Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1918-08-09
A Double
- . 4...s 81
Surprise
Copyright. 1915. Western N.wsp.p,r un,oa.l
By RALPH HAMILTON,

er say?''
swell, after the first shock"
ooh, Roland!"
81 should say surprise being over, she
will set to work to find out If you
measure up to her requirements"
Mile Farrar, the bride of week,
chung closer to the arm of her smiling,
chuckling husband, timid and trem-
bling.
ooh, think you are safe," encour-
aged Roland. you're a Methodist; so
is mother. You know how to sew by
hand and crochet. That's her royal
test of sense anu ability. You know
how to use saleratus and baking soda
and cook old-fashioned, new-fashioned
and every other way. Look your pref
test now. In another moment you Will
face the dreaded mother-in-law!
But Roland Farrar was mistaken.
When they reached the house in which
he was born he found it locked and
suffered.
"Mother must be away on a visit"
he told Mile. Sit down on the porch
here, and I'll see Mrs. Borden. the
next-door neighb0r. It's all arranged"
he announced, returning. Mother has
gone to visit and nurse her invalid SIS
ter in another state; may be absent for
over a month. and all we have to do
is to camp down and make ourselves
comfortable. You see, I need not let
her know that have introduced an In
truder into the house."
"Why, Roland!"
II mem dsfughter-in-law. That will
give you lots of time to get acquaint-
ed with the place and it's ways.
Things went swimmingly. 1t was
great fun. Mile declared. to wander
from room to room, to prepare their
own apartment, to cook her first meal
as wife The next morning motherly
Mrs. Borden came. over. She took to
Millie at once, and started a syste-
matte campaign Of housekeeping edu-
cation.
"a whole barrel of sugar came to-
day." Mile reported to this kind
friend and adviser the next day, "and
an old man who said he was a. fruit
farmer left word that he would begin
delivering orders next Tuesday. He
had a long list Of Strawberries, cur
rants, cherries and gOoseberries. On,
just pecks and bushels of them!"
"Well, you'll have to store the ST.
gar, but you had better have Mr.. Be-
all cancel the fruit orders. You see.
every season Mrs. Farrar puts up just
so much fruit. You'll find row after
row of jars on the swinging shelves in
the cellar, and all the putting up recl-
pes on a hook Mrs. Farlar never
varies an atom from a regular system
by rote. She just dotes on that work,
and it must be great disappointment
to her to miss this season."
Whereupon great idea was born in
the active mind Of Mile. She spent
half her time down in the cellar. She
went over all the jars and cleaned
them. She studied the time-worn reci-
pes on the hook diligently. She con-
suited constantly with her accommo-
dating next-door neighbor.
One day about the middle of the
forenoon Roland's mother, unexpected
and unannounced, arrived in town.
She found the front door shut and the
shades down at the windows, but she
shifted and surmised. The air was
redolent with certain tinge of sweet
ness and cookery.
"F'ruit," decided Mrs. Farrar, COM
ing from the cellar. "Roland must
have come home and hired some one
to keep house. I'll go around to the
rear. No-there's some mail"
A newspaper and a letter showed in
the mail-box, and Mrs. Farrar inspect
ed The letter was addressed to "Mrs.
Roland Farrar" The name of young
Roland's father was the same as his
own, His mother paused to~open the
letter.
dearest Millie," it's first page be-
gan, tive can all realize your happi-
ness, and you are doing famously as
a housekeeper, we know. Your fear
of not being able to please Roland's
mother you must Danish. Any mother
of as fine man as Roland has got to
be q model of womankind, and"
Mrs. Farrar stood transfxed. The
letter was not for her, she readily dis
cerned; and Roland" "Millie," "house-
keeping" ''mother''-a great light
illumed her mind. She went around
to the rear. The cellar doors were
omen. Roland's mother went down the
steps. On the stove pan Of preserves
was simmering, on the swinging
shelves-she stared in wonder! The
entire regular fruit supply of the sea-
son was in place, jar after jar, neatly
labeled. Some saucers held samples.
She tested a spoonful Of currant jelly.
"Why, it beats my own" she cried.
"who is there?" as a rustling behind
the shelves echoed, and Millie, guilty.
looking and flushed, stepped forward.
IF you please" tremored Mile, I'm
moor, ignorant little housekeeper
who has tried to learn"
Learnt" repeated Mrs. Farrar.
"Did you put up all that stuff"