Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-08-27
A FEW DAYS OF REAL LIFE.
Chicago Record.

]
The little woman who made button
holes took a good deal Of interest in
her neighbors.
/ She didn't 90 gadding around, be-
cause, like Dickens's little dolls dress
maker, her back was bad and her legs
were queer
The same fall that made her all bulg-
/ ing curves where other peOpls were
straight and upright gave her a slow,
halting walk, so that she nseded a cane
and a crutch, and even then her pro-
/ gress res embed that OF a snail who
carries his house on his back.
She used 10 have two crutches at the
/ age when other girls jumped ropes and
played tag, bul she had discarded one
for a cam, and she said she guessed
| she would give up the other after
while. The doctor Assem- led 10 this non
commt.tal hospital face. 1t was at the
free infirmary, which the little cripple
visited with some !uc.anCe, even when
pain was harder 10 bear than usual. One
doesn't like to be called a charity pa
tient, even if one dos make button
| holes for ever SO little dozen.
So the doctor gave her some sleeping
stuff for her pa.a-racked nights, ana
/ thought Of the tims when sle would
Law down both ru.ch and cane and slip
off the crippled form like WORKOUT
garment
Meanwhile she made honest button
holes and kept house for hr sister. One
can be quite a housekeeper in CEe-room
lodgings.
The buttonhole-maker's sister work
ed n a big printing and binding place.
Sac had attain d the dignity Of fore
woman and spent her days n a Big,
fus.y room. where whirl!ns bells as
tracted the we and whence casual
/ STRANGERS emerged with evid 1t relief
after neryCu-ly watching the g'r.s IN
peril their fingers in proximity 10 the
/ .ron-jaw5d monsters.
There were girls wAo abs7nty cnat-
/ red TO their rc.glDcrs while they Aand-
/ cd big sheets Of printed paper 10
/ hungry dragon G. iron and s.eel tld1
.zeG the paper, tossed ]. Gown cln-
,emptuously, bounced upon II, AuF'ea 1t
into some unknown rec ana lheh
threw II down d.sda.n'ul!y in the form
I of a periodical. folded and ready for the
stitchec
But the forewOm2n was not uouD.eu
with Imagination; she used TO operate
2 folder herself. and her widest flight
Of fancy was regarding the possibility
of using the stitching machines 10 sew
On buttons. 40
The possibility Of using very a9'e
bodied sewing machine, Wi,h Wire IN
stead of thread would certainly rec
ommend itself to the mothers Of small
boys.
Every morning the forawoman ana
her sister ate their breakfast together;
then. while the one went down town
the other dragged herself painfully
about the little room, putting all in or
J der before she sat down TO her sewing.
+ She sat by the one window, where IN
light was good ard where she got pass
ing gl.mpses of people who dIdA nave
to use clutches.
The surrounding scenery was not very
insp.r ing-a vacant lot that TOOK the
form Of a sand bath, an alley streWn
with vegetable varicusly jeTked out
Inv the early Italian who investigated the
ash boxes. and a bewildering maze OF
ratings and stairs that formed the rear
> of another big apartment house.
Pretty soon the little out;onho'e
worker began TO take an interest IN
. her ne. ghbors across the alley.
There was the woman who was al
ways spanking her children on general
principles. and the woman whose Off
spring needed spanking, but didn't get
II. the stout woman in rusty weeds.
whose son was night comP0sitor: the
melancholy l:ttle widower VINO peddled
corn cure and had 12-year-old daugh-
ter who kept house. and the young cou-
pc on the second floor.
II was one day while the buttonhole
worker was making button holes n
satin waist that she first noticed the
Young couple. Satin buttonholes are
not a bit nice. Ones fingers must be
so smooth or the threads will rub up
rough and the stitches look uneven.
+ The LITTLE woman wondered why anyone
wore a satin waist. which always had a
Mn cushiony effect, and looked across
/ the sllev toward her ne.ghbors Ihe
woman who didn't believe in spanking
leaned out to give advice to the twelve
vear-old housekeeper, while her young
est iDdustriously scraped all the ashes
ont of an Old coal scutJle into her own
blue bingham lap. The young vile on
the second floor stood by the window
cbirp.ng 10 the canary BIRD While she
wiDed dishes Her young husband
came along the alley, lunch-pail in
hand. He ran up the back stairs, whis-
ding. and picking up his wife like ba-
/ BY. stood her. laughing. on the k-tche1
table. The buttonhole maker turned
away with a pain that wasn't quite the
usual one: she felt very lonely just then
The young husband on the second
floor was evidently a railroad man
nerbaps fireman on a freight run. he
nsed 10 start off at odd hours, generally
! in the evening, carrying a big square
runch nail. his young wife running
lightly down The steps with MN 10 see
/ him off. o,-.o,,-
When h. returned there was always
y delightful domestic hustle; the button
bole-maker used to see the young WE
s -iTc meat. making coffee and remoY-
inr pair Of befr.ll5d pillow shams from
kAe Immaculate bed.
The fireman used to Offer ourleque az
sistance which usually resulted IN