The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1901-09-05
"a DEAR.o sfghed Mrs. Curtis. as


n DEAR" sighed Mrs. Curtis, as
She entered the dining-room,
where her husband and her daughter
were at breakfast one August morn
ing; 81 wish the weather would turn
cooler. What does the paper say,
John?"
"'Ihere is no prospect OF cool
wave That isn't very encouraging,
my dear. | wish / didn't have to go
down to the Office"
Il wouldn't mind the heat Mrs.
Curtis continued, but the ST. Clairs
are coming out from New York to
lunch with us, and it is so trying to
have company this awful weather.
"Well," said Kitty, philosophically,
1--WE can't help it; We'll do the best
we can and they won't suffer any
more than we do ourselves"
"Well, good-by, dears," said Mr..
Curtis give my regards to your
friends. and if | don't come home to-
night it will be because I've melted
away. Hello, here comes Tom to
NOV the grass. Kitty, won't you run
down cellar and unlock the door so
he can get the lawn mower?"
Kitty went down the cellar stairs
with a hop, skip and jump, and
opened the door for Tom. Then she
started to go back, but paused for a
moment in the cool, damp cellar, and
it was then that her bright thought
struck her.
She stood still, looking round her,
and as her plan grew in magnificence
her eyes danced with glee, and she
ran upstairs calling:
ooh, mamma, I've thought of the
loveliest scheme for to-day We can
make a parlor down cellar that will
be just beautiful"
80, child you're crazy The cellar
is damp and dark and Mrs. st. Clair
would be mortally afraid of rheuma-
tism; and, besides, don't propose to
entertain city company in the cell
lar."
But, mamma, | mean to make it
all pretty and attractive. Just come
down and look at it,"
Cnwillingly Mrs. Curtis let herself
be dragged down by her energetic
daughter, and when she felt the
cool. moist air, she began to think
there were some possibilities in her
daughters plan.
Now, you go upstairs, mamma,
and don't bother or think about this
and when it's all done I'll call you"
Then Kitty told Tom of her enter
prise and the handy man-of-all-work
entered into the spirit of it with
great enthusiasm.
The part of the cellar which Kitty
proposed to utilize was directly I'M
der the parlor and of the same size
and shape. 1t was scrupulously
clean, with a hard cement floor and
whitcwashcd brick walls, and had a
large bay window.
AS safeguard against rheuma-
tism Tom brought a great pile of old
newspapers and laid them thicklv
over the floor. Then he spread down
the white linen crash that just fitted
the parlor floor for dances and Sc
cured it by heavy weights in the cor
ners. Then, following Kitty's In
structions, and aided by her willing
and energetic self, he brought down
wicker chairs and tables and the rat
tan couch from the veranda. which
Kitty covered with large white lin
en- sheet, draping it prettily at the
corners and adding several white pill
Iowa.
Then she asked Tom to bring down
from her own room two large, cool
looking etchings in white frames and
hang them on the cellar walls. Fur
Their decorations were two or three
pale colored posters representing sea
views or nermaids, and here and
there q japanese fan.