San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-03-23


mined that he should have no clew by
which to find her again; so, taking her
two little gold earrings out of her ears, the
only thing of value she had remaining,
Clara left them on the table with a pencil
note to say that she gave them
to cover the expense of her food
and bed. Then, at a moment when
she found herself unobserved, she slipped
down the staircase and out into the street.
She had while dressing rapidly reviewed
her position, and resolved to seek an en-
gagement as governess or companion in
this place. She must do something to
keep herself from starving, for here she
was actually without farthing in the
wide world, hundreds of miles away from
her own country, without friend in this
large strange city.
The town itself was not of colossal size,
though it appeared so to her eyes. Prepa-
rations for one of those large annual fairs,
which transform some Russian and Polish
provincial towns into the semblance of a
bustling capital during the week or fort
night of IT'S duration, were filling the
streets of K with strangers of all
ranks and descriptions, and lending a
fictitious animation to the usually quiet
place; consequently Clara's exit from
the hotel passed unnoticed, and she
was quickly swallowed up in the stream
of life around.
In broken Russian she contrived to ask
her way to two different offices where
a register was kept of servants
situations, but in the first of these
she had been desired to come back in a
fortnight, and in the second one, re-
quested to deposit fee for inscribing her
name on the list of governesses or COM
panions seeking places.
Most people regarded her with sus-
picion, as the peculiar sight of a young
lady elegantly attired in fur trimmed
jacket, but wearing no hat, attracted
attention. Many people turned round in
the street to look at her, and more than
one tried to accost her with insolent free
dom.
AS Clara walked along she now and
then glanced nervously over her Shout
der to make sure that the dreaded
figure of her faithless lover was nowhere
in sight, but these fears were groundless,
for strange faces only met her on every
side. After wandering about in a fruit
less fashion for several hours she was
utterly worn out and disheartened, not
having even found a place where she
could sit down to rest.
She peeped through the plate glass win
dow of large Diapers shop filled with
bustling customers and obsequious shop
men. One of the latter looked at her
with familiar leer which sent the blood
to her cheeks, and caused her to move
quickly on.
The next house was a handsome pala-
tial residence, in front of which stood a
swelling porter in splendid green and gold
livery, leaning ON his staff of office Clara
stood still for a moment, and her lips
formed a trembling question as to whether
she might not come in and sit down for a
little.
The great man had apparently not un-
derstood, for after favoring her with a
very supercilious stare he gave utterance
to the monosyllable question:
sWhat?"
The young girl repeated her words more
audibly, which had the effect of causing
the magnificent individual to regard her
little more closely, before enclosing his
lips to second equally laconic question:
'Why?"
Because I am tired, would have been
the natural answer, but the porter's face
looked so very far from encouraging that
Clara attempted no reply, but with sigh
of disappointment turned away.
Was there really no place in this large
roomy town where weary girl could
rest? Not a chair, not bench where she
had the right to sit down for ten minutes'
Yes, surely in every town, in every coun-
try there is one house open to the home
less and the wanderer-the house of Him
who has said, Come unto me all We who
are weary, and will give you rest;" and
Clara, having espied the Byzantine por-
tico of Russian Greek church in a side
street, bent her steps thither with feel
ing of something like relief.
Ths church door, as usual in those
assemblage of beggars, who, grouped
upon the steps in attitudes more or less
picturesque, endeavored to show off their
infirmities to the best possible advantage.
Clara turned away shuddering from the
open sores on q boys arm, only to meet
the bloodshot and horribly inflamed orbs
of white bearded man fixed imploringly
upon her.
"A kopek, my pretty lady, only ko-
PEEK, for the love of God; am dying of
hunger" now moaned a whining voice in
her ear, and turning she perceived the
CHASTITY emaciated face of a girl scarcely
older than herself, evidently far gone in
consumption.
All at once Clara seemed to under
stand that there were more wretched
people than herself in the world, deeper