Metropolis weekly gazette., 1916-02-11
At THE FOOD SHOW
BY JANE OSBORN.


The conversation had begun about
the weather. Thence it had drifted to
wind storms. Miss Tucker shook her
pretty head and said she Just couldn't
stand wind and, my, how it did blow
last Sunday And speaking of Sunday
brought the conversation around to
the new minister and the new minister
suggested the minister's wife and her
fireless cooker, and fireless cookers
suggested the food show, and, having
brought things around to the food
show, Tom Wilbur felt inwardly much
| rejoiced because he had come to call
on Madge Tucker that evening, for he
was particularly anxious to ask her to
go to the food show with him.
The fates had been kind, for some
times Just because the conversation
didn't bend around as he wanted it to,
be left unsaid the very things for
which he had made his call He had
tried for three whole evenings to get
| the conversation around to circuses
the week that the three-ring show
came to town, but in vain. SO the
tickets he had bought for himself and
Madge Just went unused. And how
many times he had tried to no purpose
to bend the conversation in the direc-
ton of the subject that was always up
permost In his mind when he called on
Madgel He sometimes got 1t as far
as the jewelry store when he had
/ planned to lead up to engagement
| rings, and there 1t would stick or else
| glance off from jewelry stores to the
tea store next door and so off again at
a tangent. Then sometimes when he
thought OF leading to 1t by way of men
tioning the fact that he had enough
laid aside to build nice little farm
] house ii would get as far as the bank
where his savings were kept, and again
1t would digress.
But on this particular evening when
/ Tom Wilbur, robust young farmer Of
Timlow's Corners. was calling on
Madge Tucker, the pretty district
school teacher, who boarded with
Toms nearest neighbor. matters pro-
gressed as Tom had hoped
II guess they have got quite few of
those flreless cookers over at the food
show in Mapleton," he said. "D'you
ever 20 to food show? Kind o. inter
esting to go. don't you think so?" Here
he was desperately afraid the fates
would spoil It all and Madge would
change the subject before he could
stammer out his invitation. II see by
the paper how they are letting the
girls with red hair In for nothing. Sort
of boost the show. ! suppose. And the
red-haired girls and their escorts have
free samples of everything at the
show. II you'd care to go some after
noon this week after school guess
can make the trip In my little car In
about half an hour. Would you care to
go, Miss Madgeg" Yes. he had actu-
ally asked her. He paused. breathless,
for her answer.
you asked me. | suppose" eaid
Madge. because I'm the only girl you
know that has red hair" And then she
laughed in a way that at the same time
tantalized and delighted her rustic ad-
mirer.
We'll. now. don't know as I'd say
that you had real red hair" he parried,
and again Madge laughed delightfully."-.
you needn't hesitate about saying
So" Madge assured him, ''for nova
days red hair is very fashionable and
no girl objects In the least 10 having
II. In fact, in the big cities the girls
actually color Il red on purpose"
Yes, but let's talk about that food
show" Tom insisted. Say we go to-
morrow afternoon. Oh. well, IL you
can't go tomorrow we might go the
next day-Saturday That is to be the
grand finale and everyone will be
there. guess we can start out little
earlier since you'll have no school that
day"
II haven't read the papers lately"
Tom was saying as they sped In his
small roadster over the country high
ways in the direction OF Mapleton,
but guess they are still on the look
out for girls with red hair all right.
expect we'il see good many of the
boys and girls | used to know. It's
only at times like this that ! see the
old crowd went to school with"
Il should hink"--Madge had note
OF coaxing in her voice that Tom did
not dream was intentional-"I should
think that you would go and see the
girls you used to know oftener, al
though l suppose most of the boys
and girls you went to school with are
married now."
For one feeting second Tom thought
he saw the way to bend the conyersa-
tion abruptly to the engagement ring
or the bank account or the little new
farmhouse he was planning, but the
vision OF such an achievement was dis
PEELED as soon as 1t had come. Instead
he only gripped the wheel of his car
more ntently and stared ahead of him
in confusion.
AS Tom had foreseen. there were
many Of his old acquaintances at the
convention hall. where the food show