Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 January 1913 — A BREAD ROMANCE [ARTICLE]

A BREAD ROMANCE

Girfs Determination to “Do or Die” Brings Success and a y Husband.

By M. DIBBELL.

“Mary, Mary, wake up—the bread has risen!” “Well, wasn’t that what you wanted It to do?" asked a sleepy voice. Her vigorous sister gave Mary p good shake at this question. “Of course it was, but you know it never erven made a pretence of rising the other times.” . Quite wide awake now Mary smiled as she said, “You are the most intense youngster I ever knew. Hope, you Just go heart and soul into anything you attempt. Have you been watching that bread all night? It is not six o’clock yet.” . • Hope Fardent laughed, “No, this was my first peep at it, but I could not help telling you the good news. Now you can sleep for another hour, but I must go and knead my bread,” and she bustled out of the room with a highly important air which amused her sister. “Bless the child,” she said to herself; “she always wants to make a success of anything she attempts.” Mary made no further effort to sleep, but joined her sister in the kitchen. She found Hope kneading away at her bread, her pretty arms bare, and a generous bib apron protecting her. Her bright face turned for an instant to her sister, but the. kneading went diligently on. “I knew I could get it right if I only saw some one else doing it,” she declared, “and this is coming out exactly as Mrs. Way’s did. It was ever so good of her to show me. lam going to have some hand bills printed right away, and distributed among the. summer people—you know several families are already here, and others will come by June.” Mary gazed at her sister with admiring eyes": “I am sure you Will get more orders than you can fill, if only the summer folks find out that you make good bread,” she answered encouragingly.

The two sisters had been living alone for three years, the passing of their father having left them without near relatives. The comfortable cot tags which they occupied was ’ their own; but there was only a small income, not enough for all their needs. Mary, the older sister, had for the past year been acting as clerk and stenographer in the real estate office of their home village. Hope, who was a born housewife, had attended to the cooking, and general care of the cottage, and had decided that she would show her own ability to earn, by making bread for the summer residents... of Seacove, which though a small place had many cottages occupied during the season. With her usual determination to “do or die” Hope refused to acknowledge herself defeated -by two or three utterly unsuccessful, attempts at bread making. After putting her third effort carefully in the garbage can, for fear that if placed within their reach its lead like qualities might kill their flock of healthy chickens, Hope sat down to ponder the cause of her failures. And then came to her the wise idea of watching an old and experienced bread maker go through the whole process. To think was to act with Hope, She hurried over to their neighbor, Mrs. Way, to flnd out when she would make bread. She,was delighted to be Informed -that that very evening was the time.

And now she watched her own loaves coming up in the pans, light as a feather. Before Mary left for the office those splendid leaves were exhibiting their full beauty on the kitchen table. As Mary kissed her sister good-bye she said, “Now don't break all the dishes before I get back, just because you have eyes for nothing 'but the bread.” After finishing the morning's housework Hope started on her errand to the village printer, and obtained his promise of a hundred hand bills setting forth the size and price of her loaves. Two mornings later one of the trustworthy Seacove urchins was despatched upon bls mission of leaving a hand bill wherever he found an occupied cottage. At the end of a couple of weeks nearly all the cottagers had arrived. From the first sending out of the notices,, Hope received calls from these cottagers, all anxious to secure a supply of genuine home-made bread. By the end of the two weeks her order book was crowded. Among her first patrons were two brothers who were, trying a sort of camping-out life in their cottage that season. Ralph and Donald Stillworth had charge of a large business, during their father's absence, but they had been brought up to act-as his assistants and* everything was reduced to such perfect system that a trip to town once a week was all that was required of them during the summer months. One of the village women came tn each* day to wash dishes and tidy things for the brothers; but outside of her help they bad resolved to do for themselves. The thought of homemade bread appealed to them both and Donald at once called at the Fardent home to place an order for a daily loaf It was not long before Donald StlUworth began to call at the Fardent cottage without even tho pretence of

an excuse, and as the Still worth’s owned a good sized launch,’ the sisters 'were invited to enjoy an evening’s sail. These trips soon became regular and good Mrs. Way acted as chaperon of the little party, Mary and Ralph grew to be great friends. Hope spent a very busy but happy summer, her bread acquired an enviable reputation, and no more failures were her portion. The days sped swiftly and. almost before it seemed possible, the end of August had come. On the last day of the month the. party of five went for one of their outings in the lauhch. The moon was nearthg its full, and the evening was calm and dull with a light fog showing over the water. For some time they headed straight out, none of them realizing that the fog was drifting tn behind them in an unusual manner. Ralph, who acted as steersman, thinking the time had come for a change in their course, looked for the lighthouse which was his guide for this change, and discovered that no light was visible, and that they were rapidly being enveloped on all sides by the descending fog. At once he turned the launch about. “We had better get back to shore before the fog grows any heavier,” he called to the others, and to Mary who sat beside him, he said softly. “I should have paid more attention to my steering and less to our conversation, but —” - In front of them another launch loomed up. The two steersmen dis-, covered each other simultaneously and tried to swerve apart, but they were too close. With a hard crash the two launches collided, then slowly fell away. Donald was sitting on the left side of the launch between Mrs. Way and Hope; he threw an arm around each of them, and though the shock forced them all from their seat, his action kept them from a severe fall, and they sank back on the cushions unhurt. Ralph had thrown one arm around Mary, while holding firmly to the steering gear with his other hand. The bow of the launch was partly knocked away by the collision, but there seemed to be no damage below the water line. The occupants of the other launch called to ask the extent of their injuries. “We jnust head for the short without delay,” sang out Donald, and his advice was followed. They reached the dock more than an hour later. The brothers hastily moored their craft and hurried to escort their companions home. They were all recovering from the shock and when they left Mrs. Way at her door she said, “Well, it might have been worse, and I won’t say that I will never go out in a launch again, as I believed I should —but it will certainly be when there is no danger of fog.” Donald stopped Hope at her gate. “There is something I must say to you," he began. "Hope, I have loved you always, and after the accident tonight I simply must tell you so. When I saw you in danger I knew that you were the dearest thing on earth to me. I want you to love me —and never make bread again for anyone but me,” he ended with youthful selfish; ness.

Hope laughed, “That is not a very romantic ending,” she said, then asked teasingly, "Which do you suppose you really love —the bread, or me?" But Donald had read her answer in the eyes she raised to his, and he entirely ignored her question. On the porch Mary and Ralph had paused, waiting for the two loiterers; and except for a rather quieter wording and action, the scene enacted here was an exact counterpart of the one at the gatp. (Copyright, 1912, by the McClure Newspaper Syndicate.)