade out of the right-hand corner oflar right eYo; the second time out both eyes beneath_ lewerod cashes; and the ithird thno She looked up front the novel hl her lap with that pecnitarly Innocent staro,that Is the weapon of all practised flirts, But Maisie,''' at twenty-three, was lather tired of being just a flirt, and she was anxious now to secure "some• one regular" --as Doris and Ethel, her slsters, had done. Flirting must necessarily be confined more or less to the summer season; when visitors came, to the little seaside town' of Pim:heron, and did not provide an oxcart for the winter months, Still, so far none of the 'local young inen had found favor in her eye and undoubtedly this tail, good -look - Ing young man ilr\ilauuel blazer and new oanvas dices Was a visitor. Site allowed her eyes to dwell oa hint with that oarefully ooutrived "far- away" look, which was intended to indicate that her thoughts wero still with her book, or on the far-reaehing ocean before her. But the young man smiled, and that was more than Maisie could resist, Shyly, as was her practice, she re- turned his smile as if to say, "It's an impertlltenoe, really, but I'll let you off this time." Then, as if she must go home—although she hadn't the slightest intention of gndng book to her household duties yet—she rose to her feet, tucked her book under her arm, and walked demurely along the parade—jn the same direction as the young man, but a little in front of hint. After a few moments the book 811D - pad, and tlb young pian briskly cov- ered the few yards of promenade be- tween thein to pick it up. Maisie gave him the .full benelt of her very blue eyes as he handd it back. "It's awfully kind of you!" she aur - mitred. A. few minutes later .she and the attractive young visitor were eontinu- Ing along the parade side' by side, She discovered that fitsname was. Victor ,and that he had come for a prolonged stay—probably for the whole season—and, her scheming Int. tle heart beat fast with hope. The next thing was to find out where he was etaying, "I don't know. if I'm taking you out of your way?" she murmured apologeti- cally, "I live right up at title cad of the front, in a road just off the Parade," That conjured up, she knew, a pret- ty picture of a little, red -roofed, gar- den -flanked bungalow in the new es- tate an the west Cliff, instead of the shabby villa fronting on the pave. went in a back street which was Maisje's home in reality. "Olt, no, not at alt!" he said In ans- wet' to her question. "I'm staying along this way, too --at the Regal" Maisie drew a sharp breath, desplte herself, The Regal was the largest and most expensive hotel on the front. What if she could permanent- ly annex this ;young plan, who s0 lobvlonely had money and position? Think of him, compared with Doris' baker and Ethers bus -driver• She must employ every art and wile; and she mustn't show, of course, that she was unduly impressed by his choice of hotel, "Quite a nice place, I believe," she 'said airily; "although I haven't been in it many times myself, Funny how when one lives in a Place one 'doesn't go about a great deal!" "Tttat"s true," he answered. "As a !batter of fact, once'I get back to my hotel I usually stick there." "Olt, bat you mustn't!" she art- fully chiddad: "When you're on holiday you should get out as much as YOU can." They had stopped at the corner of i1 tinning off the front ---for Maisie dared not let him come too near filer modest home—and the young man. stood looking at her, with a very personal, interest in his eyes, "I believe you're right," he Bald 'at Iast. "1 ought to get out more; only I don't know this place very well yet, or where to go. But per- haps You Could show me?" Maisie gave him her most pro- ' vocatively alluring smile. '"•?erliaps," she murmured, "I could. $tet really I moot go now." But he detained the hand that just touched his arm In a shy and swift good-bye. "When?" he said. "Satre time and place tomorrow ?" She nodded after just the right de- gree of hesitancy. "All right," size said, ant skimmed gracefully orf on her Louie heels, without one backward glance. All very nice, and worked out pre• elsely to plan, she pondered on her way home. What a tale she would have to tell the family -=especially the girls, who had declared that site ;would soon be "left on the shelf." Site could see leer mother's smite of pride when site heard that he was ne tradesman, but a rich visitor from the Regal; !teat' her father's good -par lured teasing, for she was the yongest and the favorite. Only old granddad Silly, bothereatne aid igt'atlddadl And then suddenly there Mme a thought that struck her with• dismay. e Slie wasn't really ashamed either et her people or her home, In these democratic days to .bo humble was net diegz'aoo; father,' 11 wee r0itlaatle, But granddad wasn't merely humble,, he was illiterate. Tile eehooling 1n his days hada"t been over -good, and aft offorte on the Part of Motile and her sisters to "educate" him in !tie Advalieed years had. failed, Ile persisted stubborur ly in remaining "what he Mid always been," And because 09 it granddad would very completely' let the cat out of the hag.. Looking hopefully ahead, site could visualize exactly what would happen when the time caste for her to take her imposing young" man to her home.. Granddad would remain all the while in the room, glued to h1s ehatr, wear- ing a shirt 'Mime a collar, saying bright things, such as, '"Ow are you, enoying your 'ollday?" 