The Tri County News

Housewife's Sense

By E. M. PARKINSON

McClure Newspaper Syndicate

WNU Features.

The Lane account was well worth going after. Mr. Hopkins took Mrs. Hopkins with him on the trip. A letter was sent ahead to the Lane office. so that he would be expected. Still, there was a disappointment.

"I'm so sorry that our buyer, Mr. Porterfield, was called out of town." the secretary told him. "But Mr. Porterfield recognized your name"

Mr. Hopkins broke in. "Don't tell me it's Roscoe Porterfield!"

"It is." she smiled. "He wants you at his home for dinner tonight. He'll arrive on an evening train. You know Mrs. Porterfield?"

"Oh, yes! And so does Mrs. Hopkins, who is with me."

"That's fine! I'll let you in on a secret." the woman said. "Mr. Porterfield is a great family man. A chatty evening with Mrs. Porterfield and the girls will just about cinch the sale."

He went back to his hotel, and told Mrs. Hopkins.

"It's a devoted family dear. We must be tactfully flattering. And-er-you'd better let me handle it." He laughed nervously.

"After all, you're a housewife, with housewife's sense- lots of it. A good thing, but-er- different from business sense."

"Quite." said Mrs. Hopkins, who'd heard that speech many times. "And at that, Jenny Porterfield and I will have lots in common. Both housewives."

"Wait a minute." Mr. Hopkins was staring. "Did you say Jenny? Her name is Lorna."

"Lorna?" Mrs. Hopkins looked astonished.

"Lorna, certainly. Jenny was Roscoe's girl in Northville. A little dark girl. She was lame. Lorna was the tall beautiful blonde from Lake City."

They were perplexed. They did not know which one was Roscoe Porterfield's wife.

A tall blonde young girl met them at the Porterfield door. "Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins? Do come in. We're so sorry that Mother had to see a guest off. The train's a little late, and Daddy's coming on it so Mother's waiting."

When she disappeared to call her sisters Mrs. Hopkins whispered, "We're on a spot, dear. We've got to be careful."

"Nonsense." Mr. Hopkins laughed. "That tall blonde girl is surely Lorna's daughter."

"Suppose she introduces three or four little dark sisters?"

"She won't."

He was right. She returned with three tall blonde young girls, and Mr. Hopkins gave Mrs. Hopkins a triumphant glance. "Well, gals," he said, "I must say you take after your beautiful mother"

"In many ways," Mrs. Hopkins broke in hastily. "We knew your father and mother when we weren't much older than you are now."

"Oh, do tell us about those days!" the girls begged. "You're the first old friends of Mom's and Daddy's we've met. Did you have fun?"

"Did we!" Mr. Hopkins sighed. "Parties, picnics, dances. . . . And let me tell you, the star of those dances-"

"Excuse me. dear," Mrs. Hopkins broke in. "I'm so interested in that lovely picture. Come look at it, dear."

It was a nice painting, hung rather high. The top of the frame was dusty. Mrs. Hopkins raised her eyebrows and moved on. Mr. Hopkins squirmed: If she would only forget for one moment that she was a housewife! "As I was saying," he began, "when we used to dance, there was no one like-"

"Now, now, don't boast, dear." Mrs. Hopkins interrupted. "See this lovely vase on the mantel." She gave him a meaningful glance, and her eyes dropped. He saw that the top of the vase was dusty. She turned and said sweetly, "Are you real old-fashioned home girls?"

"No, I guess we're not," the oldest admitted. "We're all athletic. And with school and everything, we're not very' domestic."

"Was Mom a home girl when she was young?" another asked.

Mr. Hopkins was nervous as a cat. Lorna-tall, blonde Lorna-a home girl!

"Yes, indeed," Mrs. Hopkins said. "She was held up as an example to all the other girls. Their mothers always said, 'If only you were clever about the house like little Jenny!'"

The door bell rang and one of the girls flew to admit Mr. and Mrs. Porterfield. "Mom," she said, "Mrs. Hopkins is the sweetest thing! She says you were wonderful when you were a girl and that all the mothers wanted their daughters to be just like you. Of course we knew it. but it's nice to hear it from someone else."

The Porterfields, Roscoe and Jenny, came in beaming.

The order was all but signed when Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins left. Mr. Hopkins wiped his brow. "Honey, you saved my life. Those blonde girls made me so positive it was Lorna. How did you know it was Jenny?"

Mrs. Hopkins patted his arm.

"Housewife's sense,"she said complacently. "You see, the low furniture was shining. So I knew the high surfaces were dusty only because the housewife couldn't see them. She had to be the short gal-Jenny!"