The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-08-20

vice. There isn't any doubt that gowns
of sober hue look Tar better than the
motley assortment ri shoddy nnery that
would surely crop up We're it not for this
rule
The two chief operators I thought IN
necessarily 'bossy" They gave their
orders or asked questions in strident. ag-
gressfve voices that rasped. Several
times ! took off my cap to wipe out the
moisture You'll have 10 stop that
said one Of the ladies '-which title the
chief operators have earned by right Of
might.
Late in the afternoon one of the
ladies" called out name in voice that
menaced i'll for the owner Twice she
repeated il, the second time with uglier
infection. Then I realized that 1t was
my adopted fiafne
You can 20 now it is five. Come to-
morrow night at $50. and be sure that
/ had expected. from her tone, to be
sent TO coventry. instead il was the signal,
ungraeiously given. that my days work
was over. ! had been in the office nine
hours with thirty minutes for luncheon
and ten minutes recess. Every nerve in
my body was crying for rest. The con-
slant strain Of sitting erect, keeping the
eyes glued straight ahead, and the ears
attuned. exhausts beyond belief.
At $50 the next night l was again at
the board. Through shifting my time thus
7 had gained an unusual rest. Until Y
O'Clock We worked under the same rigid
rules that held good during the daytime.
a
the regular operators took charge We
were now allowed to talk to our neigh
bors. From y until in the morning
Sunset is rarely busy.
1t was torture for me to keep awake.
The hours seemed days. At in tho morn
ing. however. the fruitmen began calling
Observation-Disclosures kept me on the
guess and awake. At 1870 we parted. a
band OF hCuow-eyed girls looking CHASTITY
in the sickly morning sun that struggled
through
The next night only the thought that
l would be allowed to make my first
switch made me return 10 the office Il
was Impossible for NE to interchange the
slefuirE AID waking hours Of years
kaJIt. / had tried 10 sleep during the Gay
without success. a severe cold and q
violent headache made life seem any thing
but pleasant
! had been there perhaps half an hour
take off my ribbon stock. In moment Of
f0rgetfulness ! had put on i Da;e blue
rlbOOn with my black gown.
meekly took il Off and straighiway
commenced to sneeze- To polite request
10 be permitted TO replace the ribbon. l
was informed that / had no business
wearing colored ribbon and that it was
my own funeral II / caught my death Of
cold. / asked that | be allowed to 20
down TO the lockers and get my black
boa. You can get it at your recess:
you'll stay where YOU are now was the
reply.
! made two switches that night and was
beginning to understand the SYStem-oVen
TO recognize some Of the bells of out-of-
town Sunset Offices.
left the Office in the morning with
the two girls who were my right and left
hand neighhCrs. AS we turned the corner
a man accosted me. He looked and spoke
like a gentleman. pretended TO have made
q mistake. and then urgently invited Us
to breakfast.
We hurried on ITS a wonder you
didn't want TO go, Alice" said the other
girl Alice was a be-curled creature Of