'aid freezing the very marrow in the bones of Ms' granddaughter's arlstooratio suitor. Victor would see then that all her talk, her family's behavior, has a veneer; he couldn't do otherwise, Romance would die -killed by un- sounded' aspirates! So It was with reseutmont iciadltng in her heart against the'old man that Maisie returned home from her ad- venture, It marred to some extoat the pleasure of relating it to tho others; Anal alt the white he sat there in his fireside °hair, only hearing half —and that tete bits she least wanted Max to hoar. "What, Maisie got 'old of a foliar at last? 'Ori le 'e, do you say?" It came as a yeller to her tautened nerves when at Last he left his chair and put on his coat to go out for his daily "constitutional,' which they euspeeted frequently took the form of billiards at the Rose and Crown rotted the corner, . When he had gone Maisie turned to her mother with a determined de' Melon iu her mind. "I'm not going to have granddad here when Victor comes," she said. "He'd spoil everything. Ile's no- thing more or less than the family skeleton!" . So well dict Maisie manoeuvre the situation that the time for Victor's introduction to her Weiner came sooner than she had expected. Evidently the difference fu their social status did not Count with Victor. She Would have postponed the time for his introduction to her fireside if she hadn't wanted to make quite sure of his intentions. But to ask a young man to a girl'shome is a sure test. Things went off without a hitch. Victor showed no surprise either by word or expression when she got him to the front door; and wattle she found that her may explicit instruc- tion had been faithfully carried out. Father, mother, sisters—all appear, ed in their best; the cloth with the crochet edging was laid on the table; Ethel had unearthed the silver but- ter -dish and cake -stand from her bot- tom drawer to grace it; Doris her pair oe vases for the mantelpiece. Most important of all, granddad, lur- ed by a special fire all to himself, was camped in the kitchen, his tea aid ready for him on a tray. It was a pleasantly homely, yet— because of the circumstances—ro- mantte little scene until tea was half- way through. Then bib skeleton merged from the cupboard! The communicatingdoor between the kitcheh and the living -loom open - d and granddad appeared—minus a ie and plus carpet slippers. "What, all of you 'eying tea?" he eked. Then another bomb burst—more ex, plosive by far than the, other. Vico or rose to his feet by Maiste, stretch d out a hand, and said in a defer retial voice: "Good -afternoon, sin" As in a dream, 'Viable watched the wo shake hands, exchange smites of urprised recognition. Then grand - ad ' "Well,said. fancy you `ore!" "What ever is the mystery?" de - ended Maisie. Victor turned to tier, his eyes shin ng humorously, 1 suppose I must be lite mystery,". e said, "You see, I'm the billiards om marker and attendant at the egal; and your granddad often drops. for a game." For 1110 sake of manners, nobody led to appear discomfort. Blank aces gradually became normal, again; nversatton was picked up nd car- ed on once more. But it was 5nr- !sing how, after that, tate atmos - here subtly changed, Mr. Peadr or drew out his old obewed Pipe len he had meant to smoke the garottes that Maisie had specially ught for him to hand round. The talk veered round to homelier Dice, in which granddad joined artily; and under cover of the fighter and poking Maisie tried des. rarely to collect the places of her attend citadel. So. after all, her wonderful "eaten:" s no different from Doris' or Ethel' nese—not better than herself. And old granddad, whom e had bee frightened to let him sae he had addressed a5 "sir," They re all swankers—she and Victor pretending to -be better than they re, and granddad for going to a c0 like the Regal for hie biliiardsi But when Victor at last had to leave go back to his duties at the Regal, d alae was Saying good-bye to him the door, he suddenly took her Ode in Itis, 'What do you think of mo, Maisie,' detthe;you thlult—as 1'knote you. 0 e a e e d 1 h ro it in tr f co rl Pr p ov ve of bo to he la Pe sh wa fie gr el we for we pia to would be left unmoved. For one an thing, he wouldn't !tear half she said; at for another, lbs lead no interest be- ha yoOd lite 01181.9 by the fire indoors ' and his gizmo of billiards out, fol A Pine Painting BEAUTIFUL PANEL ON PRIVATE EXHIBITION CALLED "KING'S OFFERING" "The Icing's Offering," depicting tnatallation of the If flight of the Bath by Frank D, Salisbury, on private ex- hibition in London. did—I