The San Francisco call., 1910-02-06

have chickens and cow" Mrs. Xxx
announced. so we can always be sure
OF pure milk and fr sh eggs for baby"
And for the same reason she planted
vegetables and flowers and got a pair
of white rabbits, a pony. a canary
bird. cat and a poodle Baby must
grow up with love for animals" she
explained. and baby must have beau
tiful baby memories she said when
she planted flowers and trees. II was
not easy to get a man to work by the
day and they could not afford to keep
a regular gardener, so It was Mrs.
Xxx who got a pair OF calfskin
boots and cut the lawn and spaded the
rOsebuShes and fed the chickens and
in an emergency, even milked the COW.
in order that baby might always have
the best conditions and surroundings.
When the cook got sick and left on
minutes notice and there was no hotel
TO go to and no chance OF getting
another cook for two days at least.
Mrs Xxx took Off her garde ming
gloves and got out her cookbook.
NO, ma'arn.' I lied to her when she
almost went down on her knees and
begged me to remember whatever I
may once have known about cooking.
NO. ma'am, 1 don't know anything
about it. I can help you with the baby
and the sewing, but 1 have never
cooked" 1t was too good a chance TO
see the undertaker's daughter get back
to first principles. She knew how 10
do it, too, having done it too long In
her youth to have forgotten entirely.
The way she pinned up her skirt and
rolled up her sleeves showed that she
was raised to 1t. Baby must have his
food prepared as usual, of course. so
she went to work on soup and por-
ridge. When she had her hands in the
flour a peddler came and insisted upon
seeing the lady of the house and 1
wouldn't excuse her; when she got rid
Of him the baby set up a howl and
wouldn't wait minute for her to come
to him; he got his fists in her hair and
squalled like q red Indian when she
tried to get away. BY that time she
had TO attend to the chickens and il
was almost dark before she got back
TO the kitchen.
When Mr.. XXX came home he
found his wife, rosy and fat. bending
over the stove cooking his dinner.
There is really no need Of getting
cook while Mary is away she said at
the table, 'ff you can stand my expert
menting I may learn to cook we'll
enough to tide over this crisis. You
can always get a good luncheon in
town, you know. What DO you think
about it
Before Mr.. Xxx had time TO think
anything about il the baby set up on
other howl for his mother. His Lurse
had long since been dispensed with.
He found his mother a Wiling
slave, ready at his beck and caIl WhlcH
was more than he had ever Deen aOie
to get out OF hired nurse. never
mind about saving my dinIler' NOrah'
she called as she flew to tne nursery.
I'm really not hungry anyway ana IL
just have a little bread and mix IN
the nursery with baby"
Mr. Xxx looked after her. She
had lost the hour glass figure she once
prided herself upon and didnt seem TO
have noticed the difference. Her hands
were roughened by gardening, her skin
tanned by sitting out in the sun and
wind all day long with the baby, and
her hair, always the babys delight.
was never smooth 10 minutes at a time.
At the door she hesitated an instant
and half turned toward Mr. Xxx
The baby had caught the sound of her
flying footsteps and his howl broke off
in a gurgling cOO-O-O. a big. happy
mother smile lit up her flushed face as
their eyes met and the next minute
her heels were heard on the stairs.
Mr.. Xxx finished his dinner and
went out on the veranda to smoke /
wondered if he ever thought now of
the scenes in the big house, OF the
quarrels, the threats, the lies, the
tragedy queen acts and the fake sui
cides. But whatever may have been
his meditations they were promptly in
terrupted by the screams of the bald
headed tyrant upstairs-the tyrant who
had made a real woman Of Della
Xxx and brought joy into a home.