Evening star., 1928-03-30
COMPOUND Interest.

YUM fNAAAA AAANNANSbs
Vira Cooper was making ginger
aaread. Her sister Belle. years older
was making sugar cookies, Bellies sugar
cookies tempted the eye ard titilated
1.-THE palate, They were scalloped
lCrunChy. Sanded with sugar and in the
kcenter of each was great clot OF cur
1ant Jelly The recipe for those cook
&es was a family heirloom and was
cherished as such,
The two elderly unmarried sisters
were contentedly at work in their
large. sunny kitchen on q bright Fall
morning. The windows and door were
open. Thus the fragrance Of their oven
Travelled far.
A mnelcd odor Of gingerbread and
sugar ccoSy reached the nose Of a
small boy in dirty shirt and ragged
trousers who was trying 20 make
something oUt Of an old barrel hoop
and a few shingles, using stone Tor
q hammer The HlCkeyS lived over the
back fence from the CooperS in two
or three rooms Of a rather diSreputablc
tenement MIR. Hickey earned fair
WAGES when he worked--but he didn't
work often. AS lie expressed it iocu-
iarlv u his mates, he and work had
had 3 falling out Mrs. Hickey always
had : pair of twins or single child
u rvot on her knee. She saw no trou-
bic about ANYTHING. Fred, the Oldest
Of the family. had q reputation for
tski0c things that didn't belong TO him
things Ike the barrel hoop and
shingles. lie was FAR from personable
with his dirty face unshorn red hair
and bare feet covered with stone
bruises
Tnon this morning Fred was unuSu-
ally hunCry As a matter OF TACT, ne
was always hungry. for regular meals
were unheard Of ST the ElckeyS. He
shifted the air. found out where the
good smell came from and dropped
his tinkering Job. Wormlng his way
th~ouch hole in the fence, he
ScauDered uU the stone walk between
yira's neat flower beds and knocked
boldly upon the back door. Vira
opened the door. She gasped when she
saw her visitor Fred's hungry brown
ewes flashed from her to the pan OF
cookies her. sister was just taking from
the oven. He pointed grubby finger.
cave me onel" he demanded.
"Cood landi" exclaimed Vira. That's
no. wav 10 do-c0ning to folks houses
and asking for things to eat"
SCive me one!" repeated Fred, still
pointing.
''Wel-if vou'u say please"
1Please. please, pretty please"
Belle gave him two Of her cookies.
Ann then Vira. not to be outdone,
sleshe6 OF q great hunk Of her ginger
bread
..Sit down on the back steps and
eat il. And mind you, get no crumbs
scattered round" she said. CrumbSl
As if the tiniest bit Of that delicious
snack could escape the rayenous lit
tie tramp.
From the doorway the sisters eyed
him CuriOusly. once or twice their
ewes met. II was a shame. A child
Ike that Ia be hungry. They had never
been hungry. Life had been easy and
bolintiful for them always
do vou know. Belle" whispered
vira, there's all those things up
stairs
4 was thinking that very thing,
vire."
IRE things belonged to their broth
e. Robert who had died in his early
teens. OF course. every garment must
Be cut over TO TT the meager shape
a the 7-vear-old Fred. But the sis
ters knew how 10 sew.
From that time Fred prospered. He
N-as never again so hungry, never
ecsin ragged. And he got some much
needed training from his new friends.
wvnen he was clean his red hair cut.
rs thin little body clad in suitable
clothing he wasn't so bad looking. A
little sharp-eved perhaps for a child.
But he had a keen mind. The sister
tonss a great deal Of interest IN him
for two or three years. Then the
Tlckeys drifted away and all trace OF
tnern was lost
ro.rstrued 70 live in their old home
s,srr01nded bv theiy fashioned
fhlrgg. clingirg 70 thefr Eentekl old
fashioned customs. But times changed
ara new exigencies prevailed. The sis
.prg came 70 2 phase Of their existence
wien 4 was Just a question Of niekles
er6 uickleg though, of course, nobooy
R,rew or cared They were 10 most
folks fust two old ladies living in
rather remote way. for the town had
eurved away toward the new extension,
le4Vlng them Ike q piece of drittWood
high and dry, They had outliYed most
q their own generation. And the new
generation had affairs Of It's own.
They began t!mtcly 70 carry large
parcels 70 and fro. They were cro-
eFe.3ng articles for the new baby's
kazaay. The work brought in some
thing and kept them from thinking
o. Robert and what he would have
meant u them now, of Elra's one
chance 70 marry which she had dis
dained ard regretted ever since, o.
Bellies musical talent which she had
LAID aside n care for their aged par
e1ts There we're no more baklngs Of
R1n2erbread and sugar cookies, they
couldn't afford them nov. Perhaps
their EtCnszcflS were better because OF
II But toast and tea and apple mar
TEsiaee Cd get 70 be little p2Onoto-
nous.
one cay the apple tree that had
y1Seec untold harVests crashed down
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