was a visitor, at the Regal? Honestly, nowt" he demanded. She gave hien a whimsical smile. "Tho same ae I did before," she answered softly, "I let you think other things about us, I tried to hide granddad from you as our skele- ton in the cupboard—" "And he promptly' let out mine!" Victor finished for her. "But if we each have one, wllat.does it matter, dear?" In the dim Iit110 passage -way be- hind the closed front door, as their warm young lips met, both knew there was only one thing that did platter, "Scotland Yetl" .There are apparently still people who put "28.8." ou the letters which they send to Scotland, and Scots have again been protesting against this practice, The Post Office, of course, is equal- ly opposed to it. In the "Post Office Guide" we are warned against it on the ground that letters bearing the address "N,13." are to be sent to New Brunswick. This is a point to be borne in mind by those sending let- ters to friends on holidays in Scot- land, At one time, however, North Brit- ain was the official name for Scot- land. Janes I called England and Scotland "South Britain" and "North Britain" respectively in various Pro- clamations, and even in the time of the Georges there were Acts of Par- ilament that spoke of South Britain and North Britain. The nines were clever in general use, however, though Scotland so far accepted them that one of its prin- cipal railways, now- par tot the L.N. E.R. system, was called the North British. Thrown I'm down, good rate, you've wou the race; Bite deep and break a tooth is me; Nor spit your poison In my face, And !et me be; Leave me an hour and come again With insults newand further pain. For of your tooth I'll make a pen, And of your etaver ink, and will I bring a joy to being then To race you still: A laughing child with feathered heels Who shall outspeed your chariot Wheels, Goldfish, All Kinds Swim int f, Favor Washington — Goldfish, brought from Japan 50 years ago by a naval olftoer were the beginning of one of the Nation's foremost fish farming industries which last season prod- uced 21,500,000 common and fancy varieties to be distributed to ponds and aquariums all over the country. The story of the industry which last year produced 17,000,000 common goldfish valued at 1573,000, and' 4,- 500,000 fancy goldfish worth 1359,000, is told in a leaflet just Issued by the Bureau of Fisheries Department of Commerce. The most successful propagation farms, it is found, lie along the thirty - .ninth parallel, in Maryland, Ohio, In- diana, Illinois, Iowa and California. Common, comet, nymph and fantail fish are the species which lend them- selves best to large scale production in this country. Fancier forms have been developed by the Koreans, Chinese and Japanese, and from Tap - au last year the United States. re- ceived 380,000 exotic fish worth $31,- 900 wholesale, Under favorable conditions gold- fish breeders hero grow 40,000 to 50,- 000 fish per pond acre. When hat- ohod the fish are silvery gray in color, like the origluai wild stock, but change to a golden or mottled color sometimes after a few weeks, some- times not for three or four years, While goldtisll were originally sold at pet stores, the majority of them today are handled through five and ten -cent stores and by drug stores as an advertising feature, it is found. Difficulties in keeping fish in small aquariums at home is usually due to overcrowding and overfeeding, pet shop owners• have informed the bur- eau. Goldfieh should have at least one gallon of water for each inch of body, exclusive of tate tail, the bureau says. Dear Old Lady: "Can your little brothertalk yet?" Small Boy: "Yes mum; he can say 'Thank you' for a penny." 4 A: "I won five bob at cards last night." B: "Honestly?" "Well, actually" ADAMSON'S ADVENTURES—$y U. Jacobsson. Invisible Cop Two invisible traffic officers, hid- den beneath the pavement, but who are expected to direct Motorcars as efficiently as if they were in plain sight and wore brass buttons, have just been added to the force of the Medford (Mass.) pollee department, The new policemen—brothers, or at least cousins. of theomecllanical max—are reputed to have one dis- tinct advantage over former robots which various cities have attempted to use to direct traffic, They have no ears, and will be entirely deaf to the honks and protests occasioned by a red light. Moet of the 'mechanical cops" de• veloped in the past were actuated by the horns of approaching motorcars. They were tried in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and other cities but too many motorists honked at the same time and the mechanical pclieemen lost their jobs. The result was that two Yale University engineers de- vised the new robot who Iles beneath the street. Above him is a metal plate over which the motor. -cars pass, This controls the signal lights so that tate motorist ,will not have to halt if the right 01 way is clear. It cars approach from two directions the right of way goes to thie one on the heaviest traveled road with a timing device