Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1890-11-27

W, anu Wo w never Oeen 10 one, papa
doesn't know much -
mo, l presume to say he don't, :"
snapped Miss Hepsy; 81 never saw any
OF the family who did-but I'll come"
and she stepped back and shut the door
hard.
"There!' said Polly, II guess we
didn't draw the right line after all. I
don't believe, Betty Hildreth, your
mamma ever would have invited such q
hateful squint-eyed old thing as she is,
and told you So"
At last every one was invited. It had
occurred to the children that this party
would be a fine way to celebrate their
fathers birthday, for he would be forty
tomorrow. Their mother had felt sorry
to be gone at this time, but this would
be beautiful way to surprise him.
They said nothing of their plan to
Miss Nancy, distant relative who was
staying with them. But they coaxed
Jane to make nice cocoanut cake and a
sponge cake with hole in the middle
OF it, and she promised them rolls and a
large plate of gooseberry tarts.
''Oh! it will be fine, won't it?' said
Betty.
II hope so, replied Fred, who already
began to feel some misgivings
The next day was warm and bright,
and the children had busy time, for
they were making jack O. lanterns
with which to decorate the yard. "Of
course we must have it gay,'' said Polly,
so they worked and cut and scraped
away on the pumpkins till their hands
were nearly blistered. They did this
work out behind the new shed under an
apple tree. by afternoon an enormous
pile of seeds lay on the ground and tho
grinning jack O lanterns were set up in
row to wait till the evening festivities
began. The little girls were much
pleased at the greatquantities of pump
kins. why, boys, where d.d you got
so many? We didn't know there were
so many in the pasture-lot," they cried.
''Never mind where they came from
boys can always find pumpkins" said
Fred and Harry, as they came hurrying
along, trundling the wheel-barrow
piled high with the shining yellow
balls. II don't believe we had better
find any more, though" said Harry, in
a low tone, ''or the old dame will catch
us surely. l saw her old sun-bonnet
come flying out of the shed just as got
over the fence.'' At last the lanterns
were done and the children waited for
evening to come and the party to begin.
1t grew dark early and the shades
were all drawn and Mr.. Hi]dreth sat
reading the paper and Miss Nancy, who
was hard of hearing, sat knitting on a
dark-blue sock. The children slipped
out and with the help of Hiram, the
hired man, who was let into the secret,
they lighted those gorgeous jack
o'lanterns! There were eighty in all
set about all over the yard, wherever a
post could be put firmly to hold one,
and forty seed cucumb ers adorned the
front fence, stuck in between the pick
cts. The children thought they never
had seen such beautiful decorations be-
fore.
At seven o'clock the bell began to
ring and the guests began to arrive.
They came by twos and threes, and fin
ally by SKIES and sevens. Mr.. Hill
dreth greeted them with politeness, but
after awhile no words could express his
establishment. Betty and Fred were
dancing about, and Polly and Harry
were capering through the rooms with
delight. Mr.. Hildreth began to feel as
if the very foundations of his house
were being torn up; he had pulled up a
curtain and looked out; and seen the
jack olanterns and then he felt as if
ha o,,I1on 1u To
stOrmed out into the dining-room.
"Nancy! Nancyi" he called, "where
are you, Nancy? why don't you come and
help me receive these idiots, Nancyn'
"Well l amt deef," replied Miss
Nancy, slowly, az she camo out from her
bedroom where she had Slipped away to
change her cap; and they went back to
the parlor and Mr.. Hildreth made up
his mind that it was a party and he
had got to be in it. And the people
kept coming, bringing plates and bas-
kets, while Jane was going round and
round the kitchen, declaring that she
was distracted and that everybody's
dishes were getting mixed up.
The two Misses Brownlow came in,
bringing tiligree basket filled with
tissue paper, and nine little cakes, with
very crispy edges and very thin frost
ing. Dear Mr.. Hildreth,'' they said,
''we are so glad to come and celebrate
your nata! day." and they held out the
little filigree basket, and Miss Euphe-
mia crooked her little finger out over
the handle. as she said: ''Not more
than the Muses. nor less than the Graces.
you see.'
And then Mr.. Hildreth felt certain
that he was going mad. And the Brown
lows tiptoed across the room and sit
down just as Miss Hepsy came in.
Il did intend to bring good-sized
pumpkin pie with me-" was her first re-
mark, "but was prevented by cS'cuma-
stances"
And at this Captain Jennifer, who was
playing cribbage with Miss Flutter-
bucket, laughed so hard that he shook
all the pins out of the board and they
had to begin over again.
The Gibbons girls brought over their
backgammon board and Authors" and
the people played games and laughed
and chatted all the evening.
The doctors wife knew at once how
this party had been arranged as soon as
she got there and saw the jack o'lan-
terms. So she went right upstairs and
found a large white apron and put it on
and came down and set the table and
cut cakes and spread biscuits and by
nine o'clock supper was ready. And il
you had seen the gallons of coffee and
quarts of cream disappear, l think you
would have been surprised too.
By eleven o'clock the party was over
and the lights were most of them out
Mr.. Hildreth sat before the fire in the
quiet parlor.
Betty and Fred crept in, and Fred
said good -night, papa and Betty re-
peated goodnight, papa" and then
their father looked at them very sober
ly minute, and this is what he said:
"If you erer, as long as you Toe, do such
thing as this again, shall punish you
IT, 4 L.. T. ReSy