Gail Kane Prescribes for the Children (1914) 🇺🇸

September 18, 2025

“My greatest ambition in life?” said that adorable young person, Gail Kane.

by Lillian May

“Well, I’ll tell you. When I was a schoolgirl my object in life was not to have a career, I assure you. The girls in my class were always saying: ‘Gail, you will be the first one of us to be married,’ and I would say, ‘Well, what of it? That’s what I want to do — and have about twelve children — and I want to wash, dress, feed and teach them myself.’ “My ideas have changed somewhat — or, rather, my ambition to be the mother of a flock has not been realized. In the first place, here I am in the movies. Don’t ask me how I came to do it — I don’t know; but here I am. And, having begun a thing, I want to make a success of it. Mother is a bit of a Puritan (because we are from Philadelphia, perhaps), and she is not really in sympathy with my work. But she feels about it in one way as I do — she wants me to succeed.

“Mother comes of a large family, who all married young and had large families. So, instinctively, I suppose, I have always felt that the best thing in life would be to have a lot of kiddies around. And very soon I am going to begin and adopt a family, one at a time, as I find the ones I want. But the trouble will be, I shall want them all. Wouldn’t it be splendid,” she said gleefully, “to have one of each nationality? It would be so interesting to watch them grow and develop.”

Her lovely face grew serious. “Isn’t it pathetic?” she said. “There are so many poor little uncared-for kiddies — and children have a right to be happy. Sometimes I go to the children’s hospitals, and their dear, sad little faces make me feel that I must gather them all up and take them home.

“But, whether I have a family of my own or whether I adopt one, I am going to let them follow their natural bent. I mean, if they happen to have minds of their own, I am not going to spoil their dispositions and wear myself all out trying to ‘break their will/ as so many parents consider it their duty to do. Children are individuals, with the divine right of their own personality, and it is positively wicked to try to make them into something they were not intended to be at all. Perhaps I don’t make myself clear,” she said, “but come to see my family when I get one, and I’ll show you.

“Well, the girls’ prediction did not come true at all. Every one in our class except me is married and has a home — and some of them have dear, little kiddies. I keep in touch with the girls, and they are always saying, ‘Oh, Gail! I do envy you. How wonderful to have a career!’ And I always wonder if they really mean it. How can the} envy me? I think their career is much more wonderful.

“Mother and I have our home, and I have always been the ‘homiest’ kind of a home-girl. As long ago as I can remember, I could do all kinds of housework and cook. Mother says I am going ‘backwards’ in my cooking. But I tell her I can’t hold down two jobs. If I should start in to cook and do things about the house, I would never want to stop.

“Mother is very fond of kiddies, too, and we have great fun when my little cousins come, for we do have a number of children in the family. My specialty in the way . of entertaining is children’s parties. I ask my little cousins and enough more to make twelve — and it is great fun to play games and entertain them.

“A menu for a children’s party? Surely! But, of course, it is very simple.

“Chicken sandwiches, made from white bread and finely chopped chicken. And children always like sweet sandwiches, so I give them sandwiches made from brown bread, with a filling of figs, dates or raisins mixed with a few chopped nuts and moistened with a little cream.

“They have cocoa or milk to drink, ‘pink’ ice-cream, fruit, and, if I have time, home-made cake and candy.

“Small Sponge Cakes — Beat two eggs well — add one cup sugar — beat again — add one heaping cup flour and one heaping teaspoonful baking-powder — beat — then add one-half cup hot water — beat well again, pour into small patty-pans and bake. While hot, roll in sugar, or make simple frosting of confectioner’s sugar and cream.

“Chocolate Caramels — Soak one-half package gelatine in two-thirds cupful milk ten minutes. Put two and a half cupfuls of sugar on stove and, when dissolved, add one and a half squares of chocolate. Add gelatine and boil fifteen minutes. Allow it to cool a little. Stir until it thickens and add one-half cupful chopped nuts. When set, immerse pan in hot water, loosen the edges, turn out, cut in squares, and roll in powdered sugar.

“And we always have favors at our parties. At the last one we had toy battleships, with torpedoes to blow them up. We took them to the bathroom, filled the tub about half full, sailed the ships, and blew them up, one at a time, with the torpedoes. You should have seen the bathroom when we had finished them!”

After I had said good-by at the door of her apartment and stood waiting for the elevator, I had a feeling that I could shut my eyes and imagine I had been in the deep spring woods, washed clean by a refreshing rain, with arbutus and forget-me-nots peeping out at me, pink and white and satiny — for Gail Kane is refreshing, sweet and unspoiled as the flowers of springtime.

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