Mexico Missouri message., 1918-01-31


curled beneath her. Connie leaned
against the table within reach Of
Fairy's hand.
"They're awfully Slow" she COM
planned once.
Nobody answered. The deadly ST.
lence clutched them.
"Oh, talk" Carol blurted out des-
perately. "You make me sickl 1t isn't
anything to be so awfully scared about.
Everybody does It,"
A little humble greeted this, and
then, silence again. Whenever it
grew too painful, Carol said reproach-
fully, Everybody does it," And no
one ever answered.
They looked up expectantly when
the men entered. 1t seemed cozier
somehow when they were all together
in the little kitchehn.
as she all rlghtT"
"Sure, she's all right" came the
bright response from their father,
And then silence.
"Oh, you make me SICK" cried Carol.
Everybody does it,"
"Carol Starr, if you say everybody
does it. again I'll send you to bed"
snapped Fairy. "Don't we know every
body does it? But Prudence isn't ev-
erybody."
"Maybe we'd better have a LUNCH"
suggested their father hopefully, know
ing the thought of food often aroused
his family when all other means had
failed. But his suggestion met with
dark reproach.
''Father, If you're hungry, take a
piece of bread out into the woodshed,"
begged Connie. "If anybody eats any
thing before me shall jump up and
down and scream"
After that the silence was unbroken
save once when Carol began encour-
aglngly:
"Every-"
"Sure they do" interrupted Fairy
uncompromislngly
| And then-the hush.
Long, long after that, when the girls
eyes were heavy, not with want of
sleep, but Just with unspeakable weari-
ness of splrit-they heard step on
the stair.
"Come on up, Harmer," the doctor
called. And then, "Sure, she's all
right. She's fine and dandy-both of
them are"
Jerry was gone in an instant, and
Mr.. Starr looked after him with inscru-
table eyes. "Fathers are-only IA
thers," he said enigmatlcally.
EYES," agreed Carol.
eyes. In q crisis, the other man
goes first"
His daughters turned to him then
, tenderly, sympathetically.
"You had your turn, father" Connie
consoled him. And felt repaid for the
effort when he smiled at her.
"Jerry Junior" Lark mused. "He's
here.-'Aunt Lark, may have g
cookyT"
; A few minutes later the door was
, carefully showed open by means Of @
! cautious foot, and Jerry stood before
> them, holding in his arms big bundle
! of delicately tinted flannel.
3 Ladies' and gentlemen" he began
? beaming at them, his face flushed, his
) eyes bright, embarrassed, but thor
oughly satisfied. OF course Prudence
r was the dearest girl in the world, ant
E he adored her, and--but this was diff
e ferent, this was fatherhoodl
: 'Ladies and gentlemen" he sale
e again in the tender, half-laughlng voice
r that Prudence loved, '1et me Introduce
4 to you my little daughter, Fairy Har
E mer."
'Not-not Fairyl" cried Fairy, Sen
e ior, tearfully. "Oh, Jerry, don't be
3 lieve it. Not Fairy! You are joking.
"Of course it is Fairy" he said
''Look out, Connie, do you want Il
I break part of my daughter off the frs
thing? Oh, ] see. 1t was just the fan
{ mel, was it? Well, you must be care
full of the flannel, for when ladies arr
!, the size of this one, you can't tell which
! is flannel and which is foot. Fair!
i Harmerl Here, grandpa, what do yoI
I think of this? And Prudence said t,
send you right upstairs, and hurry
:. And the girls must go to bed fmmedi
ately or they'll be sick tomorrow. Pru
k dence says So"
ooh, that's enough. That's Prudenc
: all overt You needn't tell us any more
b Here, Fairy Harmer, let us look at you
Hold her down, Jerry. Mercy Mercy I
!, "Isn't she a beautyT boasted tn
e young father proudly.
e "a beauty7 A beautyi That !
!. Carol rubbed her slender fingers owe
I her own velyety cheek. 'aThey tai
! about the matchless skin Of a newborn