Afternon Tea Gossip

Free Lance, Volume X, Issue 500, 29 January 1910, Page 20

Afternon Tea Gossip

By kittle Miss Muffitt.

MIS parents have taken such pride in Mm that some people say he has beeni spoiled. And yet—l doru't know. Hie bore his pain with wonderful fortitude last Monday, a.n.r| gave a very philosophical answer wheal -all was said. It happened this way. He.was alll-owed, though only sax years •of age, to sit sub afternoon tea in the drawing-room when l his mother was eifca party of ladies. The servant girl carelessly upset a cup of scalding tea over his velvet-clothed legs, and 'the. little chap_ was obviously suffering. "Are you in pain, little m/aru?" asked a kindly-disposed olid lady. "No. ma'am, -the pain's in me!" was the small child's ready reply. ® * * The .mother of the twins found them fighting furiously outside the gate at Kilbirnie. The larger twin was on top, and was beating Tommy about the face and head. "Why, Willie, how r'.nre you strike your brother like that?" cried the mother, taking - the. hoy by the ear and pulling him off. "I. had a good cause to strike him," Willie said. "What do you mean?" she r asked..... ' . said Willie, with a righteous air, "didn't I let him use my bed all. ; last week on condition that he'd say my prayers for me every • night this week? And here I'ye just found out-that .he's skipped _ three days." A little knowledge is . a dangerous thing, all;, right, especially when> it ' monies to high falutin' terms. A Wellington ' lady, who has "come up" very •considerably by reason of her mar- ' riage, recently gaye an evening, which : is said "to have .been very successful. .Naturally she was very proud of the function - and talked not a, little about ■it to her' neighbours. Hence the. fol- '; lowing little conversation, which a . friend of - mine and passed ■on to me:-—"She Was bragain' about how successful her evening party was. She - said it wound up with great 'eclaw'. What's 'ecdaw,' ' anyway?" Her friend: 'Why. I guess that was ' the dessert. Didn't you never eat a» vchocolate eclaw?',' - ' • • " .«■ '* : I was riding homewards from Island Bay one evening last week, having been out there for, an , after-dinner blow. There were two girls talking .. animatedly in a corner of the car, and I really could not help hearing their conversation. Evidently, they were .discussing a recent broken 1 engagement. for I heard one of them say: — "Yes. she broke him off his smoking ■ habit so that he might save .more money." 'Oh, how funny!" said the other girl. ' v And did it work?" "Well, yes, but not in the way she had , ireckoned. He got so* interested in. saving money that he broke off their engagement last Friday so. that he could saye still more!" # « * I am told that at a very recent Wellington wedding a somewhat curious present was Among • the gifts of the happy pair was _ a broom, sent to the bride, accompanied with the following sentiment: — This trifling gift accept from, me, Its use I would commend; In sunshine use the brushy part, In storms the other end. * • o Here's another story of a recent wedding not a hundred miles from Wellington. The truth of the story ii 3 vouched for. It had been a sultry -day; but thunder and hail showers had ' prevailed in the early morning. The wedding party went to the church, and when the register had been signed the minister happened toi speak aDOut the weather, and asked the bridegroom: "Have you had any hail this morning?" The man blushed and hesitated, but at length replied: "Well, sir, we did just have a 'glass a-pietoe before we started." » » a One of the visiting clergymen, to Wellington in connection with the Anglican Synod was quartered very comfortably up Kelburne way. He was having a pleasant chat last Saturday eyening with the daughter of the house, and during "the conversation he said, with isoane small show of complacency :—"My task in life consists in saving men.'' "Ah," Teplied thf

vivacious Wellington girl, with a soulful longing, "save a good one for me won't you?" A lady friend of mine, who has been m close touch with the Anglican Syn/od. has been telling me some of the anecdotes related by the clergyman who has been staying at her home. A couple of them concern prison chaplains. The particular clergyman referred- to once attended a prison service at which one of the hymns was ' 'We are marching on the good old way, the good old way our fathers trod." This story, however, was capped, by one of a 'bishop who opened a prison service with the observation that he was- delighted to see so many present! * • The father of the family at KarOri hurried to the telephone one evening last week, and called up the family physician. "Our little" chao is sick, doctor." he said. "We-should be glad if you would come out as soon as possible!" "Well, I'll tell you candidly " replied the doctor, "I clon't think I can get out in anything under an hour." Well, doctor, I can only urge, you to do> your level best." said tihe <

father. "It isn't exactly that the little fellow is so critically ill, if you understand. But his mother has got hold of a book on 'What to> do till the doctor comes,' and I'm afraid she'll do it before, you get here!"