The Portland daily press., 1891-01-10
How one woman Cots nor LNlr 2.
Correspondence Of the Press.I

LSoAADokyh0CuIS u Au1 AiE5a-l
Boston. Jan. 2, 1891.
1t you should happen to be walking In
Boston along a certain part OF fremont
Street, which Is not wholly devoted TO busl-
ness, nor yet wholly to residences, you may
see certain doorway, In which are hung
placards in various states Of whiteness, and
various stages Of dilapldation and looking
past this doorway you will see a certain pair
Of stairs, which are not very dirty nor yet
very clean. II you ascend these stairs. which
l strongly advise you to do, you will fnd
other placards In much better condition than
those at the door, nailed neatly to the wall
In such positions as are likely TO catch the
eye Of the person on the stairs. You will
also become aware of a great twlttering,
chirpinR, trilling, going on somewhere prob
ably above.
Having reached the landing, you will turn
to your right, and enter the only door that Is
open. Here ow the noises you heard on
the staircase are explained; for In front of
you, on either side. and in the windows are
bird cages.-glittering, brass bird cages, and
In the cages the sleekest, sprucesf, lveliest
eaDaries you ever saw. Most Of them are
well hammered birds, too, for they allow you
to approach their cages, lisp nonsense to
them which you are pleased t. consider
adapted to the intelligence Of a bird, and even
poke your finger In through the bars; that Is
IL you do not happen to know that that pro-
ceeding is the last insult TO be offered TO a
bird; and In response to all this, they only
cnek thetriittle heads on one side, and slowly
smut and open one eye. With afmirlng
wonder you turn to the smiling, middle-aged
woman who has come to stand at your side,
and she answers your mute inquiry by say
Ing, In sprightly, caressing tone, These
ars my birdes." Then in reply to your
puzzled question, she explains that she takes
birds to board.
An. to be- sure, didn't plaeard in the door
and on the stairs announce the fact? 1t
seems that for years IL has been the custom
OF certain families when leaving town In the
summer, or at any other time, 10 leave their
birds with this good woman; and the fact
that they are well cared for is attested by her
statement, tnat although she has had as
many as one hundred and fifty birds at one
time, she has never lost bird either by
death or out Of the window. On the
contrary birds in ill-health or as she sx-
presses It, "dumpish bir s." very soon "Oick
up" and become lively under her treatment.
IL Is no small task 10 wash and clean one
hundred and fifty birds every day, but this
smiling keeper assures you that every one
in her care goes through the cleaning process
every day. Perhaps you will innoeeDtly ask
II any one so disposed, could undertake the
wholesale care Of binds, but you will be
gravely told that only a person who thor
oughly understands, and greatly loves birds,
can have the best success with them; and
that the person before you has given the
leisure moments Of years to the study Of birds
by reading all she could find on the subject,
and by inquiring Of persons informed 70.
garding the habits and care Of the small
creatures. Then perhaps you win be tempt
ed to inquire, In perfectly respectful way,
regarding the remuneration for all this work
and will be surprised to learn that IL only
cost % cents week TO board a bird. You
may be inwardly amused to hear that the
price was originally 30 cents per week, but
owing to competition, the price had TO be re-
dueed one half.
Perhaps BY this time you will have ex-
hausted the bird subject, expressed your
interest and edifcstiOn In what you have
seen and heard, and turned to look abou.
you. You will doubtless be surprised 10 SEQ
how "lsverly the space In this small room is
utilized.
A poitlon OF two walls Is linei with
shelves on which are brown paper. covered
books. That Is to say. some of the Books are
covered, some are partly covered and some
not covered at all and every one Of them Ia
the unhappilY debauehec condition OF books
given over t. t-ndei mercles Of the multi
tude. for two cents a day. You do not need
: Dlacsrd 10 tell you that this is circulating
library.
On table in one corner are innumerable
paper bundles. Some Of them huge, mis-
shapen affairs; some OF them apparently
done up by person who was scarce Of pa
per, for ends OF something white are strag-
gliDR cut mere auQ tnert, some OF them 50
tiny that you would think it hardly worth
while to send them at AL. On shelves be-
hind this table are packed some very trim
looking bundles all done up just so with a
slip OF pink paper under the stiing Of zach.
Why OF course this Is laundry agency.
Thus far you have found everything as
advertised" bat there was something else
Alb, to % sure! there Is the genius of the es-
tablishmeDt sitting sewing very busily; and,
yes, the verscity Of another placard Is con-
hrmed-she l. making buttOnholes. Aud
YOU are quit willing tn believe that sne does
uaehtne stitching, and any other kiud Of
plain sewing she can get To do.
But perhaps the most astonishing thing In
this altogether astonishing establishment
is that all these various undertakings ara
but side issues, catch penny" schemes, so
TO speak, which fill up the odd moments
which are not devoted To her legitimate.busi-
ness. And this business is-keeping a va
riety store. A we'll stocked store 1t Is too, as
glance over the numerous counters and
shelves will convince you. And she does a
brisk little business, tins plucky New Eng
land woman, for although she Is so full OF
what they call git 20 an git"' sh9 Can be as
patient ana cheerful as the next one, with
an lrresolute or fussy customer
But perhaps you will say, "All this abOnk
little old woman, to whom no one wsuld
give the second thought or second glance"
Even so. This same plain little body has,
In large degie ee what LOngfellOw ca Is the
talent Of success which he assures us 'i5
nothing more than doing what you can do
we'll; and doing well whatever do"
MINNA STEIN " ooD.