Newspaper Page Text
Short-Short Story
THE HIGHEST BIDDER
By Marjorie Abbott
■Sold!” The auctioneer’s nasal
voice rang on* over the crowd.
<The elderly man who had just
purchased the antique chest of
drawers smiled contentedly. The
crowd moved across the farm
lawn in the hot sunshine to the
table of dishes. The women mur
mured excitedly as they looked at
the milk pitcher and the dainty
old fashioned p hina tea set.
Old Mr. Wagoner dreamed in
the sunshine as he watched his
household goods being sold. He
had lived with these things most
of his 80 years, but now that his
, wife Mary was gone, they were
no longer important.
Little Miss Eliza Derbyshire
sat beneath a shade tree. She
smoothed her greying hair with
timid, gentle fingers. The anti-
I que doll cradle she was waiting
to bid on was just a few feet
from her. No one was looking at
it. Perhaps this time there
wouldn’t be any competition.
The small cherry cradle was
the one thing she lacked in her
collection of antique toys. Even
if the competition were stiff she
meant to have the cradle at any
price, but it would be nice if just
this once . . .
A thin, dropping child detach
ed herself from the crowd and
walked toward Miss Eliza. She
was about seven years old. Her
clothes, which were several sizes
too large, hung limply on her
spare little frame. She was dirty.
Her hair and her eyes were dull.
Miss Eliza knew as she looked
at her that she was a child of
one of the onion workers, the
itinerant families that worked
during the spring and summer
in the near-by onion marshes.
She glanced brieftly at Miss
Eliza. There was no friendliness
in her eyes. She was only seven,
but already she had learned that
she was not welcome in the
clean, thriving community of
Layton.
The child approached the
cradle. She sat down on the
ground beside it, cross-legged.
■RRI FT" i .“I£)fl
brain budget £>4 j
1. Mark Ethridge, publisher of the Louisville Courier-Journal,
has been named by President Truman as chairman of the U. S. Ad
visory Commission on Information. This group will recommend in
formational policies and programs to (a) the department of agricul
ture, (b) treasury department, (c) state department.
2. M. A. H. Ispahan! is the new ambassador to the United States
from (a) Turkey, (b) Israel, (©) Pakistan.
3. Water events at the Olympics were held on the (a) Thames,
(b) Avon, (e) Seine.
4. —The second largest wheat crop in U. S. history is forecast by
the government. The ten-year average for wheat is (a) 942,623,000
bushels, (b) 2,400,152,000 bushels, («) 150,558,000 bushels.
5. Former President Herbert Hoover has just celebrated another
birthday at his home town in West Branch. lowa. Mr. Hoover is now
(a) 81 years of age, (b) 65, (e) 74.
ANSWERS
I.—(ci State Department.
t.—(c) Pakistan.
3. —(a) Thames.
4. —(a) 942,623,000 bushel*.
5. (c) 74.
CROSSWORD PUZZIE
Horizontal
1 Silkworm
4 Colloquial:
father
6 Long-legged
bird
11 Pertaining to
sight
13 To vex
15 Printer’s
measure
• 16 One under the
care of
another
18 101
19 To depart
21 Girl’s name
22 Shakespeare,
• the Bard of—
-24 Valorous
person
26 Scandinavian
literary work
26 Unit of
energy
29 To rub out
31 Compass
point
33 Symbol for
tellurium
34 Inflrm
36 To check
38 Hebrew
month
40 Small brook
42 Similar
45 Also
47 To rend
49 Cloth
measure (pl.)
50 Former
Japanese
admiral
52 Small vessel
for liquids
54 Babylonian
deity
55 Pronoun
56 Rigorous
59 Eleven
61 Swiss cottage
63 Head of a
• publication
65 Shop
66 French
article
67 Unit
Vertical
<
1 First woman
2 Slang: one
who strongly
resembles
another
The toss on her small bare feet
wiggled contendedly in the green
grass as she looked at the cradle.
