THE PLEASURE AGE

October 8, 2866, was a memorable day for young Riley Ashton. It was his sixth birthday. It was the day he got his first good look at American City. Also he learned a new word, a thrillingly naughty word, and Aunt Betty came to live with the Ashtons. At that time it was the custom all over the world to keep the children secluded in their own homes, or at least in their own neighborhoods, until they were six years old. On his sixth birthday the child, escorted by one or the other of the parents, was taken for his first tour of the city in which he lived. Excursions of greater length, to other cities and sometimes to other continents, were planned for future birthdays. Like many another convention this custom can not be explained. It was simply the way things were. So, on the day Riley Ashton became six years old, his mother, foregoing her own pleasurable pursuits, devoted the day to his entertainment. In giving Riley so much of her time Mrs. Ashton felt that she was making a real sacrifice.