The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-08-22
EVENING STORY
The Tea-HOuSe.

work itself, but the thought that she
lhad to do that kind of thing day after !
day, with not even a maid servants
wage. stirred her to anger. Her ia
Their, a prosperous farmer, could well
afford to pay for it, as she knew, yet
he seemed to think it was the natural
and proper thing for herself and her
younger sister, Florence, to scrub
along. week after week, satisfied with
an occasional small sum with which
| to buy necessities.
She had been out of high school two
Years. and during that time had urged
upon her father to let her learn some
\ trade or take some kind of position;
| or, if not willing for that, at least to
pay her regular wages for work in
the home. But father was not mod
ern in his ideas. and couldn't see why
Lucy shouldn't be contented as she
was.
i Today she was feeling bit more
unhappy than usua- over the situation,
as a school friend, who had become
stenographer, had passed the house,
bound on some Saturday afternoon
pleasure, her new suit and Ttylish hat
proclaimir /: her an independent earn
Ter and spender.
/ When Lucy finished her work she
started to walk rather aimlessly down
the road to rest and cool off. Her ia
Their had just acquired, through
foreclosure, a piece of properly OF
about two acres adjoining MS lano, on
which was a picturesque little cot
Itage AS she reached place in the
road opposite the new property, she
stopped to admire the tiny house ana
1.-The old fashioned flowers bordering
| the walk, as we'll as the climbing roses
over the porch.
along, and the two stood there to-
gether Fred was hustling young
chap, with quite bank account al
ready. He had for some time been
casting longing glances in Lucys d.
rection. but being somewhat bashful,
The had not progressed very FAR IN MS
1 wooing.
Now. as they viewed together the
lsnug bit of land and the house, with
the For Sale sign against the stone
wall, thought of himself and Lucy
lin such a home rushed into his mind.
and he wanted to give expression to
it; but all he found himself saying
was that it made him think of the
little tea-house some women had
lopened the summer before in River
i side.
An idea flashed through Lucy's
mind AS soon as Fred went on, she
lrushed back to the farmhouse and
found her mother.
Mother what's father going to do
with the Clapp house?"
why, nothin' this year that know
of. OF course, he wants to sell it,
would he let me use the cottage,
do you think, mother %
l use the cottagel For the lands
sake, child. what for?"
well, I've got an idea. You re-
member when L visited Aunt Carrie
last summer in Riverside? Some
women set up tea-house not half so
pretty as the Clapp place and sold
tea and things to motorists over there,
and Aunt Carrie said they made a lot
of money. L could make more here
because it's on the State road
Yes, L heard about them" answer
ed her mother. But those women
had a tea-room in the city and knew
all about running one. You couldn't
do it,
But mother 1 wouldn't try TO do as
much as they did. We could just have
tea and little biscuits and jam, and
perhaps cake. Do you think father
would let me try?"
II don't know, Lucy, I'm sure
you help persuade him. mother,
won't you? I won't neglect the house.
1t will only be afternoons when we
once get started
1t took considerable persuasion to
make Farmer Cutler give his consent
But, with mother on Lucys- side and
Florence all eagerness he finally gave
in reluctantly.
It's fool business, anyhow" was his
concluding remark on the subject.
| you'll be wanting to spend money on
the she-bang and then it'll all peter
out"
The girls worked with a will all the
next week and, contrary to prophecy,
they didn't ask their father for a cent
What little they had to have Lucy
spent out of small sum she had tuck
ed away. They cleaned out the little
cottage themselves. 1t was in pretty
good order already and was furnished.
There were three rooms on the ground
floor. They turned the parlor, which
was the largest, into the tea-room
| proper, and made a sort of serving
room of the diningroom- The small
piazza, they decided, would hold three
tables. Tables and chairs. Those were
the difficult things to arrange! Final
ly, Lucy had a bright idea. She would
go to the Woman's club and ask to
hire those which the club kept for it's
garden parties, etc. Mother loaned her
best white and gold eggshell china,
which seldom saw the light of day.
and agreed to supply the first little
biscuit She was a dabster at making
delicate, tiny ones that fairly melted
in ones mouth. There was plenty of
homemade jam, to which Lucy felt she
had some right, having made it.
Two or three days before they were
ready Lucy put sign out on the lawn
near the street, announcing the open
ing of the tea house. Half mile
down the road was motor repair
shop, which she felt would play into
their hands, sometimes the owners
of cars had many tedious moments to
pass.
| The first afternoon she told her
self they really must not expect any
one but her heart beat high with OK
pectation just the same, as she and
Florence. in white muslin dresses
and dainty aprons, waited in the cot
tage. Each table had a bunch of
flowers in a glass tumbler; and there
was a great bunch of buttercups and
daisies in a jar on the piazza.
A man and woman driving through
the country in a buggy were their
| aafc let