The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1897-08-29

have often thought that, anxious as she
was for work her life as a reporter must
have been a daily martyrdom to her.
All through that long vet winter she
came regularly to the office, and worked
faithfully at her assignments. without any,
of US knowing whence she came or
whittier she went outside OF office hours,
until young Allen came over to US from
the Trumpeter. He knew lot about her,
for he was naturally a ferretty kind OF
fellow, and he lived in the same lodging
house where she had light housekeeping
rooms.
He told US that she was not widow as
we had thought, but was the possessor OF
big anG burly husband, Jack Martin by
name, whose chief occupation was hang
ing about the streets along with the "un-
employed and talking hard times" to
any one who would listen to him. The
man was house-painter, Allen said, but
had ceased to WORK at his trade long since,
on the plea that the chemicals made use
of were undermining his constitution, and
was living life of leisure supported by
the slender earnings OF his wife.
According to our informant the Martins
marriage had been a romantic runaway
match" Mrs. Martin having fallen in love
with her husband when he was hand
some young journey man SO deeply thai
she had left home and friends for his sake
| and taken place in the world far below
| that to which her birth and ed ucation en-
titled her.
"Her folks in the East are way up" de-
clared Allen, "and If she'd turn her back
on that worthless fellow that she is work
ing herself to death to support they'd take
her back in minute; but they can't ano
won't swallow him, and I don't blame
them, for he's tough lot all around"
The little lady's shabby mourning wa:
worn for her only child, who had dice
some two years before. 1t had beer
fretful sickly creature all its short life
and its mother had been slave to it from
it's BIRTH but she had mourned for it q!
Rachel OF old mourned for her children.
After hearing this story we were ever
more kindly disposed toward our feminine
| fellow-worker, and more than one of u
felt strong desire to look up Jack Mar
tin and punch his head for him until i
was in a condition to entertain the ide,
that it was his duty as man and hus
band to stop ''oratins" and 60 to work a
something TO lesseA the burdens of th'
woman who was struggling so patiently
and so Loyalty to take care of him. Blu
the certainty that our interference in tn
matter would be far from pleasing to tn
object of our sym PATTY prevented us from
carrying out our Quixotic inclinations.
Meanwhile the little lady, all unawar
that We knew anything of her home life
worked on as patiently, as conscientious.
and as silently as ever, and quite as un
satisfactorily. Her story got around al
through the Office, and even the rudest AM
most careless of "the boys" felt con
strained to be specially kind to her in
shame-faced sort of a way.
AS the weeks went by, however. the lit
tie lady grew thinner and more worried
looking. Once in a while, too, her eye;
which must have been very pretty ones il
her eirlhood, before they were SO sunke1
and Swallowed, looked as if she had bee
crying long and bitterly. Allen said tina