Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-20
Wedding Presents Elephants Household Pets

pulled to an upright position, Mrs.
Hale carefully removed the excelsior
shavings. Jane herself was allowed
to reach into the case and draw out
the vases, separately wrapped. She
read the card.
"Oh! from Aunt janet" she cried.
Ned, this will be something wonder
full"
Then she unwrapped the first vase.
She looked at it. She stood 1t on the
floor and unwrapped the second vase.
No one said anything. Mrs. Hale had
some things that were bad enough, but
she had nothing nearly as bad as
these. No one there had seen any
thing quite as awful as THESE Jane
looked at Ned.
ITO tell you the honest truth.
Jane" said Ned. II don't know thing
about Japanese art"
X X x x
TT was quite impossible to allow the
l. two vases to be in any Of the rooms
| they meant to use. Fortunately
enough, the thousand dollars Aunt
Jane had given Jane sufficed only to
| outfit the rooms that were really
| needed, and the extra rOOm--the one
that had to be rented with the rest,
because no other apartment quite
suited-had nothing in it but Aunt
Jane (which was what they had come
| to call the hat-rack thing), the picture
Of "Diaphanoos Babbling at the
Brook" the fire in the egg-packery"
| sofa.pillow, and the kennel and the
cat-coop.
Jane had made of the apartment a
really charming little home. The
woodwork had been done in a fiat
white, rubbed, and the mantels were
in good Adam style, and Jane let this
set the note. She took the advice or
Ef1ie Wills, who was taking a course
and what there was was good, and
| there was not too much of 1t.
absolutely not" Effie Wills said in
regard to the two vases. They're hid
eous You can't have them =. any
where"
But they must be something
urged Jane. Aunt Jane knows about
Japanese art"
They're the cheapest stuff made in
Japan for the trashiest American
trade. They are hideous, Jane.
They're simply terrible. If you don't
think I'm right try one Of them some
where"
Jane tried one
mo USE" Ned said. We've got to
put it in Aunt James room. But l tell
Alexander use them. We can use one
for a kennel for Fido and the other
for a cat.coop for Alexander"
II thought Fido was a collie" sug-
gested EfIie Wills.
HE u.s." said Ned. ''but he shrinks
when he goes near those vases. Any
self-respecting dog would"
So the two vases became the kennel
and the cat-coop and they were laid
on their sides in Aunt James ROOM"
On one wall hung Diaphanoos, in one
corner was the pillow known as the
'egg.packery confiagration." and in
the corner stood Aunt Jane" The
door was always kept closed. but there
were supposed to be two holes cut in
it-a big one for Fido to enter and
exit by. and little one for Alexander.
The egg-packery confiagration was
the most trouble. 1t having been the
gift Of Dot Langham. who had
worked at Wilson. Dickett & Co.'S
with Jane. Dot came to see Jane
now and then and, when she
did. the egg. packery conflagration had
to be somewhere pretty quick. Luck
lily, the bedroom was across the mar
row hall from Aunt James room and,
with Dot in the living room, Jane
could step into Aunt James room and
throw the sofa.pillow across the hall
and onto a chair in the bedroom. "Di-
aphanoos Babbling at the Brook" gave
no one any trouble at all. having come
from an old schoolmate Of James in
Iddlesborough, Ohio. Aunt Jane"
standing in the corner of the unused
room, was even less trouble. She had
been given by one Of Ned's male
friends and; although he came to see
Ned now and then, he had SO little
sense of what was meet that he be-
lieved a vacant room was the place
to keep an Aunt Jane.
The kennel and the cat-coop did not
bother Jane during the first Summer
of her married life. Aunt Jane was
safely in Europe and there was not
much chance that she would return
until Autumn. If she returned then,
and she might not be home for
years. She said SO on post cards she
sent Jane. 1t seemed she had an
address In Paris. and Jane wrote her
there.
Jane wrote, "for the wonderful
things I have been able to do with
the check you gave me. We have
just the dearest little apartment home
you ever saw, and Ned and I are 50
happy In it. And then to think of
you sending us something else on top
of that! We were so delighted and
thrilled by your beautiful present;
we both love Japanese things"
Nearly every evening the Ned Nor.
tons had a dinner-party. Fido sat pa
tiently on his launches. waiting for
Ned to toss him imaginary bits of