The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-05-20
Listening In On Foe

Sunday, is my birthday. I'm just sen timentaI enough to wish to pass my 75th milestone in Already. And since to look at things in bloom" he quoted.
 'Ah, you know the Shropshire Lad " interrupted Miss Belinda. "It's late for cherry blossoms"
 "Yes, it's late. I must content my self with the hazel bloom."'
 Not yet, not yet,'' Mir. GreyviIle. '9They're long way off
 "F'or you, yes, but for me autumn is near with it's bright leaves and blos- soming hazel. But don't let's speak of that. hear you are cook as well as a gardener. Mrs. Greyville tells me that the dainties you made for the vil- lage church sale were the most delecta- ble there. She was particularly enthu- siastic over your pound cake. The vil- lage matron who proudly bore it away gave Mrs. Greyville a slice. She said it was the best she had ever tasted"
 Dear me-" laughed Miss Belinda. ''I fear Mrs. Greyville had done me too much honor. have very good helper in my kitchen"
 ''But yours is the guiding hand there
 
 What am going to do when you go away, and don't receive any more complimentary
 "You don't need any ecomiums, Miss Belinda. You are known by your good works. Now I must saunter back to the hotel, where Mrs. Greyville is wait ing on the porch for our monday crib bage. May I havt a tryst with you among the pinks this evening? Maybe Mrs. Greyville will come"
 T hope so. Tell her to come down and cut some flowers to take home with you tomorrow" said Miss Belinda, and as she watched the rather frail figure depart an idea came into her head. In moment she was in her kitchen.
 Katie" she cried, i've must make the most beautiful pound cake in the world, for the birthday of the most courtly man in the world-so far as know the world," she added laugh ing.
 On Sunday afternoon when MT. Grey vile came to say goodbye he looked at Miss Belinda quizzically.
 My dear lady," he said, "you grow in stature and wisdom all the time. discover that you can keep secret. You never even hinted at the marvellous cake with the wreath of posies when we were down here last night"
 "Of course not. It was a surprise. Did it come up to your expectations? I'm afraid my cookery has been over advertised"
 ''No, indeed; it was a perfect strle- ture of cake, round, smooth, firm and -and delicious"
 There, now, why do you hesitate on the one really important quality2"
 "Oh, Miss Belinda, cannot deceive you. I haven't tasted that marvellous cake. Mrs. Greyville is just now hav- ing delightful porch party, with your cake for the piece de resistance, and 1--I can't toucE\it. l had to run away from temptation"
 Are you forbidden cake9"
 No, only pound cake. You see, Miss Belinda, when we were first married, over fifty years ago, Mrs. Greyville made pound cake for a surprise, and such q surprise. It was a Babylonian cake. It fell-oh, how it fell 1 can think of it only as a moist melancholy. 1t was the saddest cake I've ever known. l had to tell her that I didn't like pound cake, and I've stuck to that myth ever since"
 Do come up to the house and have piece of the loaf we made for our selves"
 "Oh, Miss Belinda, thank you, but I couldn't It wouldn't be playing the game" said Mir. Greyville, and when Miss Belinda told her brother Ben about it he said he always knew the old gentleman was q sport.