With a defiant glance around
' her, she put her hand on the
j toy. She caressed the smooth
i' wood. Miss Eliza somehow knew,
as she watched her, that this
> child had never owned a toy of
■ j her own.
The little girl turned to Miss
! Eliza. She said unsmillngly.
;■ “Purty, ain’t it?”
■ “Yes,” was the reply.
“I’ve got a quarter.” For a mo
; ment the pinched little face lit
■ up. “I’m going to buy it.”
Miss Eliza’s heart beat faster.
> The dishes were all sold. The
■ crowd drifted toward the little
i cradle. The auctioneer held it up.
• “Who will start this off at five
; dollars?” he cried “A gen-u-wine
; antique. Do I hear a bid? Five,
: did you say, Miss Derbyshire?”
: She nodded shyly.
The child touched his arm. He
; brushed her off impatiently. But
• this was her moment. She didn’t
i mean to lose it. She became
; stubborn, and stubborness made
' her brave. Daring the stares of
; all these people who disliked her,
she spoke up, “Paw give me a
• quarter. I want to buy the cra
l die.”
; Go away, little girl,” said the
• auctioneer. “You don’t have
s enough money to buy this.” He
■ turned back to the crowd. A
. well -dressed man, a stranger
. in the community, bid the cradle
I up to ten dollars.
“I have ten dollars,” droned
■ the auctioneer. “A ten—a ten—
I a ten—Who’ll-make-it-fifteen ..
■ .” He looked at Miss Eliza and
. Caught her timid little nod. The
; price went up to fifteen.
> The little girl had gone to the
, edge of the crowd. She was cry
: ing, loud, uninhibited wails.
■ I Several people tried to quiet her,
’ but to no avail. Over the bidding,
j which went up and up and up,
i came the broken-hearted cries
■ I of the child.
. | Someone whispered, “She’s one
Solution in Next Issue.
f* F P F i 7 | g i 9 1 10
_— 7 _____
—o
19 20 Wfr 21 11 23
24 25 26 27 28
29 WH Wj"33
W:
34 35 36 37
38 1 39 41 |p 42 43 44
uLL __ . 22 —.
45 46 W 47 48 W 7 ,49
50 51 "52 53
55 ~57 58 59" 60~
61 62 63 64
65 66 67
No. 41
38 Garret
39 Covered stalls
41 Haunt
43 Horn
44 Plural
ending
46 King of
Bashan
48 South
American
rodent
3 Exists
4 To peel
5 Unaccom
panied
6 Smooth-tex
tured cheese
7 Tatter
8 Plane surface
9 Symbol for
sodium
10 To convoy
12 Above
14 To burn
superficially
17 To surge
20 Aloud
23 Brother of
Odin
24 Pronoun
25 Glacial ridges
27 On the ocean
30 To give forth
32 Plate of
fired clay
35 To raise
37 River in
Africa
51 Norwegian
capital
53 To put a
burden on
57 By
58 Symbol for
nickel
60 Wrath
62 By
64 Part of
infinitive
Answer to Puzzle Number 40
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Serios H-47
of Tad Parrish’s brood. No moth
er, poor kid. Runs wild. He drinks
so much he never knows where
his young ones are.”
“A hundred dollars, Miss Der
byshire?” said the auctioneer.
Long practice kept the surprise
out of his eyes She nodded. He
turned to the stranger. “A hun
dred and ten?’ he pleaded. The
man shook his head. He was
through. The cradle belonged to
Miss Eliza.
She picked it up in loving fin
gers. She took it to her car and
placed it on the front seat.
But her joy in possessing the
much desired toy was clouded by
the cries of the child.
