The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-05-21

AAA0SAAACA Sic ZULU Keep TIE
clothes she bought. Unfortunate
~. most of them were summer
clothes.
I'll find a job" she assured
herself. TO hide the inward fear.
"And | still have the money !
saved On the job with A. ]. II I
live carefully that viii see me
through until | find something"
The house was in order. The
books were in order. The clothes
she would wear to town were
laid out in her room.
She went down for a final con-
ference with the portrait Of
Great-uncle Timothy Toland.
you've won.". she told him.
But you won by a small margin.
Somehow | don't mind so much.
I've put UP a good fight. That's a
satisfaction. And ] hope you're
happy that your golden-haired
boy will come into your own He's
done nothing to deserve il"
Uncle Timothy didn': look
happy. That might be due 70 the
clouds rolling in from the sea,
obScuring the sun. throwing dark
shadows over the room.
Toni kindled little fire on
the hearth: farewell fire. The
afternoon paper thudded onto the
porch. She heard the carriers
motorcycle roar away again. and
went out to pick up the newspa-
per.
Perhaps she should scan the
thing. She might find work in
Alameda. She was thumbing
through the pages when she
stopped suddenly.
Lily Mankin'S portrait grimaced
back from the society page. Be-
meath it caption read:
Mystery surrounds dinner
party giUen by the c. z.
Mankins this eUening.
Tomi's glance jumped quickly
TO the gossip columns. An. there
it was. Right there in black and
white She would take it and
shake it before Abe's nose.
The mystery surrounding
the Mankin party tonight IS
no mystery to Lilys friends.
They are expecting an an
rOuncement generally accept
ed By the younger set Shall
tCe look for orange blossoms
IN no1o1nhox sTsfc
Little Consolation
ONE little forced laugh escaped
" Toni as she looked around
the big room. Lilly viii have to
have this done over if she ex-
poets TO live here" she thought.
With this scarlet. orange. pea
cock blue and Jade. she'll look
as faded as last years lily in .
Ei5nia bed"
The thought offered little con-
ISOLATION.
And then the telephone rang.
Toni glanced at the instrument
with disfavor. Perhaps Great
aunt Hannah had remembered she
had a poor relation in the same
city. Shed tell Great-aunt Han
nah to go lump in the bay Or per-
haps the great Allen Bartell
wanted her to turn over her &C
counts. She would tell the great
Allen to Jump in after Aunt Han
nah
Maybe she should answer il.
Someone might be wanting frogs
legs and she hadn't vet relin-
Qulshed control of the farm Shed
keep her record clear as long as
she remained on the prope -ty.
Five minutes later she was run
ningS towards the pens as though
there were wings on her heels
Abel" she cried. "Hurryl The
railroad IS running a special for
twenty dozen frogsi"
Abe came out of his bunk
house and blinked at her.
ABE hurry Don't YOU un-
derstand? An order for enough
frogs to win the farm for me has
Just come in"
"Whoops!~ said Abe. and away
he ran.
Take them last two-year Odds"
ne ordered as he returned still on
the run. nets dangling from both
hands start on the last pen.
They're bumper size.
bod CAST this weather." he
rumbled. with a scowl at the sky.
Don't know what's gettIn IN TO
il. Nawi" he burst out as Toni
started 10 step into a pool You
start wadin' and them babies VIII
go down sure as shootin'. Net
them from the sides"
Moments passed. grew into
hours. punctuated 18th the steady
soft swish of nets. the clasp OF
carrier tops. the creak Of pen
gates. as Abe or Toni carried the
baskets to the loading sheds.
Sometimes Toni thought her
back would break. her arms
would drop off az the shoulder or
elbow. then she would look at the
lowering sky and work fran
tically.
"a chance 10 win" she kept
repeating. 1t was like an eleventh
hour reprIeve. IL only the storm
would wait. II only darkness
would hold up. Of course they
could use the f7ood-Iights Thank
Heaven she'd defied Allen and
had electricity installed.
From pen TO pen they went.
scattering choice morseis % food
Gotta take the main market
pen now" Abe advised. and
them babies is fed"
Into the main pen they went,
to perch on the edge Of the pool
and stretch their pole nets TO the
wary frogs.
Continued tuyuorrow