The Arizona sentinel., 1888-09-22
A BIRTHDAY PARTY.
Millie's Plan, and the Happiness It Brought
 to Two Little Girls.

miilie's Plan, and the Happiness It Brought
 to Two Little Girls.
 "If you please, Auntie Nell"-
 At sound of the beseeching voice, Auntie Nell glanced out of the open window, and up to the swinging ham, mock between the elms, where Millie was knitting ten times round on her own little scarlet stocking to the music of robins song.
 ''I wish-you see-O Auntie Nell, Mrs. Green said her Polly is going to be nine years old tomorrow, and most know she never had a birthday party, or present. or any thing, and she's lame and every thing, and has to stay all alone while her mother goes off wash ing for folks. And just wish-oh, please, Auntie Nell, can't I make her a beautiful little s'prise supper, and carry it to her for her birthday, please?"
 The pleading voice was very earnest and eager now, and the little round face, peeping through a swaying elm bough, was earnest and eager, too.
 Auntie Nell smiled. ''I would like to say yes, Millie, but I am afraid Norah will be too busy preparing our lunch-baskets for the excursion to help you"
 But To Auntie, can't have some of Norah's dough, and make things all myself? won't want lot; only, may be, some tarts and pies bout as big as your grownup tarts, Auntie Nell, and dear little seed-cakes, and frosty-cakes with lots of plums, and sandwiches and marmalade, and some of my bank money to buy candy and nuts; and, O, Auntie Nell, how nice every thing will bern
 The hammock trembled and shook until it spilled Millie out.
 ''And I needn't bother Norah only to tell me little," she said, coming un- der the window.
 ''You may ask her." said Auntie Nell, laughing.
 Norah stopped to give Millie floury hug. '.It's av coorse I'll show ye, an give ye bits O me pastry!" she cried, with twinkle of Irish fun in her eye. "Bless it's lovin' heartr'
 So Millie, with big kitchen apron reaching from chin to toes, patted and rolled and crimped and cut and twisted, at one end of the long table, just as Norah rolled and patted and crimped and cut and twisted at the other.
 What fun it was!
 ''It's just like
 Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker-man,'" laughed Millie, peeping over NOrah's shoulder into the oven.
 Well, and there were tarts, puffy and delicious, and into each one, when baked and cooled, Norah put a dot of jelly; sweet, crisp cookies; seedcakes, brown and spicy, cut out with one of grandmamma's wee, old-fashioned wine glasses; dainty, scalloped cakes, ''all plummy and iced and spiced," and or namented with sugared caraway, red and white; trim little saucer-pies, done just to a turn.
 It may be that Norah had a finger in them. What do you think?
 At nightfall, Millie, tired and happy, put a little scarlet face in at the sitting room door, and with a small sigh of re- lief said:
 ''It's all done, Auntie Nell, and 1 don't b'lieve to-morrow'll ever comer'
 But it did; it always does, you know; and when she had eaten her breakfast, Millie shook out handful of pennies from her little red bank, and scam- pered off down the street to Ma'am Whitney's candy shop.
 ''I want the very best and sweetest of all you've gotr" she laughed, humping her two fists full of the jingling coppers down on the trim counter. ''Its for Polly Greens birthday"
 "Ahr' said Ma'am Whitney, pleas antly, as she went on weighing out pep. permints and kisses and gooseberries; and I do think Millie got little better measure than ever before, with two bar ley-sugar elephants thrown in.
 Then, as Millie and her basket of goodies were going through the hall, Auntie Nell came out of the sitting room with book and box of lovely in her hands.
 ''For Polly's birthday-gift," ," she said, and Millie danced all the way to the gate, she was so pleased.