The Portland daily press., 1886-03-29
GIRLS OF GRIT.



shelves.
ut is very easy" said Mr.. Bobinet, "to
see that you young women have no personal
interest in things"
"Why should we?" whispered Rosa Nixon
to Miss Carstairs. 'He has no personal in.
terest in us, except to contrive how much
money he can make out of u.s."
And Mr.. Bobnet had told them-probably
to increase their spirits--that after the first OF
May their scanty salaries would be locked
twenty-five per cent,
For am losing money in the business, "
said Mr.. Bobinet-"yes, positively losing
money all the time. 1 ought to have cut you
down at Christmas, but am a conscientious
man, and midwinter is a hard time to reduce
wages"
Meta Carstairs had looked increduously
at Lillian Hand. Was it not on the very
last Sunday afternoon that they had walked
past the elegant new house that Mr.. Bobinet
was erecting on Paragon avenue? Did that,
they asked themselves, look like losing
money?
What an old hunbug that man isp' said
Rosa Nixon. "If l knew any respectable
AoAhANA o OAAC UkAO NdhpO0 q AOAPt AoAe
business and go to her-see if wouldn'tvE
''But we are all dependent upon our sala-
RES" sighed Lillian Hand. ''What can we
do?"
This was at the noontime, when Mr.. Bobi-
net had gone down stairs to quarrel with the
fireman, and the girls huddled disconsolate-
ly around the registers to eat their little pa
per packets of lunch
81 know what I'd do if | had house."
said Meta, boldly.
"What?" said Clarissa Daggett.
SID keep boarders," said Meta.
'Boarders! Dear me, what a funny idea r
cried Lillian Hand. "What made You think
of that?"
Because had a letter from Stonington
last night" said Meta. "And my old
grandaunt Locke is dead, and she has
left me lot of old furniture-the accumula-
ton, in fact, of two or three generations.
What could l do with old furniture, or new
either, for that matter? The homestead-a
tumble-down place enough-is left to cous-
in up In Maine. and all the ready money TO
ne'er-do-well relation out in Kansas, who
will spend it before the dear old soul is fair
ly cold"
''Furniture?" repeated Lillian. why,
isn't that strange! And have got house
out at Watch Hill-a lonely old place, on the
very edge of the sea-that is, if 1t hasn't
fallen to pieces in these heavy winter tides. !"
what sort of house?" said Meta.
II don't know" Lillian answered, laugh
ing. Il never saw it. My uncle died there,
and l am the only surviving relative. l
might have fitted it up for country seat if /
had been rich, but am not"
Meta put her right hand ON the other S
shoulder.
''Lill," said she, there's fate in these
things. You have house and I've got the
furniture. Watch Hill is the very place to
take boarders in!'
''Are you crazy, Netta?" asked Lillian.
THE big hotels would swallow us up, as the
whale swallowed JONAH"
''Fiddlesticks!" cred Meta. "Our chance
is as good as anybody else'sw
'Oh, girls, let me keep boarders, too'
urged Rosa Nixon. 81 can't stay here if old
Bobinet mows down our wages so pitifully
haven't Igot any capital, but can make
stunning cake and pie, and l can beat all
creation on bread and biscuit and johnny
cake"
81 could help you, tool" said eager Miss
Dagget, who was tall girl, with hectic red
spots on her cheeks. "That is, if the house
was out of repair Ipainted all the inside OF
Cousin Dobson Daggett's house once, and
papered the parlors in blue and buff. And
you don't know how nice they looked. Do
take me, tool"
"But it's all nonsense!" said Lillian.
mo it isn'ti" said Meta. Listen! You
and keep boarders. Rosa is our cook and
Clara our carpenter. Here's fair begin
ming. Hush! here comes old Bobinet, look
ing as black as thunder-cloud. Now for a
lecture half an hour long. Well, let him
blaze away. don't care whether he dis
charges me or mott"
what sort of a place is Watch Hip
whispered Clera Dagget
''It's the seashore," said Meta" directly
ON the grand old Atlantic. The place for
you to get strong in, Clara And 1 say
suppose we ask Fanny Hoyt, that little,
ailing cash-girl, to come with us? She
could wait on the table and wash dishes,
you know, and"
young women! young women" solemn
ly croaked Mr.. Bobinet, sis this business p"
But when the April winds began to blow
clouds Of dust and whirlwinds of paper
scraps about the streets, Lillian Hand and
Meta Carstairs set boldly forth for the rock
bristling shores on Watch Hill, stopping by
way of Stonington to overhaul the old fur
niture bequeathed by grand-aunt Locke
Enough to set up dozen boarding
houses" said Meta, exultantly. "We'l have
Clara down to repair and varnish it at once.
And now for the house,"
Sea Cottage was an old stone house on a
shelving beach, with apple orchards behind
and little garden in front, where sea spray
sprinkled the Rose of Sharon trees at high
tide.
1t was ancient and inconvenient, with ad-
ditions clumsily built on; steps to go up
here and steps to come down there. The
windows were small; the stone porch ludi'
crously proportional. Meta clapped he1
hands in glee.
'Trhe very placer said she.
Lillian pointed disconsolately at the great
hotels on the heights beyond.
What of them?" said Meta. We shall
not interfere with their customers. We are
appealing to an entirely different class-the
people who abominate bands and Germans
the people who come here for rest and quiet.
Why there must be fourteen or fifteen rooms
in this delicious old cubby-hole And sneh
view of the sea! Count the lighthouses
Look at the signal service buildings! Lill' ]
already see ourselves shovelling gold pieces
into our pockets"
81 wish l could be as hopeful as YOU" said
Lillian, softly.
So the brave little brigade went to work on
the wave washed beach of Watch Hill.
Miss Dagget proved herself not only an
adept at repairing old furniture. but she
went valiantly out with hammer and nails
and mended the fence, put in new panes 81
glass, whitewashed the ceilings, and, with
the aid of a young Rhode Island carpenter
actually put up row Of cow sheds and her
houses in the rear.
Rosa Nixon reduced the kitchen depart
% ~. L.,