She walked toward the small
girl. She looked down at the
dirty, tear-stained face, at the
wise eyes that knew, even as they
cried, the tears would do no
good. Thoughts ran through
Miss Eliza’s bead. Thoughts
about juvenile delinquents, un
wanted children. And suddenly
she knew that she, Miss Eliza
Derbyshire, respected, well-to
do-spinster of the town of Lay
ton and this dirty seven-year
old nobody were very much alike
under the surface. They were
both so bitterly lonely that they
relied on the possession of tangi
ble things, such as toys, to give
them a sense of fulfillment.
“I have a lot of toys at my
house,” said M'ss Eliza timidly.
“I’d like to have you come and
play with them often. And,” she
added when the child didn’t re
buff her. “I’d like to sew. I’d
make a dress for you.”
The-child began to smile, the
smile of an old woman, who had
known hardship and sorrow and
even despair.
“And you may have the cradle,
too,” said Miss Eliza grandly. The
words cost her a bitter twinge,
but a great weight lifted from
her heart as she said them.
“Thank you ma’am,” said the
little girl simply. “I’ll give you
my quarter.”
The sale was over. Old Mr.
Wagoner sat on his front porch
and talked*things over with the
auctioneer.
He smiled. Things sold good,”
he said proudly. He shot a
stream of tobacco juice ac
curately at a near-by rose bush.
“And who would have thought
that blamed cradle would go so
high? I made that fifteen years
ago for my granddaughter, Elly.
Copied it from an old cradle of
my maw’s. Guess I done pretty
good job, eh?”
WHO KNOWS!
1. What is Princess Elizabeth’s
baby’s name?
2. How many nations are mem
bers of the United Nations?
3. Identify: Louis St. Laurent.
4. Over what islands does the
Indonesian Republican Govern
ment claim sovereignty?
5. What is the population of
Communist-held areas of China?
6. Can you name the “banana
republics” of Central America?
7. What is the vice-president’s
salary?
8. Who wrote, “A Visit From
St. Nickolas?”
9. What is the population of
North America?
10. How old is Truman; Mar
shall; Stalin; Attlee?
THE ANSWERS
1. Charles Philip Arthur
George.
2. 58.
3. Premier of Canada.
4. Sumatra, Java and Madura.
5. About 100,000,000 people.
6. Guatemala Honduras, El
Salvador, Nicaragua hnd Pana
ma.
7. $20,000.
8. Clement Clarke More.
9. 206.246,000.
10. 64; 68; 68; and 65, respec
tively.
KIN GIVE BLESSING
Los Angeles.—Present at the
recent wedding of Charles P..
Taylor, 86, and Mary Alice Stev
ens, 69, were the three daughters
of the bride and the seven chil
dren, 28 grandchildren and 14
great- grandchildren of the
groom.
NEW FAD
Cleveland, O.—The latest ju
venile fashion fad: A permanent
wave for the male forelock. High
School boys have revived the
stunt of years ago by getting
i permanents for a front lock of
I hair, leaving the rest of their
I hair in its natural state.
SALLY SNICKERS
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THE SUMMERVILLE NEWS
Hal Roach, who for more than
thirty years has been a pro
ducer in Hollywood, has begun j
the first of a series of television I
productions and, from now on
says Roach, all his work will go :
into the television field.
Believing that the best way
to prevenWhildren from “go
ing to the dogs” is to give them
a dog, Alan Young, film actor
and comedian, for the fourth
consecutive year, went to the
Los Angeles dog pound just be
fore Christmas, paid the pound
and license fees for the captur
ed dogs and gave them to dog
hungry youngsters. He had
given away 300 dogs in previous
years.
—o —
The announcement that Liza
Minnelli, all of two and a half
years of age, had made her
screen debut, did not create
even a small ripple until it was
revealed that her mother was
Judy Garland. Liza’s first screen
opportunity came when M. G. M
asked Judy if X-iza could play a
small pare in “Annie Get Your |
Gun,” Judy consented, but then]
“The Good Old Summertime” |
■was switched forward on the
Garland schedv’e and Liza was
assigned a walk-through role as
the daughter of Judy and Van
Johnson.
