The Dallas express. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1893-1970, 1920-03-13
BOBBY AND
THE H. c. L.
eBy JANE OSBORN
!. 1913. BY Mcclure Newspaper syndicate

on his face that comes to man who
feels he has been extremely liberal.
Just so long as ii is bang-up dinner.
I'm not going TO consider any reason
able cost. Here. Lucille he said,
drawing forth crisp ten-dollar Dill
from his bill case there Is something.
Spend the whole Of 1t If you want
terrapin. caviar. green turtle, lobster
whatever they have at the nifty din
ners."
"Apd there are TO be eight of us"
Lucille's words betokened WEAKNESS.
but 1t was a WEAKNESS that Bobby. the
exuberant young Bobby. failed TO de-
tect.
'Yes," he agreed "you and me and
my brother John and his wife and your
brother John and his wife and the Bob
Newtons-just jolly party. I'll be
home by six, so as to do anything can
for you at the last minute. suppose
you'll get Sally to wear a cap and
apron?" And away went Bobby, filed
with pleasurable anticipation of his
first dinner party.
II had been settled between the
Bobby Stranges when they were mar
ried that they would run no bills dur
ing the first years of their married
life. Bobby was convinced that every
housewife should go marketing person
ally. taking advantage of the better
wi hnf off 10 a. Ina
paid cash, and Lucille had agreed per
fectly. And Bobby Strange did nol
mean to be parsimOnious-
But the trouble was that Bobby had
been rather overfed on Il certain brand
of magazine article that urges young
men tc save. 1t was bis theory that II
young man earned sixty dollars a
week he should save at least fifteen.
He felt that he was generous When he
allowed Lucille thirty-fve on which to
run the house.
When Lucille complained meekly
and good-naturedly that butcher bills
were amazingly high Bobby smilingly
quoted some articles he had read about
using the cheaper cuts. but unfortu-
nately Bobby had taste for chops and
steaks and could not endure stews.
''Oh, there are other things you can
get" he assured her. ~ can't remem-
Der just what they call them. But
you'll find 1t all in the books"
So when Bobby Strange left that
I Ina ut
dollar bill. She ran a finger over its
verdant face affectionately. There
were so many things that 1t would do.
They needed potatoes. and only the
day before Lucille had found place
where she could buy eggs at splendid
price.
She had hoped to be able to get some
to put down" for winter They were
out of soap and it was so much cheap
err buying it in large quantities. But
this ten dollars was not for soap or
eggs or potatoes. 1t was for terrapin
and green turtle.
Lucille started out early to shop,
and she spent hours in her search for
the inexpensive Injuries that she had
hoped for. But they were not to be
had. Why, even ordinary barnyard
fowl were fifty cents pound. Ere
quently as she marketed she consulted
the little menu that she had made out
for the dinner that night, and frequent.
ly she ran her little silver pencil
through certain dainties she had
planned to have.
II was not alone physical fatigue
that weighed her down when she re-
turned from the marketing trip.
"YOn'll wear cap and apron, won't
you. SallyT' she asked when she came
home.
II suppose so, ma'am." replied Sally.
''if you get one for me. You couldn't
expect me to have them for myself"
Lucille had to take the cork out of
the bottom of the china elephant bank
in which she had been saving nickles
with which to buy washing machine
Then she went out in search of the
white cap and apron that she could
buy with the small amount that the
elephant presented her with.
The dinner seemed to be successful
enough, but something must have
passed between the Bobby Stranges
afterward that took little of the
felicity out Of Lucille. For when her
brother John arrived unexpectedly the
next morning at about nine after
Bobby had started off for his office he
found his sister In tears.
He had trouble in tracing these tears
to their source. for Lucille knew that
John was an answering friend and
champion of her Bobby. If he had not
been she never would have explained
10 him.
"After you had all gone" she ex-
planned. she said to me that needn't
have been so thrifty. He told me that
he wouldn't in the least have minded
If ] had spent all the money he CAV,
me for the dinner-in fact. he said b
had rather hoped we would have some
thing little better than chicken and
--Lucille's tears seemed to start afresh
at the details Of the little dinner
party; she sobbed like n child before
she went on--"and stringbeans (sob)
and tomato salad tsob) and ice cream
and-and chocolate cake" And with
the mention Of the cake she had spent
so much pains in making she hurst
into torrent Of tears Of self-pity and
sobbed on her hrother's shoulder as
she had done in long-ago days when
he had comforted her over the demise
Of a canary or the breaking of doll
sand l spent every cent he gave