to guard against allowing the traffic to continue too long in one direction. The mechanical policemen' are to control traffic at Medford Square and at the intersection of Winthrop Street and Mystic Valley Parkway. Accidents on the Road Three Rivers NouvelIiste (Cons.): Three out cd four accidents are the result of the carelessness of chaf- feur or pedestrian. For mauy years people have tried to blame speed for practically all motor accidents. This is a mistake. A good chauffeur who keeps his !read and is on the look- out ookout will very rarely have an acci- dent because he is driving at a high speed. A good rate of speed will be of assistance and will help him to avoid obstacles more rapidly. What is important is prudence on the cur- ves, the hills, on the bridges and the level crossings, Who could blame a golfing girl tor abandoning her stockings when she gets a hole in one? Mew's Dress Lowott -- Ravolutiorr is being pz'0aotled openly in Loudon, and meg of goad ,rute Are 'calitag upon their fellow "slaves et custom" to oast 0 their 881101ep1, Starting with only a handful. of mo who, met in secret, the men's ire reform party has grown to a titousaa brave mud trite iieat'15 who dare d 'nand the overthrow of dress couve tions. The patty at first confined it attack to the collar butt'au, but lat augmented 1ts platform to include th abolition of neckwear and long tro sere. It is the:party'e ambition. to wi earns harassed' males the eae freedon of dress which women have achieved Doctors, lawyers, army officers an clergymen are members of the orga ization, Elven the Rev, William It Inge, the "gloomy dean" of St Paul's, joined the movement in optimistic mond. "We must do away with tate coil stud and then with alt the orther arti fidelities of men's dress," said D Alfred C. Jordan, secretary of th. party, "Look at men's evenin clothes—they are fit only for funeral Why shouldn't a man wear an °Pen necked shirt in the evening—and kntckers? "We don't need hats. We don't need neckties, and we don't need vests." Women are giving their moral sup- port to the new party, although banned from membership. Dr, 0e- tavia S. Lewis, well-known woman physician, added the weight of scion - UM: argument to the party's cause, "The man who wears a tight col- lar ;viii never rise to the top of his profession." she declared. "Tight collars cause more inefficiency than any other vice of modern life, "The trouble begins in the cradle and continues right through life. The throats of babies are constricted by tight bibs. Thus the brain cells are weakened almost from birth. "Men of genius tend to wear loose and artistic neckwear, Byron's collar and Shelley's open shirts are cases In point. My contention is that they would not have been great poets If they' had worn tight collars." Dr. T. C. Flugel, assistant profes- sor of psychology at University Col- lege, London, also is approaching the matter scientifically. Ile circulated a questionnaire among more than 100 men and women and drew the follow- ing conclusions: "Only a small proportion of men consulted were satisfied with fashions as they are, while women on the whole were pleased with their clothes. Colored silk shirts with lapels and wide opeu collars would appear to be both comfortable and artistic. "One of the greatest drawbacks of modern dress, apart from the tight collar, is that you cannot'take off any single garments without appearing un- fit for polite society. The ideal dress would consist of a series of layers which could be taken off or put on without social ignominy. "Evening dresses should include Tawe breeches and a more elaborate type of open shirt, The starched shirt should be entirely abolished." Why Not Keep Mongoose? If you want to keep arzd study act ff interesting wild animal, and yet run. no real' risk of beingoverwhelmedu with trouble and wo.lc,,keep a men - ss d e• n- s er 0 u• n nI 91 n• an ar r, e • g s • 'Even an ardentadmirersores- ttn es thinks a kiss is out of place," Other Countries, Other Customs Chicago Tribune: (A Viennese man- nequin, who entered the house of an aristocrat, a former "protector" of hers, and would not leave, was shot to death by the servants.) Transfer the causes to America and observe what the consequences probably would be. The aristocrat, it the American peerage, would have been a plan of wealth or the son of one, an egg king or the solo not some public utilities. When he endeavored to withdraw his protection the young lady would have considered the Al. teruativee of her oonsequeltt con' duet, whether to shoot him or to sue him, Her decision would be found in her temperg111elit tad in the de -Litt gran 61 1109 tRlbtional attachment, if she shot him she would be tried andI acquitted by a jury which would re- gard her as the victim of man's dup• rue natty and hint as having brought We per fate down ou him. If she sued him put for breach of promise, whether or not ate he had a wife, his letters would coma ra out or tate trunk and another jury riot would award her substantial damages, a cl 