The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1900-09-18
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TRYING 70 KEEP COOL.
A Story Of q Summer Family
Picnic.


trees and grass and breezes to be found
if you only go in search of Them"
"But there surely is more comfort in
remaining quietly here than there is In
preparing for an outing and then
tramping all over the country looking
for bit of unappropriated shade" pro-
tested Mrs. Briggs.
! Nonsense" replied Briggs. "Of
course there is some work in getting
ready, but the luxuries of this life
are not to be had without labor. tell
you the country is the place, and We'll
go to the country today. Just hustle
around and get the children ready and
we'll start"
"But where'H we gow asked Mrs.
Briggs.
Anywhere" answered Briggs.
"The park?" suggested Mrs. Briggs.
''That's comparatively near, and
"Park nothingw interrupted Briggs.
eve can run over to the park any
afternoon when l happen to get home
early, but | don't get full holiday
very often, and we want to take ad-
vantage of it. Well get out where the
cool breezes blow. Hurry now. We
can get a train to Mulligan's grove at
10 o'clock, and some of the boys at the
store are going out there with their
families-nothing formal you know;
just an outing. I'll show you how to
keep cool if you'll just hustle and put
up little lunch"
There was an hour or more of good
hard work, as any one who ever has
tried to start for a little outing knows,
and some of the work fell to the lot Of
Briggs himself. He acted under the
orders of Mrs. Briggs, who became
general superintendent temporarily,
and as result when they were ready
to start he had to change his collar
and his negligee shirt.
"Whew" he exclaimed, as he put a
hammock over his shoulder and grab
bed a lunch basket 81 didn't realize
how hot it was. I'd have been a
corpse before night If I'd tried to stay
in this stuffy house."
"You wouldn't have been as hot at
any time during the day as you are
now" returned Mrs. Briggs, who was
going on the outing under protest and
didn't care who knew it.
perhaps not" replied Briggs, ''but
wouldn't have been as cool and COM
Portable as / will be an hour from now,
either. The trouble with you women
is that you don't look far enough
ahead. There comes our car" he add
ed a few minutes later. Hurry, or
We'll miss It."
Briggs grabbed one Of the children
with his disengaged hand, and with
the lunch basket in the other hand and
the hammock over his shoulder started
on dog trot to head off the approach
ing car at the corner.
"Whew, it gets hotter every minuteP'
he exclaimed as he hung to a post and
mopped his face with his handker-
chief. 81 tell you, we would just have
smothered in that house today. Why,
my clean collar is melted already"
He looked around for seat, but a
whole lot Of people seemed to be TAX
ing an outing that day and there
wasn't one to be had. Mrs. Briggs and
the children were uncomfortably
wedged in between hot and perspiring
individuals and looked as If they
thought he had rather the better of 1t
standing up.
81 just about sweat myself to death
In the crowd on the footboard," said
Briggs when they were on the street
again and about to take up the rest
of their journey to the depot.
GLOW far have we got to walk nowY'
asked Mrs. Briggs.
"Only four blocks" answered Briggs.
'Then we may hope to be decently
comfortable. Come along! We've no
time to waste"
Ten minutes later they were on a
car with others going for an outing
good many others. They had
sweltered at the ticket Office, sweltered
In the crowd at the gate, and had been
pushed and jostled and stepped on In
reaching the car, but they all got seats
after fashion 1t is warm under a
train shed in the best of circumstances.
There is little circulation of air there,
and when it comes to sitting next to q
fat man or woman and holding child
in ones lap. a very fair imitation OF
the fortunes of the Internal regions is
experienced.
'"This negligee shirt Of mine" said
Briggs, ''looks as if | had worn it in
swimming. but we'll have some com.
fort as soon as we get under way"
eff we don't start soon," returned
Mrs Briggs, 81 shall faint. simply
cannot stand this sitting atmosphere =
And one Of the children began to cry
They left the train with sigh of re
lief. Before it started even the aisles
had partly filed up, and everyone
knows what enforced contact with
sweltered humanity is in closed car
cat any rate, we're here" said
Briggs as he threw away his limp
collar and loosened the neckband of his
shirt. Now for cool spot. By joveP
he added. as he saw half doZer
parties scurrying away In the direction
of the grove, well have to run for 1t
or all the best places will be taken"
well, you'll have to do the run
| ming" returned Mrs. Briggs with de-
cision. II don't intend to kill myself.
| I'll look after the children and you
take the hammock and the lunch bas'
ket and go on ahead"
I So Briggs ran quarter of a mile
carrying weight for age, and succeeded
in pre-empting a spot where TWO
scrawny trees somewhat filtered the
suns rays. and even then he came neal
having to defend his location with
physical force.
"Now, I'll go hunt up some Of the
bows | know" he said, when Mrs
Briggs and the children arrived.
you'll do nothing of the sort" re
Piled Mrs. Briggs promptly. "Youl
put up the hammock first"
So he put up the hammock, not with
out some difficulty, for Dame Nature
hadn't placed the trees as conveniently
as she might have done.
Now" he said, "I'll'-
"Now, you'll take this little tin pal
and get some water" put in Mrs
Briggs. "We're all nearly dying O.
thirst"
"Now," said Briggs when he ha(
brought the water, "In'-
'Now you'll help me put out tn
lunch" interrupted Mrs. Briggs. TT
nearly o'clock, and the children ar
almost starved"
So he helped arrange the lunch ant
drove the ants away from it. and o
course they found some things wer
lacking. Then he helped gather tn
remnants and the dishes together ant
put them back in the baskets. and afte
that he took the children over ant