The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-07-09
AN ARTISTIC REVENGE,
low the Elevator Boy Made Life Mis-

hoW the Elevator Boy Made Life Mis-
 eraole for the Stout Stenographer.
 The elevator boy wss a genius, al- though nothing of the kind had ever been charged up against him. When the lat--that is to say stout, TOT only men ana the lower animals are fat, Wo- men or that style of architecture being invariably "stout"-Wnen the stout stenographer on the ninth floor re- pulsed the admiring advances of the elevator boy she did not know that she was laying mine for the destruction of her peace of mind if not of herself The elevator boy brooded upon the snubbing he had received and resolved that he should be gloriously revenged,
 But now? as the cheap novels say.
 The elevator boy did not know at first, but the next time the stout stem ographer entered hls car to ride to the ninth floor an Inspiration came to him.
 The Inspiration came on a Monday morning.
 At noon of the same day the eleva- tor boy, shooting downward from the pinnacle of the building. found the stout stenoerapher waiting at the ninth floor to go down and get her cup of coffee and peach pie la mode
 Nine, down!" piped the stout ste- nographer The lift stopped, and with great dignity and polteness the eleva- tor boy opened the door, The stout stenographer entered The moment her foot pressed the floor of the cage the elevator sank two tnches. The eI- evator boy closed the door without a word. a glance or smile, and the downward journey was resumed The three men who were in the dropping box, however, gaZed about with won dering expression on their faces. When their eyes took in the propor- tions of the stout stenosrapher a satis- fled look came into their countenauces. They understood why the elevator had dropped two inches under the pressure. The stout stenographer colored rich, autumnal red and looked daggers, sa- bers. broadswords and other cutlery at the boy. He said no other word--other than Main f1oor-all out!''
 After the luncheon hour the stout stenographer sauntered into the rotun- da of the big building once more. She had forgotten the incident of the two inches. Going up?" cried the elevator boy. and she accelerated her move ment toward the lift. Tour men and two women were inside. The boy again. with princely politeness, held the door open. She entered. At the pres sure of her foot the elevator promptly dropped two inches. The four men, aroused from after-luncheon rehec- tons by the sudden lurch, looked about inquiringly. They saw the stout stem ographer and smiled. The two women smiled with smiles of even greater di- mensions and duration. The boy was c hewn monument of imyrrturbable dig nity. The stout stenosrapher glared about her. She half suspected, but could not be certain
 In the evening 1t was the same way When the stout stenographer entered the elevator to ride down to the street she gave it a two-inch start on the way. The other inmn,es looked at her rather sympathetically. and she knew that they were wondering how In the world she managed to stand the hot weather but nobody spoke. The boy was a pillar of icy calm.
 It was in this fashion that things continued for six days. She tried to catch the boy off his guard and slip into the lift when his attention was att tracted to other things-the cigar stand. for instance-but all sucl, en- deavors were unavailing. The fatal drop of two inches always manifested itself. She felt that she was marked woman and the talk of the town. Once she resolved to walk up the nine flights of stairs rather than submit herself to the ignominy of that elevator, but by the time sine had reached the fifth floor, disheartened end perspiring, she rang the bell for the lift He will not ex- pect to catch me on this floor" she said. But he did She stepped inside. The elevator dropped. An ill-bred man, who pretended to sell wire fenc- ing on the eleventh floor, snickered. The stout stenographer turned upon him. but seeing the quiet, solemn face of the elevator boy, she remembered in time that she was q perfect lady. On the sixth day the stout stenog- rapher capitulated. She caused tlis advertisement to be inserted in a news paper:
 | WANTED-A position by capa- I ble stenographer; wages not so much a consideration as a position with a | firm doing business on the ground floor. | The next day she went forever out of | the tall building. The boy found the I advertisement in the paper and pasted 1t up In his cage, where he could see it
 all day long.
 Such is adequate, beautiful glorious
 revenge when undertaken by an artist. Chicago Record
 | FRENCH ENGLISH AT THE SALON. 1 The committee of the Salon of the