11x either case she would have a pub- of potty value which aright be melted his itt gun testimontats, vaudeville en• not ,:gagetueuts, or marriage, ortt goose, There are few creatures that make such good companions and yet are sa easy to keep, for the mongoose has few fads in the ;natter of food (and indeed could support himself if neessary on what he would „find in an average garden), is not too'particu- lar where he sleeps, and is very easily made happy, provided that he has a fair amount of ground to run about in. And once you have shown that you 1110811 well by him, he will soon settle down as one of your family. The mongoose that I kept' for souls; years I originally called "Parket'," be., cause of his unbridled curiosity, Ha always wanted to explore, and as my garden was full of bushes and bould- ers, little valleys and trees, he had plenty of scope for his hobby. But we. didn't always call him Parker, because when we felt particalarly affectionate toward him (as indeed we often did) that, being a surname, seemed a trifle formai; and then we added' a Chris- tian name and called him Robin. . , Robin loved to sit in front of the fire in winter, especially when he had got wet in the rain outside. The he would come in and +aka the central position on the hearth -rug, sitting up- right with his two Little paws out- stretched sideways, till the front of him was dry and comfortable, and then turning round M the same atti- tud to dry his back, propping himself up with his long bushy tail. Coming as he did from Africa, he very much appreciated warmth, and when he was cold and there wasn't a fire he would nose his way under an old coat or a rug. But of all nestling places, the one he preferred was inside my wife's coat while she was wearing it. He would climb in at the front and work his way round tin he could lie across the small of her back, with his head on one hip and his hind toes on the other, and his long tail some- where in front Often he wanted games when no one was free to play with him. There was a great deal of work for us to do in the garden, the house, and the stu- dio, apart from my ordinary tasks; and sometimes it wasn't possible Ea pay Robin all the attention he desired. Then he would becom insistent. If my wife was tying up the chrysanthe- mums, he would suddenly appear be- side he, make a funny littl grunting noise, run round th bush, jump into the air and try to strike her arm; then he would stand back and look up as much as to say: "Come on, it's your turn uow," and run round the bush again, looking back to see if she were following him. It was tempting, of course, to leave one's work on those occasions, and sometimes we did; but not always. When we were obdurate Robin would run away, and a little later we would find him playing with Mary (a chime panzee). lie was very fond of Mary. A na- tive in East Africa, as I have related, couldn't understand the games of Chuey (cheetah) and Toto (chimpan- zee). I, in my turn, was surprised at the extraordinary affection between a mongoose, a chimpanzee and an Eng- lish fox -terrier in nay garden. Yet there it was. Those three played to. gether, exactly like children, except when Mary took the role of mother, which she did when Robin showed that he was feeling particularly lonesome. Then she .would pick him up in her arms, hold him very nearly in the way that a mother holds a baby, and pet him till, nestling in the warmth of her fur, he was happy again. Then at last, he would wriggle out of her arms and run off; and Mary would watch him affectionately, get- ting more' and more interested, untit at last she couldn't stand being a mother any longer and would run and join hint like a child again.—Cherry Kearton, in "My Animal Friendships." London's Coolest Place Museums don't seem too attractive on a summer day, but most visitors to the British leuseum--and they are wise. Apart from the interest of the exhibits, the Museum is one of the Coolest places in the city on a hot day. Every year it seems to grow is pop- ularity; official figures just publish- ed show that it was visited by 1,181,- 617 people last year—an average of about 3,250 daily, This was a big- ger figure even than it the year of the Wembley Exhibition. This year's figures may s01 up an- er twee record—they will certain - be helped by the large number of ericau visitors who have come or here this summer. But how uc11 the Americans will see' of the seam is another matter. The writ was told by one American recently E she had "done" the Tate Gal - y ,the Wallace Collection, tho flab Museum, and tho 'Temple all One afterlleon l ` oth ly Am 0 m Mu er the ler Brt Good Character A good repntatip, is a good. invest- tit; nvest tit; but the only way of securing manent investment of good re. atton lei by putting a good charas ✓ at interest, "A good name 18 ;her to be.chosen than great les"; but 11 is often easier to eh laraeter that Obeli' be the baste a good name, A matt may inherit father's riches, bat a matt can.. bequeath his character to itis lav• e son.