British exhibitors have voted
"The Best Years of Our Lives”
the biggest box-office success of
American movies they showed
in the year ended September 30.
Runner - up was “The Jolson
Story,” followed by “ ’Till the
Clouds Roll By,” “Duel in the
Sun” and tide for fifth place,
"I Wonders Who’s Kissing Her
Now” and “The Bell’s of St.
Mary’s.”
Metro is planning a re-make
of “The Pagan,” in which Ra
mon Navarro introduced the fa
mous “Pagan Love Song” twenty
years ago. Esther Williams, who
is one of the busiest girls in
Hollywood, is scheduled for the
lead.
Danny Kaye’s next picture for
Warner Brothers will be “The
Thief of Broadway.” It’s about
a comedian who burglarizes
everybody’s else material.
ON THE SCREEN
“Every Girl Should Be Married” i
With Cary Grant as an eligi- j
ble bachelor, pursued by a re- i
lentless would-be wife in the
person of Betsy Drake, this film
JITTER * By Arthur Pointer
- /A'VE ALWAYS SAID, A GOOD i)
" zT CIGAR is THE BEST THING YOU ) K Efajfl II ? ft
( ~•? \ \ I CAN GET TO DRIVE AWAY a | k(, J Z=”N
\ \ mosquitoes! J >y ' /
I £ viW T-tLL LI— ’ L 1...
NANCY By Ernie Bushmiller
7"/, NANCY-- J THAT'S*] WHY DON'T YOU BOXER a* \
/- MV DADDY J NICE, GET A POINTER, 'ZZZZ ® V? ) ' ’CL— 5 H
IS GONNA F' PEEWEE OR A BOXER, g fEQ tLJW 7 /X
\ Suy ME A ORA PINSCHER ? i \^/ z \ I
\ dog s
'V- ? -Ar f -Y POINTER
■ •- jIT i K/YCm _l_ r wflu 1 \ —<s — ’ - T*
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Sik-.. 7 ( pZ —ag. »
\ T ~— II / V, A \ < V O 1
fc _\ s 1 !- WiQ gyr- - . ..Sr z—
f jp^rr y By Ernie Bushmiller
OH NANCy-- ]NO SLUGGO-- K WHY 1 DON’T I OH, YOU BEAST-- I NOW DAT WE AINIT \
IM IN A < ITS AGAINST k? /O APPROVE \ I HATE YOU
JAM-WILL \ MY LENDING < > TH QUARTER
VA LEND ME PRINCIPLES O A MONEY \ “Nf
A QUARTER? A--.. ( BETWEEN \
. \ FRIENDS r
*? Sr / Sc'Y
offers easy laughs. Most of the
honors go to this charming new
comer, whose ingenue charms get
full play in the role of the re
sourceful pursuer.
Franchot Tone and Diana Lynn
are also invoh'ed in the fun.
—o“ Three
“Three Godfathers”
This film is dedicated to the
memory of the late Harry Carey
well known “western actor and
also introduces his son, Harry
©arey, Jr. Evidently, the director
John Ford, desired to weave in a
Christmas allegory, which he
does but in a f orced and senti
mental manner. There is beauti
ful color photography.
“Day of Wrath”
This is a strange and tragic
tale of witch-hunting in the 17th
Century Denmark, where the
clergy, as well as the laity, hunt
ed and brought to trial and
death by torture persons sus
pected of witchcraft.
Robinson set National League
pace in fielding last season.
A blood test that spots 75 per
cent of cancer cases is reported.
ITS AMAZING!
A tZESIOEHToF LOS
HI ANGEuES OV7MS AND ?LWS
i fa A VIOLIN MADE OF
HISTORIC W W V/
LENGTH /
(c) 1947 Elmo Features Syndicate, Inc A
—— . - "'S* Birmingham
' ’ r HMawb, resident
MW JiUTTER and lived
are L " i 152 SEARS
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tyR 11 cheese!
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BACKWARD!
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Thursday, January 13, 1949