Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1929-10-11
CELIA
HAD THE
KNACK
ia by D. J. walsh,l


her mornings work where she
~ had to curl up on the daven.
port for forty winks. With a
sigh Of WEAKNESS she yielded to the
soft comfort, tucked pillow under
her head and shut her eyes. In thirty
minutes the chime clock would awak-
en- her. H
The Workings plain little living
room looked almost as II its contents
had been stirred up by whirlwlnd.
When Celia cleaned she cleaned.
Presently when she had put the
chairs and tables back In their places,
turned down the corners of the rugs
and Strengthened the curtains every
thing would look us neat ms a pin.
The dining room was In the same
state as the living room. The kitchen
was mess.
Celia expected to be still buster to-
morrow, for then she had marketing
and baking to do, the table to set,
the guest room to prepare-a hun
dred and one little last details nee
essary for the entertaining Of an ex-
acting visitor to be seen to- There
was no doubt that Don's great aunt
Mahala was exacting-he said so
himself. THE kind that prizes fly
specks Off the wallpaper with a pin
and dresses IN oyster as IL 1t were
fowl. There's story" and Don mad
laughed. that Aunt Mahala's mother
had the boards of her kitchen floor
laid down loose so she could turn
them over and scrub both sides Don
had not added that of all the Forsythe
clan Aunt Mahala had made the big
gest rumpus about his marrying a
young typlst with no training for
homemaklng or wlfehood The first
notice she had ever taken of the
young couple was when she sent them
a huge roasting pan, prlce-marked
500, huge coffee pot, prlce-marked
$1l, a huge saucepan, prlce-marked
81, all superbly FURNISHED heavy to
lift. and warranted to outlast three
generations. Celia had tried to make
coffee in that giant pot, but II took
nine minutes to heat the thing and
their three scant breakfast cups were
lost In its cleaning depths. Neither
did they expect ever to be able to
buy a turkey big enough to Ill the
vast roasting pan. So she had wrapped
them carefully in paper and tucked
them away In the only available spot
under the guest room bed.
Celia dreaded meeting Aunt Maha-
Ia, who cuffed her dIgnifed sons ears
when he disagreed with her and who
held Don on her lap as she had done
when he was seven years old. Yet,
somehow, Don loved Aunt Mahaia, and
when she wrote that she was going
to be In town on the following Thurs
day and was coming to spend the
night with them he had telegraphed
her to come without fail. Hence, all
this furry Of preparation on Cella's
part. Celia was determined that Aunt
Mahala should be able to pick no flaw
in the way she kept her house or
fed her husband.
Ting-a-llngl Celia started up, rub
bling her eyes. Was 1t that chime
clock? She glanced at Its innocent
white face and saw that she had
slept barely eight minutes. II must
be the doorbell then. She peeked out
and saw dark figure under an UNI
brella standing upon the steps. The
figure carried bag.
AS she opened the front door Celia
looked straight into pair of she'll
trimmed glasses, behind which was a
pair Of cool. measuring, old black
eyes.
How do you dor said Aunt Maha-
Ia, letting down the umbrella and set
ting II TO drip. "Nasty day"
Celia, stunned, managed to falter:
"oh, think It's nice day b-because
TIT b-brIngs you"
Aunt Mnhala looked at the russell
haired girl In the smudgy blue pima.
fore.
"Why don't you get cured OF STAN
merlng?" she inquired my brother
Elkanah was just so. lie cured him
self by saying 1000 times, Polly Pl-
per's papa paints pretty purple pal
aces It's easy" But the black eyes
twlnkled.
Celia grlnned. Her heart was run
ming away in her bosom. She felt suf-
located. Aunt Mahala had come a day
and a half ahead OF time.
"Come right in," she said hospt-
ably. 'Take off your things" She
wheeled up chair, emptled II OF a
dirty buster and a whlskbroom. "Slt
down here"
Looks like you're cleaning house."
Aunt Mahala, having removed her hat
and coat, let herself down into the
creamy depths OF Don's favorIte chair.
1t smelled Of his evening pipe and
there was tiny hole burned In the
tapestry covering where he had once
dropped spark. Flows DonnyT
"Fine. At work as usual. lie doesn't
come ut noon, gets bite downtown
-" Celia stopped, remembering the
contents Of the icebox. Then she
went on gllbly: do you drink coffee
for lunch, Aunt MahalaT
~ don't know anything about lunch
! always have my hearty meal al
noon. And never drink anything
but tea. But don't put yourself out
for me, can manage with anything
II like tea, too" Celia laughed
grateful that she did and that there
was fresh tin OF the best tea ut that
moment on her handy shelf. Then
she fled kltchenwnrd. There Sic
clipped a hand desDalrIDgly against
her hot forehead. Next instant she
had flung open the lcebox door II