The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1918-10-09
Sugar
Shortage
4
B, BERTHA cuRR1H roRrn

i don't see what you said we'd give
them tea for, when you know we
haven't any sugar!"
what difference does that make?
Some Of our best families don't have
sugar nowadays"
swell, I'll bet the Clarkson girls are
rolling in sugar!"
IF they are, all we need to do is to
Shake them over the cups, and there
you are!"
You needn't joke about 1t, Anne.
have some pride If you haven't, and
I'm not going to have those rich Clark
sons coming here and thinking we're
not as we'll able to have things as they
are, even if they do carry fifteen dollar
knitting bags, all covered over with
pin-cuShion fruit, and tassels."
u don't know how you're going to
get 1t. I've telephoned to every store
l can think of and they all say the
same thing-'no sugar."
"TelephOning and asking face to face
are two different things. I'll run out
and see what can do"
Josephine Bruce, not in this bad
weather."
But Josephine had vanished into the
bedroom Of the little fiat.
1t was the worst day of that 'never-
Observation-Disclosures" winter. There had
been a heavy snow fall, thaw and
then sudden freeze, with thick, black
ice over everything. And in the night
the weather had moderated and rain
had fallen in torrents on the ice. This
morning it was still raining, with
heavy wind. It was day when sensi-
BILE folk wore creepers over their rub
bers, and other people lost their pride
in the good old Biblical way.
Josephine appeared, clad in a very
becoming brown raincoat and little tan
hat. She wore brown boots and ridicu-
lous low rubbers, and carried q brown
umbrella.
Sister Anne stood at her tower win
dow and watched Josephine slip down
the HILL using her folded umbrella as a
staff. Anne began to chop nutmeats
for sandwiches, wondering what her
erratic sister might be doing. The
reality was this:
In the nearest store, Anne marched
bravely up to the counter.
"Two pounds Of sugar, please" she
said, with her sweetest smile.
mo sugar in the store" growled the
harassed clerk for the one hundred
and thirty-seventh time that day.
''There's no sugar in the store" the
next grocer told her. land more than
that, there's no sugar up to my own
house, and Tn in the grocery business.
What was yours, madam?" to a sleek
haired italian woman in red shawl.
Josephine went out on more ice.
For an hour she slipped and slid
from one store to another, and heard
the same story in fiftyseven varieties.
Josephine paused on corner to collect
her forces and decide where to attack
next. This particular corner was at
the foot of hill-this city was built
on more than seven hills-and the side
walk sloped at an unpleasant angle;
also the building on that lot projected
in such way that pedestrians coming
down the side street were completely
hidden from those on the main thor
oughfare. Josephine had seen so many
people fall that day that she now me-
chanically watched them all. Perhaps
that was why she noticed the gray
raincoat behind the big market basket.
New style coat" she thought and
looked again at the basket. She gasp
ed! Not for months had she seen
sight like that. She looked again. 1t
camouflaged by Tapping paper cover
ing. but with tell-tale little yellow
sharp corners sticking out, We're six
two-pound cartons of sugar! And the
food commissioner had ruled that no
dealer should sell more than ten
pounds to any one person. And she.
Josephine Bruce, had not one single
grain!
She looked above the basket to see
who this plutocrat might be, and met
a pair of serious blue eyes staring
straight into her brown ones. She had
only ClIlo 10 TedIlZe tIlil Ills law
breaker was young and very good
looking when his feet appeared where
had been his face-he bounced up and
down. landing on the woman who had
slid down the side street, and vanished,
in the midst of arms and legs and
bodies that came faster and faster I'M
til they piled up in a slipping stopping
snarl of humanity. And high in the
air. flying merrily toward the blue sky
before descending to the soaking side
walk, went the six packages of sugar.
Josephine lodged. She escaped the
pedestrians because they all slid into
the gutter, but a couple of pounds of
sugar landed on her stylish little tan
hat and bounced down into her yawn-
ing knitting bag. Josephine had no
recollection Of opening her bag, but she
knew exactly when she closed 1t. Ana
then, with the most outrageous polite
ness. she stopped and picked up two
Of the other packages. She handed
them to the young man in the gray
raincoat, crawling out from the chaos.
"Your sugar. sir" she said, smiling,