Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1914-10-15

TAEIHs THEIR TINE
~ CLARENCE LYONS.

swessewes@eeessessseeesese
The woman with tho purple straw
hat spread her skirt . little more
widely, 10 that nobody could take the
seat nexs to her In the street car, and
then resumed conversation.
Some women are 90 queer. she
said % her friend with the orange
feathers. which stood up ut least a
foot above her hat. Il could use
stronger language than that, bat am
OF q charitable nature and always
willing 70 give people chance. How
ever. that woman at the mililner's was
the limit
Il always 90 TO Miss cretonne for
my hats because shs has style and 10
cheaper than anyone else. She hasn't
q shop. you know. but does hats at
home. 90 I dropped In ON my way
20 the Ladies' Aid meeting and ex-
pected 90 be through I'm a jiffy. Some
cody was IN Miss Cretonne's Office. 30
she LETT mo down outside I'm the hall
and said she'd 10 seady for me In n
short time.
''The minute I heard the voice Of the
creature who was On there, I knew
what Co expect 10 was sort OF drawly
and undecided. and Il had an edge on
II that meant 4 know you're waiting
out there. but got here first and
I'm going 10 take precisely M long as
likel'
well, she made Miss crotonne
bring IN. one by one. every hat abe
had In her sewing-foom. and she didn't
Ike any Of them. Ono was too little
and another was too big. Finally she
decided that she dldnt want n black
straw. anyhow. She said n Miss Gre
tonne was really up 10 date she'd have
strawsr IN the new bulgarian colcTs
and. anyway. what she was Interested
In was getting her old eeru straw TO
trimmed. No. she didn't want ribbon.
and m Tor aowers. they were impos-
sible.
Would Mias cretonne please step
across the room and hold up the hat
with that bunch Of flowers pinned ON u
Couldn't she see Il just killed the hat
Why. her cousin had Just got back
rom New York. and she said nobody
here would be caught dead with flow
era on her hat. No. she wouldn't have
the new Numidi feathers. She was
sure they got those feathers OF the
heron or the robins at the nesting sea
son. and. anyhow. II they we're only
ostrich. as Miss Cretonne said, Il was
painful 20 the birds when they were
plueked. Hats were an awful trial.
she said. Wouldn't Il be lovely II u
were the style not to wear any hats
ut all?
Here coughed to remind the wo-
man that was on earth. That caused
her 20 tell Miss Cretonne that u was
perfectly dreadful how much pneu
lnonia there was around this season
and that her brothers wife out I'm
Idaho nearly died with pneumonia last
month.
You think you don't want feathers,
them" Miss Cretonne broke In nerv.
ously.
Perish the thought! She never
could bear feathers since she went
TO funeral and sat behind hat with
sixteen ostrich plumes on IL. Maybe
It was only fifteen. but they looked
like twenty. What did Miss Cretonne
think OF plum color straw to wear
with q green suit? Something a lsatle
bit different. wasn't Il? The woman
across the street from her had plum
hat last year and she always had been
crazy about Il.
Here coughed again to convey
deiicately my conviction that IL she
wasn't crazy she was at least feeble |
minded. Then she rather thought she |
might like a black hat. after all, and |
wished Miss Cretonne to get some |
shapes from the Wholesale house. No,
she hadn't any idea what shape she |
wanted-just something pretty and
stylish and cheap and awfuily good |
looking. She would dearly love some
bulgarian embroidery on IL, but II was |
SO loud. She was afraid Il would get |
common.
Mercy. wasn't Il a warm day!
Really. she must send her fur coat
down to storage. And whatever Miss
Cretonne did she should never, never |
buy fur OF the man who had sold
that coat. Look how II had worn!
Il coughed again and tapped my
feet on the floor. At this she settled |
down more comfortably and sighed. |
She was certain spring hats were GO
Ing to be the end OF her. She did |
wish that Miss Cretonne would decide |
on some way to trim the ecru hat.
Goodness, how her head achedl
1T was fifty-five minutes by my
wstch before she came out az that |
ONCE and she certainly looked her |
part-selfish. unaccommodating, incon-
siderate. fat thing! was so mad I |
just Jew iato the Office!
Il suppose you got through In time |
for the ladies' aid. anyhow" said the |
woman With the orange feathers.
You're always so quick,"
Sometimes" admitted the woman,
with the purple hat Il was late this |
time. ! didn't care II three other |
customers who had come In after me
were waiting out there. just took
my time and had real nice visit with |
Miss Cretonne. ! guess rny moneys
as good az any one's!"