The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-03-15
IN
HUSBANDS
By MARY BARRETT HOWARD
(Copyright.)

(Copyright)
The little kitchen was redolent OF
freshly baked cake, and stout Mrs
Pickens. hurrying through the rem
nant of the weeks ironing, looked
flushed and heated
Soap club or no Soap club, l got to
git Miss Ransom's thin's DONE" she
muttered. Shell be after 'em today
sure. for l suspicion she amt got
many changes. l declare" she added,
pitifully. as she surveyed the fine. lace
trimmed garment on the ironing
board, 1T makes me feel bad to see
how careful she's patched an mend
ed EN-. Ev'ry dud she's got is most
rallin to pieces, but l expect she amt
got the money to buy new ones. l
amt mite surprised. / read one o
her stories once an it was awful dull
TO my thinkin'. l wish to the land she
was smart enough to write reel good
one like st. Elmo or Lena Rivers.
She looks half-starved. If / wasn't
afraid she'd take 1t as an insult I'd ask
her to stay to the meetin' of the Soap
| Ii sum W nave Il 6oou ouPpCis
If do say it, an / worked in one O.
them cheap boardin' houses once an
| know what they be. An to think
that her folks used to be as rich as
mud! | met the old Judge jest lit
Tie while before his death steppin' out
as If he owned the earth-well, this is
a queer world! Goodness gracious
mn-fhnrnb1 - 49,
in an autymobil! It's stopped an she's
comm I'M"
Hastily setting down her flatiron.
| she ran to the door and admitted a
slim, pale girl dressed in shabby
mourning, calculating as she did so:
We'll. If l amt surprised to see you
ridin' in an autymobil', Miss Ransom!
Come right in-your thin's is Jest
ready, an while I'm doing of 'em up,
| want you should look at the new
premiums | got since you was here
last"
Glad to postpone, even for a few
moemnts, the irrevocable step to
which she had just pledged herself,
Elinor Ransom followed her hostess
into a room where a table was laid
with brave array of plated silver and
set of china decorated with flaming
red poppies.
It's my day to entertain our Soap
club" Mrs. Pickens explained. Ten
of us ladies clubs together an buys
turns DRAWN for the premiums. He
gives elegant ones, jest elegant! got
all that silver an that chiny set an
that picter frame for my share. Amt
that frame complete? Pickens
thought I'd ought to put his picter in
instead O. Tins, but Pickens is home
ly enough to scare the cat an Tim
was a reel good-lookin' Teller. don't
you think SO, Miss Ransom?"
The large colored photograph in the
flamboyant gilt frame was the portrait
of pleasant-faced young workingman,
and In spite Of the crude coloring, the
"slicked-down" hair, and the stiff at
titude Of one oppressed by his Sun.
day clothes" Elinor was able to re-
spond cordially: Yes. indeed. do.
Mrs. Pickens."
But dunnos l ought to find fault
with Pickens' looks when all Is said
an done. l was awful lonesome after
lost my first" Mrs. Pickens said.
AN 1t want long before l found out
that there's mighty sight O. dif'rence
between washin' for pleasure as one
may say, jest to git yourself some ex-
try thn's, an in bendin over a wash
tub day in an day out tryin' to keep
body an soul together. So when
come acrost an advertisement one
day telln' about place where you
can buy husband by payin' down ten
dollars cash in advance I made up my
mind I'd try my luck"
why. Mrs Pickens. the ideal" ELL
nor gasped. "The very ideal"
1T did seem like buyin' a pig in a
poke" Mrs. Pickens admitted. But I
knew twas resk ten dollars or earn
my own Twin so far as l was con-
cerned. for Tim had been dead most a
year an theer hadn't hide nor hair of
a man come shyin' round
81 got Mis- Jones that lives next
door to go with me-" she continued
"for I amt one Of your reckless kind
an I'd read In the newspapers how
women is sometimes tolled OF an
murdered. But land. needn't "a been
skeered. for the man that runs the |
place-a marriage broker, he called
himself-was as pleasant-spoken a fell
Ter as ever I see. He said he was GER
tain he could suit me. but the man he
brought out from the back room was
as godforsaken lookin' specimen as |
l ever set eyes on.
"'You needn't think I'm goin' To |
take up with such poor excuse for a
man as that | says to him. NV
sakes.' | says. do you think I'm Iookin'
for somebody else to support besides
myself?'
Hes all l got on hand lest now
ma'am,' the broker says. kind of mr..
gent an persuasivelike But there's
more to this one than appears on the
surface-you can't always Judge by n
cats looks how far she can jump
81 cam | says pretty sharp 4 can
tell ev'ry time, an that there Teller
would never in kingdom come earn
his own salt. let alone mine.
AT that l marched right out OF the
room an down the stairs an the brok.
er follered us most a block sayin' no
was reel sorry 1t happened so. but I,
I'd come again In week he'd hava a