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Newspaper Page Text
ALL ON ACCOUNT OF A LACK OF FRIENDSHIP, OR THE TALE OF TWO CATS BY JANE WHITAKER A girl told me a very amusing tale X last night as we were having a friend ly chat She buried her mother five years ago, and she has been through all of the loneliness that a girl feels when mother Is gone, but she Ib very well balanced, with a strong "Bejnse of humor. "I came to Chicago two years be fore father died, Jane' she said, "and when I brought mother here after his death I had lost Bight of the fact that she had spent her life in a little town where everybody is friendly, where the affairs Of each individual are the affairs ot the village, and even the ministers gosBip. "Consequently, when I installed mother in a tiny fiat in a flat build ing I felt that I had done my share. and went to work with a light heart "Mother never complained of being left alone,, though her health was poor ana she could not go out. But she was as eager as a little child to know'eyeiything that was going on in the world, and if I told her any tales of the men in the office she pic tured each one as a possible suitor. "Oiice she embarrassed me terribly when-the bookkeeper, the father of five children, dropped in with some worts he wanted my assistance on thaf night, and mother told film what an excellent cook I was and how lucky any man.Would.be that married me. To stop ler, I bad to ask him about the health of each of his chil dren. - .. "She used to sit at the window each night watching for me, and. one night I looked tip to see a horrible sightr-Bomethihg was extended in front of mother's eyes that I could not discover the meaning of, and I rushed up the stairs frantically and intothefiat "Mother seemed a-httlefluatrated, Lbut there was no evidence of the thing I had seen, so I questioned her. " 'Why, Florence she said, inno cently, 'what an imagination, yon have.' "At that moment something fell to the floor with a bang, and r dis covered father's field glasses. 'iMother was quite defiant I dont care,' she said, 'you leave me alone all day and nobody will make friends with me. I waived to the woman L across the street a dozen times, and she won't waive back, and the other day I called out the win dow for her to come visit me and she never answered "But the field glasses, .insisted. " T was only trying tosee what kind of furniture they have in that flat across the way. Florence, I must have some pleasure.' "What was the use of arguing? I didn't And T woa't tell you of all the things that happened" which final ly showed me that mother Wouldn't get along in the city, but I want to . tell you the funniest of all. "I found a little cottage in the suburb, in an aristocratic place where I was sure the peqple wouldn't pay much attention to the vagaries of anyone living In such a humble home as we had, and my heart was light again. "One evening however, mother In formed me that the people In the'big house about a quarter of a block away, Jane had the most beautiful yellow cat. Whea I asked her where she had seen it she said it was on its own porch. "Of course I knew she had been using the field glasses again, but she was such a little mother and she had that way of perking her head just like a sparrow that I simply couldn't scold. !"wo. night later I came home