Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1881-06-02

meekly subseryient to her slightest
command to cause her to feel any diff
Guilty respecting the execution of her
project.
1t was bazingly hot day in June,
unstrung, and people lived by spasms
and gaspings of breath until the intense
noontide heat was over; just the sort of
day to make the continuous sullen
roar Of the city seem like very pande-
monium of evil utterly uncomfortable,
and the country place of refuge from
its noise and hustle, such as the veriest
beggar longed for. All through the
sitting heat of the day young girl
travelled toward the westering with some
faint hope growing in her heart that
when once she was there she would
grow well again; feel less and less the
tiredness that now held her as in vice
"a strange inertia which she could not
overcome, and which caused the traffic
Of the town to strike like mad torrent
on her bewildered brain. She was al
most too tired to care about anything
and if it had not been for the '.little
mother at home, and the fair young
sister who leaned upon her, she would
have been glad for both life and work
to have ceased at once.
On with mad rush, went the iron
horse, the day growing more and more
sultry, the carriage closer and closer,
girl still more weary, and then the jour
ney was plished, and Gertrude
Macy stood on the little platform Of
Everdeen waiting for the people to send
for her to whom she had, in reality
been consigned in somewhat the fashion
that Mr.. Stainer described when he
spoke of the "bale Of goods"
OF course there was no one to meet
her, but at least they might have sent
IA servant No cab or even an omnibus
Scarcely had she had time to glance
around the station and make this dis
covery when a sweet, low voice asked
"Surely, that is not the 73O train,
porter?" as it steamed round the curve
toward the Devonshlre coast and then,
catching sight of Gertrude Macy, the
owner of the voice came forward with
outstretched hand.
"You are MiSs Macey?"
eyes" The voice sounded tired and
far off
II am Ethel Vernon, and you are to
be my guest. | hope you will be as
happy as you are welcome"
Then she was quickly seated in
Ethel's pony carriage, while Miss Yer
non briefly explained to her that, by
accident, the Nicarage was full of
guests, and 50 she was to stay at the
Manor while she was at Everdeen.
"You saw all those people arriving, |
suppose? | was minute or two too
late in consequence of my tiresome
watch"
That night when Ethel gossipped
with Mrs. Campbell, she said "What
pretty girl Miss Macy is But she
looks half dead"
A week or two of quiet rest, girls
sympathy extended to her, and then,
before she was aware of it, Gertrude
Macy found herself sufficiently at
nome with Ethel Vernon to tell her,
briefly and concisely, the story asked
for at the beginning of our narrative.
You do not know what a girls life
is in shop. / suppose it is different
in the country, hut in London it Is
dreadful My father was All officer in
the Inland Revenue service, and there
were three of us left totally unpro-
vided for when he died. He had edu
Gated us himself aud we intended 60
ing into school as pupil teachers in
exchange for the accom- plishments
necessary for the work of governess.
Before we were quite fitted for this he
died and his fellow officers, instead of
thinking of his wife and children,
thought only of the dead. They were
fond of him, and admired him, so they
raised fair sum Of money and put up
an expensive tablet to his memory.
We were left almost penniless, except
the insurance money, which was only
to the amount of $500. Ny mother
made up her mind that the best thing
to be done was to provide against ac-
tual restitution 10y apprenticing us to
the drapery trade. She fancled 1t wonld
be better for us than being govelnesses,
and would enable us presently to go IN
to business for ourselves. We talked
the matter fairly over, and decided
that there could be no degradation IN
shopwork, unless we degraded our
selves but she knew as little as We did
of the lives girls have to live when they
go into large mixed establishments.
| At first, Emmie and | were apprenuced
to draper in our own town, and, when
we had served our time, we still stayed
- 1 H., la.,t