The record-union., 1899-08-30

tives she would let me help her. So
/ spoke to her and told her / had a
matter of the utmost Importance to her
to communicate and asked her to meet
me that night at quiet little reStaur-
ant near by My manner was so re-
spectful (and [ think I'm a pretty hon
est looking fellow that Gfter giving me
a searching look she complied. AS soon
as she came in to the eating room I
made her eat, for I saw that she was
faint from hunger, and after a little
demur she consented. Then l began at
once, told her all about myself and
said that 1 knew she was in trouble
and begged her to let me help her as
one man would help another She al
most broke down when she told me her
story.
"Her husband had gone to the Klon-
dixie with company of gold-seekers a
year before. He left her with just
enough money to live on for a. year,
expecting to be home by that time, with
a fortune, of course. She would have
gotten along very well, although she
was in a strange city, but she was
cheated out of most of her money and
could find no work-indeed, by that
work if she had had any to do She
had no relatives to whom she could
apply and so was living on hope that
her husband would send her money or
return.
''It had been so long since she heard
from him that she feared he was dead.
I tried to cheer her by telling her how
uncertain the mails were, how easy it
was for them to get lost, and told her
/ believed he was on his way home.
Then 1 begged her to borrow money
from me enough to last her through
another month, and to keep up heart
until her husband came. 1t was the
greatest compliment 1 ever received
when she accepted the money took
me by the hand and said / was true,
honest man and a friend whose friend
ship she considered it an honor to have
"Well, it was three weeks to the day
when she got her letter. She almost
tainted when I handed it to her, and
shut the door quick. But when l came
around the next mail, she was waiting
for me with her face fairly beaming
He's on his wayi' she said joyfulIy,
and will soon be here 1 nearly
shouted for I felt SO glad, and I watch
ed every day to see if the poor girls
hopes had been realized. A week later,
when I blew my whistle on the block
she came to meet me leaning on the
arm of a very fair-looling young fell
low who looked like he couldn't make
enough of her. She introduced him as
her husband, and my hand almost
aches yet from that young Klondiker's
grip. He told me that he couldn't half
thank me for my kindness to his wife,
but he wanted me to come uD to the
Avenue Hotel that night for dinner and
let him try.
''Of course by their going to the Ave
nue. I knew he had struck it rich, but
I wasn't prepared to hear of the great
wealth he had brought home nor to lis
ten to the wonderful tales of adventure
and hardship he had to relate. When l
got UP to go that night he said:
"'Millie tells me that she would have
died of starvation if it had not been
for you l never can pay you for this,
for Millie is worth more to me than
all the gold in the Klondike put to-
gether But / can pay you back the
money you lent her.; with that he
handed me q check for $1,000 Then
she grabbed a handful of gold pieces
from a bag she had and pressed them
into my hands.
"'And this is the interest she said,
laughing and crying together.
cit didn't do any good for me to pro-
test: they just made me take 1T all.
made a good living and have only my