The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-02-22

III AOI d HOuSe party
You'll see the day you'll need
every bit of it and more" Forest
predicted darkly. II understand
you can't even buy CheddaI
cheese in Queen City!"
Even then we may be able tc
worry along" Bob assured him
CAS- a matter of fact, ! don't be.
lieve we've been buying many
fancy cheeses in the last year OF
two, eh, Sue?"
She was dimpling and smiling
over the donations"
You're darlings, every one OF
you," she said warmly. Even il
Queen City is all of ninety miles
away, l suppose we may hope tc
see you now and then? Say every
five years or so? These will come
in handy when you do drop in. at
any rate!"
"Plan to come on Saturday and
buy your shoes from me-" was
Bob's brazen suggestion. You'll
get lot more for your money in
Queen City than you will here,
let me tell you! My overhead alone
will be lower than"
Barbara extended satin sandal,
Going to carry these in stock,
Bob? expect not. Boots to plow
in will be more in your line"
That's where you're wrong"
was the cool answer. Small town
girls nowadays like chic footgear
as well as their city siSterS!"
Even See was half incredulous
of this statement. She had ex-
pected, beneath the layers of her
conscious mind. to be more or less
alone in her new environment.
She was punished speedily for this
involuntary snobbishness.
NeighbOrs
THE house Bob had rented in
1 Queen City was almost as
large as their first home though
without most of it's conVenienceS.
It had in fact been a farm house
until the luSty little city overlook
it. 1t still spread ample skirts of
lawn on either side, with lilacs,
peonieS, spice bush, syringa and
iris to form the nucleus of Sues
new garden. In the back there
were three glorious apple trees. a
dark-limbed peach which was to
glow with the roSiest blossoms its
new owner had. ever seen, and
rows of stately hollyhockS.
Next door in an immaculate
white cottage lived three most re-.
markable women. One was the
author of textbook on calculus,
a subject the very mention of
which terrified Sues very soul.
One was co-editor of well-known
garden magazine. The third. per-
hapS the most interesting of all,
was busy lawyer. her Office a
single room detached from the
cottage, her clients apparently
coming from all over the state to
seek her advice. Sue passed
through successive stages of as
constituent, admiration and de-
light as far as these neighborS
were concerned.
On the other side lived a hum
bier pair: husband and wife who
last year had celebrated their
golden wedding anniversary.
Their devotion to each other was
charming. Sue and Bob both came
to adore them.
Il love having all this room
again!" said Sue on the second
Sunday after their arrival.
You must - with half of it
empty!' he retorted. do we buy
more furniture Sue, or do we
simply shut up some of the
roomS?"
I'VE compromise. That is, we
stretch what we have over the
downstairs: front and back par
Tors, sitting room. dining room and
kitchen. Upstairs, we furnish what
we can: three bedrooms probably.
Wen use the south one for the
nursery"
What about getting a maid?
I'm going to be away a lot, you
know; store keeps open late, even
on weekdays And in your condi-
ton"
MY conditions very satisfac-
tory, thank you! And l doubt if
we could get a maid here, Bob;
we'd probably have to import her
from St. Joseph. Anyway. let's go
along as we are for the present.
Thank heaven there's a furnace!
| was afraid with stoves, and your
being so busy. we might have to
get someone in"
1t was on the whole a pleasant
winter though Bob worked too
hard, and spent too little time at
home. Queen City was proud of
its one shoeStore, and not only
patronized it instead of driving to
the city for its footgear. but ad-
vertised it literally through the
less fortunate hamletS which had
no such store. Business was good
and Bob had but one helper. Long
after this youth had taken himself
home to his hot supper, the owner
and manager fingered to attend to
his correspondence, to go over his
stock, to calculate his next order.
1t was during these long days
that Sue found reason to bless her
neighbors. They had begun their
good offices by bringing two hot,
delicious meals over on the day of
the Trentons' arrival. The old
couple supplied lunch, or din
ner," as they termed it and as it
proved to be.