The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1911-08-31

Summer
Guests

The Pixies live a quarter Of q mile
down the road from me- said the girl
who owned a summer cottage. They
have one of those simple little places
of about twenty acres, with it's own
bathing beach and melon patch and
gold plated chicken yard and mani
cured cows and. tomatoes worth 81
a piece. II a fallen twig six inches.
long is allowed to remain on the lawn
the head gardener gets into a lot of
trouble. One slug discovered on the
rose bushes causes his discharge.
The Pixies are especially proud OF
their kitchen garden, where they raise
things that cost them ten times what
they would pay for the same things in
the grocery store. But the things
the Pixies raise are worth the price.
You really wouldn't believe their
strawberries IL you saw one suddenly
with no preparation. AS for.the green
peas actually, those peas should be
framed and hung on the wall just to
be looked at!
Well, the Pixies had a guest over
Sunday, a large, beefy, important gen
tieman who had made his money late
in life and who enjoys entering cleo
trio lighted cafes and tipping the
waiter with So bill They thought
they would give him a genuine treat,
something he did not get every day. a
dish that would make him exclaim
joyously. So they had the first pick
ing of June peas with the broiled
chicken for dinner.
"The guest did not observe the
breathless hush with which the peas
were offered him, but he helped him
self bountifully and devoured them in
a workman1ike manner, while his
hosts watched him expectantly Moth
ing happened.
"Mr Pike coughed. Err he be-
gam The peas-pretty good, Ell?
Right from our own garden!'
THE beefy gentleman dimly felt
that something was expected from
him. oh, yes, he said. To be sure
the peas They're good, aren't they?
Almost as good as the French canned
peas they serve at hotels!
mot having a garden, do not get
my feelings outraged In just the same
manner as did the Pikes-but there
are times. There was the occasion Of
the peach tree, for instance.
Nobody who has not witnessed the
setting out in sunny place OF four
walking sticks with funny green
knobs on them and has not inursed
and cherished them for three seasons
and spatted off spiders and ants and
defied curly leaf and the yellow blight
and coddled and fused over them can
understand what it means to arrive IN
the spring and find six or seven fuzzy,
unmistakab1e peaches on each OF
those trees. It Is as exciting mo-
mentr as that when you find baby
has cut a tooth! would go out
dozen times day just to assure my
self that the peaches were all there
and no insect was marring them and
to tell them how nice 1t was Of them
actually to grow before my very eyes
on my own trees! That was the sum-
iner asked Pearl over to visit me.
Pearl Is a fascinating young wom-
an, but you will understand her limita-
lions when / say that she would rath-
er walk down State street than
through the woods and that she turns
pale at the sight Of spider. | be-
lieye she regarded the country with
bored surprise and came over because
she felt sorry for me in my exile. The
only time Pearl stepped of the porch
when she did not have to- found her
out by the peach trees.
There was a. big fat squirrel on
the rail fence just now. she said. eat
ing something SO busily that he
wouldn't bulge even when ! threw
things at him. There weren't any
stones, SO I used those hard green
things on these trees-they were just
right to throw-and he jumped 50
when the last one hit him,
'T fed to keep from doing violence
to Pearl. sl
saThe Vannecks are jolly people and
anticipated their coming with spe-
cial pleasure. showed them the
place-it takes about five minutes to
exhaust the sights of my estate land
with q burst of pride dilated on the
fact that even in these Wilds there
are comforts and that | have bath
room, with running water. OF course,
added, its cold water, but then just
consider having any kind right in the
housed,
aMr. vanneck leaned weakly against
wall. DO you mean to say he got