Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1926-02-19
Alice, the Color
Blender
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
By DOROTHY PIPER
tcopyriEht.)

hNuif AilCc Lhg WOuiu lhhc HtI
work-basket to the living room where
her clever fingers would ply needle
In and out of some sheer bit OF ma
terial; and Just now she was fashion
Ing beautiful spread for her brothers
bed.
"Humph," exclaimed her brother
Danny one evening. do | have to
sleep under those lumpsf"
Alice pretended to be greatly
piqued. These are not Jumps, silly"
she said, they are French knots, and
you will not sleep under them, you
will fold back the spread carefully
each night before retiring"
Again Danny voiced his dIsapproval.
"These folderols may be all right,
Alice" he declared, "but why don't
| you use your time to better advan-
tage2'
'That's what I'd say" called an
elder sister, Marion, from the kitchen.
Every day have to scrub these
greasy kettles, while Alice sits In the
living room and blends colors.
"Now, children, don't quarrel. Alice
has an artistic temperament, you
know" observed their mother.
"Applesauce scoffed Danny in.
elegantly. well, l hope dadll always
be able to hold down his job. don't
know what Alice could do II forced
to support herself"
No one seemed to notice the look OF
extreme worry and anxiety upon tho
face Of Mr.. Day, as he returned from
the Office each evening At last he was
obliged to speak of his trouble, ans
Alice overheard him telling mother
MARY" he said brokenly, 81 made
an unsuccessful business deal last
month and lost $1,000. l am afraid
Danny will have to sacrifice his col
lege year"
Alice, an innocent eavesdropper,
turned pale. How selfish she hnG
been to sit and blend sllken threads.
while her father shaved to give them
the luxuries of life
She scanned the Help Wanted
columns, and found that Danny spoke
the truth when he said there was
nothing she could do Possibly sha
could be a waitress, so, unknown to
the family, she donned plain black
dress, and appeared before the mat
who had advertised for a girl.
Had any previous experlence?
asked the restaurateur, doubling
Alice's ability.
"Yes, SIR" she fibbed thinking OF
Danny. 81 worked at Wilde's for slX
months"
Good" said the man. "You may
start Immediately; begin with that
customer in the corner"
Alice knew that a diner must have
glass of water and a pat Of hut
ter, 30 she procured those two artlceg
and stood beside the gentleman.
awaiting his order.
"I1l have cup of coffee and file,
mignon." he said In cultural tones.
Alice understood the word coffee,
but the others sounded like jargon
Flee Meenya"-she passed the order
on to the chef.
"What Is Flee MeenyaT" the cool
wanted to know, meat or fish,"
Il don't know, just Flee Meenya'"
faltered Alice. But the chef was un.
able to grasp her meaning, and gave
attention to the other Mattresses.
Allce's customer sat before an
empty plate for nearly 45 minutes.
then he staiked from the cafe In dis
gust. The proprietor upbralded Alice
and threatened to fire" her.
Her next customer was lady, who
wanted q pot OF tea and II chicken
sandwich. This was easy, and Alice
went to the kitchen with a smile Oh
her lips, but on her return she slipped
and spilled the entire contents Of her
tray over the woman she was serving.
Luckily, the lady wore heavy coat
and was not scalded, but her garments
were saturated with milk and tea.
Poor Alice She sat down and wept.
She scarcely heard her irate employer
as he ordered her to leave OF once
The woman was kindly sort and
assured Alice that no harm had been
done. She displayed more interest
In Alice's towel than she did In her
soiled cloak.
what an exquisite bit Of embrOd.
cry" she remarked examining the de-
sign, "the blending of colors is real
artistry. May ask who worked III"
II did," replied Alice, between sobs.
"Why, my dear girl" exclaimed the
lady, "you shouldn't be working In .
cafe. Your life work Is cut out for
you. For weeks l have been search
ing for an expert needlewOman to
embrolder a trousseau for my daugl-
ter. II you will accept my offer.
can give you work for six months
After that my friends will be glad to
employ you. I know"
The lady was 30 anxious to secure
Alice's services that she paid her IA
advance, and Alice forwarded the
money TO her parents. Danny was able
to return to college. but It was sel-
eral weeks before he knew how nuca
he owed to his sister. Then one day
he went to her and shyly expressed
his gratitude.
Gee. A." he said, I'm awful,y
sorry for the way | have talked to
you III do anything II youIl only
forgive me-"
"Wll you wear pink butterflies on
your football suit?" asked Alice teas
ingly.
"Yep. m even do that" laughed
| Danny and he kissed her on the maps
Of the neck