Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1899-10-11
Z a P%OCKETBO0K.

Dear me! l am constantly astonished
to see how careless women are with mon.
ey," groaned the girl in gray.
"'M! / don't know" replied the girl
in blue. MY rich old aunt seems able to
take very good care of hers"
"Only think! l found a pocketbook ~
ing on the sidewalk in front of Bargin Il
Co.'s a bit ago! 1t has 1914 in it and NO
card or other marks of Identification"
Speaking Of pocketbooks makes me
think of Irene. She had only "a cents to
her name and needed a lot Of things
which she had quite forgotten while her
money held out. She had a delicacy
about asking her husband for any more
until he had paid and forgotten one or
two little bills, so she decided to lose her
pocketbook, which was shabby anyhow.
Then she tearfully told her husband
about it. Somehow he seems to have got
the impression that there was $16 In It,"
Goodness! Then he told her to ad-
vertise itY
"Worse! He advertised it himself.
Still, Irene didn't feel very badly about
st, for she always forgets to keep a card
IN her pocketbook. But this time it hap
pened to contain a note concerning her
arrangements for the summer trip which
she had not vet broken to her husband.
Somebody found it, of course, and
brought it for the reward. OF course
there was only "a cents in it, and just as
Irene came in her husband was about to
send for a policeman to arrest the finder.
She had to confess and"-
What happened then"
"Oh, Irene says the temperature Of the
house has gone down so much that she
anyhow. Isn't that a story without a
moral?"
1T is, dear. If her name and address
had not been in the pocketbook she might
have been a summer trip and $50 better
off and nobody the worse"
Except her husband. MINI! By the
way, I saw you walking with Jack
Treadway yesterday"
odd you? Yes, we happened to meet
accidentally. I-er-that is, l hope you
will understand, Evelyn. Jack and l are
real platonic friends, and
II was sure of that, dear, when I saw
how beautifully you blushed when he
spoke to you"
"I'm sure I don't know what you mean
by blushing. I-ah-I might have choked
or something just then. l am glad that
l am not one Of the people who find it
impossible to appreciate p~latonic friend
ship. The majority seem unable to un-
derstand it,"
G StRyvf vryhof shall ~ do with thu vnnly.
etbook you found?"
II shall take it home and read all the
lost advertisements in the morning paper.
When l find it's owner, I shall return 1t
to her with a scathing rebuke for her
carelessness. She quite deserves It,"
II know that, dear, but if you must
rebuke somebody better choose a man..
He takes 1t so much more easily. Oh, by
the way, have o met Jacks sister? She
is here visiting him, you know. He is
devoted to her, and she has enormous in
fuence over him, they say"
II met her yesterday, just for a mo
ment. The fact is that l am waiting for
her now. We are to meet her brother
and all lunch and then go to the matinee
together"
How nice! Especially as you are only
platonic friends and she will not be in the
way. Dear me, I can't help thinking Of
the woman who lost that pocketbook.
Her state must
"She richly deserves it. l shall tell her
so. l ever lost a pocketbook or a cent Of
money in my life. Oh, I do hope Miss
Treadway will really like me. l am pre-
pared to like her enormously"
"Yes. You are sure to be c~ongenial.
She talks about her brother all the time.
l have noticed that when people are pla.
tonic friends they
"Are naturally rather interested in
each other" said the girl in gray stifiy.
Exactly. Why, here comes Miss
Treadway now. How queer she looks!
Quite
"Oh, something must have happened to
Jack. Suppose he"-
$50 sorry to keep you waiting" cried
the girl in brown, rushing in, but ONE
thing dreadful has happened, and
"Is-is he much hurt? ," stammered the
girl in gray.
"Why, no. What made you think that?
He is in Seattle, and Oh, pshaw! You
must mean Jack. He is all right. When
you said he l naturally thought Of
Angus"
"Then what has happened" asked the
girl in blue calmly.
"I've had my pocket picked. ! never
could have lost my pocketbook any other
way. l am so careful. What shall / do,
girls? l haven't had it since leaving Bar
gins, and the thief
"Was it a seal leather, silver trimmed
one?" asked the girl in gray eagerly.
"Yes, and I'm sure my card was in 1t,
though this once / might have forgotten
to inclose one. l am SO careful that l
don't know how-well, / must just get
Jack to replace the money, that Is all.
He is raving now too. l don't see why.
He has no patience, either, with a woman
who loses money, and it had $64"-
"Sixty-four dollars! Then l found it,"
cried the girl in gray. 1T was lying on
Bargin's pavement, and
"Oh, you d~arling!" cried the girl in
brown. "Give it to me quick, and we will
60 to meet Jack. I shall tell him what q
jewel you
"Why, where is it? Lob, Evelyni
Did you notice it when we sat down"
"Why, no." said the girl in brown.
you said you found it, and
1T isn't here. I put it carefully in my
pocket, and now it is gone. Oh, what
will you think Of rue? I've lost your
pocketbook again."
Ell think 1t was extremely careless OF
you, that Is all,m said the girl In brown
icily, "and here m Jack."-Elisa
Armstrong in New York Journal.