The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1897-07-15

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: Her OPPORTUNITY. ;
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i BY Amy Randolph. 1
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l. uOeS seem as II l never yet any
opportunities to do good" said
Charity Chubb.
Elder Daley lifted his mild eyes oven
the rims of his silver specialization it
was in the evening meeting that
Miss Chubb had ventured to speak
forth these her impressions-and viewed
her troubled countenance between the
feathers of Mrs. DiXon's hat, and the
straight white bristles of old Mr.. Moss
close-shayen head.
Opportunities are pretty sure to
come to us all, Sister Chubb," said he,
IF only we can possess our souls in
patience" Charity Chubb shook her
head. Her life was so totally different
from that of the others who came,
every Wednesday night, TO relate their
experience in evening meeting. To
her there seemed no chance for self
denial, for forgiveness, for all the gold
EN- virtues in life's jewel-case. She vas
a poor little tradeswoman who stood
all day long behind her counter, dealing
out spools of cotton, pennyworths OF
tatfy, yards Of flannel and loaves of
bread. and in the times when her soul
longcd for the heroic and s~elf-sacritic-
ing it seemed as if the wooden shutters
of the little shop into which you STUN
bled down three steps, and which al
ways smelt moldy, warded off all pos
sible chance. She sighed softly at the
elders words.
81 don't go anywhere to see people,"
said she, "and I've no means to send
help to the missions"
"The missions Of home are around us
all the time" said Elder Daley.
81 never come across EN- said Miss
Chubb.
"All in good time-all in good time"
said the old man, serencly. "Remem-
Der. Sister Chu5b. that they also serve
who only stand and waltz"
-, So Charity Chuhb went home some
what soothed and Modified in spirit.
She was a plain, coarse-featurcd,
good-hearted woman, whose soul
reached upward as a lily leans toward
the sun, and who. cramped and fettered
by the power of circumstance though
she might be, was not so far from the
Kingdom of Heaven as many another
one. And when, the next morning, she
entered her shop and took her stand
behind the counter. where the smell
of new cheese and tallow candles
mingled with that of kerosene oil
packets of |lucifer matches and hanks
OF stocking yarn, she opened the big
d%ay-book with a cheerful countenance.
and thought to herself: perhaps the
opportunity may be nearer than r
think"
But everything went on in the same
old routine. Grandmother Jones hob
bled in for a clay pipe just as usual.
Mrs. Higgins little -ed-headed girl came
for the regular pint of kerosene, with
the change short one penny, as it al
ways was. Mrs. Dixey stopped to Cos
sip on her way to the place where she
was to wash that day, and Mrs. Hopper
looked at a bingham and bought cal
leo instead. Billy Butts purchased n
sheet of paper, an envelope and a post
age stamp, and old Mrs. Miggles be-
walled herself because snuff had gone
up half Il cent on an ounce, and the sun
rose hot and high into the heavens, and
the air of Lamb court became intGler-
ably close and the sound of wheels
seemed to grind into Miss Charity
Chubb's very brain!
When a tall, untidy-looking girl. with
the air of one who had grown beyond
her strength. came in with a shawl
wrapped about her head and a ragged
splint basket in her hand. and asked
fora quarter Of a pound of starch. And
as Miss Charity stopped to the tin can
lister where she kept the pearly crystals,
she saw the girl hurriedly secrete under
her faded shawl one of the reddish
brown cards of gingerbread which
were piled OF the counter, fresh from
the bakers basket.
All in an instant, as it We're, Miss
Charity's first impulse was to call out to
the fat policeman, whose figure, slow.
ly promenading past, cast a shadow on
the blind even at that moment, but a
glance at the girls pale, scared face and
thin checks decided her to the con
trary.
Its theft, sure enough" said she
to. herself, "bu: then there's different
kinds OF thieves, we all know"
And she purposely delayed wrapping
up the package of starch until the va
rious customers in the store had come
and gone, and the girl herself began to
evince some re~stlessness.
"My stepmother will be waiting"
said she impatiently. biting the end of
a long. loose curl which hung over her
shoulder. "And there's a deal to do at
home!"
'Wait a bit" said Miss Chubb, tying
the string of the parcel in n slow, elab-
crate bow. you are Mira Gates, aren't
you--the girl in the second story of
blossoms house,"
"Ies," the customer answered, def
antly.
"Your stepmother's a widow. isn't
she-with q lot of little children. and
moi much means to provide for them?"
Everybody knows that said Myra,
almost petulantly.