The Little River news., 1916-08-05
AUNT MARTHA'S CAKE
By LOUISE OLIVER.


 drifts, carefully carrying with both hands tissue-wrapped parcel on a level with his chin.
 Downward sped the maiden-upward trudged the man; and they met! The man went one way, his package an other, and the girl and sled, skidding sideways, upset beside the track ten yards down.
 The man got up first. My cake!" he cried. You've done it now, by George! And as sure as Moses I'll have to leave the country!"
 Thanks awfully for helping me-" she said Your gallantry is certainly overwhelming" Her voice was rich contraito, and what with that and most perfect nose and mouth and chin, the man must have been both deaf and blind or he never could have answered as he did:
 'I didn't knock you down. You ran into me and spoiled Aunt Martha's cake"
 Aunt Martha's cake had no busi- ness walking ul my toboggan slide. I'll tell her so myself
 "Oh, but you don't know Aunt Mar tha"
 Anyway she had no business send ing cake by man. She might have known he'd upset it.
 But l didn't do it. It was you! I had it on the back seat of the car, but the road was so rough and it was bouncing up and down so much 1 was afraid it would be scrambled if I kept on, and so decided to walk and carry it. I left the car back there around the corner"
 All right, MT. Adam, blame it on 0 woman. I'll have an auto horn put on my sled. Pm sorry I spoiled your cake"
 I'm sorry about your knee-awfully sorry, really. Does it hurt very much? After all, it was my fault for being SO blind and stupid, and l apologize sin cerely."
 Look here I'll tell you what I'll do. l baked 1Ocake today, too, only it isn't devils food. And if you'll pull me home on my sled I'll give you the cake for your Aunt Elizabeth Sommers and she'll never know the difference.
 That's generosity for you! Thanks just the same, but I'm afraid l cant take 1t. However, Hi take you home" I'm staying at the Rex Hardins. feel as though we ought to give Aunt Martha's cake a decent burial,' she went on ruefully, tucking her skirts in around her when he had brought the sled.
 "Oh, let the sparrows have a feast. It cant do more than give them a good old-fashioned tummyache. Knee hurt?" Giving the rope preliminary tug to moving.
 Conversation lapsed. The narrow path across the fields fortunately was level and there were no fences in the way. In short time they were home.
 You're to come in ana get he Lady Baltimore for Mrs. Summers and save yourself a scolding at Aunt Martha's hands,"
 Sorry, but l cant hide behind a skirt"
 The skirt-as you respectfully al- Jude to me-isn't going to have Aunt Marthas chance of apoplexy on her conscience. You're going to take the cake!"
 Well, we'll see! There is Mrs. Hardin now, I believe, looking for you"
 But as the girl tried to get up she tainted, and after that nobody thought of the cake.
 Two weeks later Anthony Stearns was alone in his office, a look of mingled annoyance and disappToval on his face. A dele ation of women had just taken it's departure after a vain attempt to get his support for the new child-labor law.
 He hated polit cs for women, and to his mind this i,,,irect voting was as bad as suffrage. Pretty Virginia Blan- chard, whom he had knocked off her sled, had proved to be the settlement worker he had l,eard of and her visit was for the pur ose of asking his in- fiuence for the new bill. His escape was due to th fact that she hadn't known him anG that later the accident kept her from {. I the festivities in the neighborhood. There were drawbacks in being state legislator-when pret- ty women asked one to do things. But the echo of Virginia's rich voice had been ringing in his ears for days.
 "A lady to see you, sir!" And in came Virginia, smiling and limping ever so little.
 Miss Blanchard! I'm delighted to see you," he cried, springing up and holding cut his hand. But I'm so sorry for that!' indicating her injury.
 "Oh it is nothing, just little stiff. It doesn't hurt a bit-now. I came"
 "Yes, I know!" quickly. q just re- fused a committee of ten. But feel that I owe you good bit for nearly killing you, so I'm going to promise before you ask. Against my convic- tions I'll vote for the new child-labor bill, Miss Blanchard"
 Copyright, 1916 by the Mcclure Newspa-
 Ct,y. J.1z4