Evening star., 1927-09-18
AROUND THE CITY
By MAMIE LANCASTER.

towels-and watching them furtively
to see what they would select. One
thin lady, with specs low down on
her nose that seemed to annoy her,
began lingering the pretty blue and
| pink towels, and the hunter took
heart. The clerk was on hand.
My daughter wants something that
will do for a shower the clerks are
giving one of the girls, who is going
to get married.
Don't you want better quality?
Cotton won't absorb water. This is
much better"
II know it. but these look pretty,
and the bride won't know any better
AS for me. / pay cents each Tor
empty coffee sacks. Nothing better
for drying dishes"
Another customer who was deciding
between crash and glass toWellns.
both Of good quality (quoth clerk,,
started friendly little confab:
What kind of toweling do you
use?"
The hunter had to own to igno'
rance; she had just gone houSekeep'
ing and thought she would prefer
these pretty checks, but the clerk SAID
that cotton wouldn't absorb water.
That's right. What you want In
a tea towel is good substance Makes
no difference what towel looks IKE,
SO it's clean"
Il like pretty things that look
dainty"
Foolishness-though I'm not blam'
ing YOU. All of us have our favorlte
tastes. like me. Ever since was a
girl-and I've got a grandchild halt
erown-I have wanted to get me an
ostrich plume, though l never could
iye ny
myself with a big family TO feed and
my husband buying home. But this
Spring | said to him, Joe, | said, now
that The children are at work and the
house is paid for, and you are aiming
to get a car, | feel that | want to
buv myself an ostrich plume. that
been a-wanting ever since i was knee
high to a rasshopper.'
so, Joe told me to go TO it, and
get the best that money could buy
as good man, that way. / ever saw.
So | bought me one, though | had
hard time finding one 10 suit-must
be awful SCarce-a long, black fluffy
feather, wrapped in silk tissue, in a
box-and only cost me $40, which
seems queer, because l heard my Ma
say that you couldn't get good quail.
ity plume in her day under $50. and
maybe S25. ! can't think why they
have got SO cheap and scarce, all of
a sudden"
The towel hunter could have told
her. but. even if a woman calls your
desire for pretty towels foolishness,
you have no right to dampen the JOY
of possession by letting her know that
ostrich breeders have killed off hun.
dreds of birds because plumes are no
longer fashionable. and it takes money
to feed stock. SO she just said it must
be big comfort to get what one
really wants. and that was that.
The customer who came next was a
sweetfaced young woman with a gen.
tie look in her eyes. So the hunter
asked her If she knew anything about
tea towels. She smiled with friend
illness that was pretty to see, but she
knew little of that complicated sub
ject. So the hunter showed her the
pretty checks:
They are cotton, but. even if they
won't do for towels, I can use them
to wrap a loaf in. a bread box-and
TO-"
Sensing the preference in the
hunters voice, the young woman said
confidentially:
I'D get them, they are so pretty
L
So the hunter bought just two;
one pink and white check and one
blue and white check. And for good
measure, some of the truly material
that had a dull. red edge. Then the
two had q soda together. and the
hunter promised to name the pretty
towels after her: each to be called
Florence-and that was all there was
to everything.
UnEAR MAMIE L-So sorry you
were not walking through the
grounds of the Department of Agri-
culture this am. (September 81, for l
am sure you could have solved the
mystery. We personally claim no
ability of the 'Sherlocko' type. but
have perfect faith in yours. and should
be delighted to read your deduction
from an almost weird happenstance
which occurred there about $3.50 or
so. today.
"At least three men-how many
more may have been bitten by the
bug we cannot say-a painter. climb.
ing greenhouse roof; a scientist
briskly approaching his place of ex-
perimentation and a general utility
man, headed for dear knows where,
were all happily and industriously
whistling I Am Coming, Lord as if
they really meant it and enjoyed 1t.
My, how you would have reveled
in the varied quality of tone-the
gusto of accomplished effort!
do you suppose 1t was an echo
from either 'Ainnees' or 'Biliy's' en-.
deavors-just plain religious town talk