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Show AN EDITORIAL BY FLORENCE DAVIES 1 Tin BIRTHDAY PARTI John tall for his age, losing tho coft ways of babyhood hair short and stubby, nose freckled and front U eth a bit uncertain, was about to be seven. Outwardly he s:is a swaggering little lit-tle roughneck, but In his heart ho loved his cuddly old Teddy bear and adored parties. And so. though he mildly protested thnt ho didn't want a party, his eyes shone when mother announced that thero was to be a birthday celebration celebra-tion When It came time to make out the list. John's in.it her took a mental journey jour-ney up one street and down the next and Jotted (Iotmi the boys who played with John. There were twelve of them, all nice, wholesome friendly youngsters whose mothers sent them out to play In about the same sort of caps and sweaters that John wore. Thero were John's friends. They modo up half his life. Even at seen they loomed large in his little world. Without them a great spot of color col-or ;.nd variety would have been missing. miss-ing. John would havo been a dlf-(erent dlf-(erent John without thc small David across the street to bang on his every word, the older Alec on the next block to take him down a peg or two when his youthful spirits rose too high, and tho masterful George who was tho captain of the team and to whom John looked as to a hero of old. Sumo of the boys weren't exactly perlect, but they were Just about like the Davids and Georges and Alecs of John s father's world, and so In their small way lhy were helping to train, John in the art of living. It was then that Jolin's mother i thought of one of her girlhood friends' who lived In a lovoly mansion up onj the hill. And sho had confided thatl her children were lonely. "Tho youngsters don't play out in the street tho way they do down your way." she had said "For that matter there don't seom to be any children on our hill to play with only the Andersons An-dersons and the Smiths and they aro always out with a nurse." "And I Just thought," said Mrs. John, afterwards, "that I was glad that I lived on a street where I could i scrape up twelve everyday, honest-to-j oodness. ordinary youngsters' for a! birthday party That vas worth while! In Itself " 1 A good many women look longingly at the stately homes on the boulevards or up on the hill and wish that the newest kind of flying ship of fate would carry them thither "But." said Mrs John. "I don't envy them I like thc friendliness and the homlnesB and the tine, happy, oompan-l lonship for my youngsters down her..-' where our front iawns have no ft n i I or walls and our younjrstora can Join the lug fraternity of the other fellow.", |