Next door to us our neighbors were entertaining guests one afternoon. They had a small girl, about 2 or 3 years old, and she was playing outside. There was a rain barrel at one corner of the house, and the little girl pulled up a box and leaned over to dabble in the water. I was about eight years old then and was watching her from our yard. All at once she reached too far and lost her balance and fell headlong into the barrel. On instinct, I ran over, grabbed her legs and pulled her out. Then I yelled for help. She was revived and had no bad effects from the ducking. Everyone thought I was quite a heroine and some wanted to get a Carnegie Medal for me. That enthusiasm died out, I guess as I did not get a medal, but just a write-up in the paper. I was glad that my quick reaction saved the little girl’s life.

The rain barrel made me think of the day my Mother entertained the Ladies Aid at our house. At that time people did not have baby sitters, so the children accompanied their Mamas to the meetings. Of course the children were dressed nicely for the occasion. One of the members, Mrs. Mitchell, brought her only child, Edward, all dressed up from head to toe in snowy white clothes. The children played outside during the meeting and somehow they began to tease Edward because he was not to get dirty. They dared him to get in our rain barrel and Edward, not wanting to be a sissy, did just that. Someone went inside and told his Mother what had happened. She came outside so mad and jerking Edward by the hand, started for home. All the kids had such innocent looks on their faces and couldn’t figure out how Edward could have fallen in the rain barrel.