The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1900-02-08

10 THE REAR OF THE STORE
just before closing time The man in
the Office, not knowing the little girl
was absent from the store, 90 K ID
the box and sent it downstairs to her,
but it came back in few moments for
more 20. ks This time it was OPP
ened and the Office stood still.
Vio1ets, hundreds of them, long
stems, nice leaves; violets that trem-
bled at their own loneliness; vio1ets
that filled all the air with springtime.
seventy is coming up said the
head bookkeeper as he handed a few
of the flowers to the pretty typewriter.
81 think it looks very bad for Seven
ty-six,'' said the typewriter she fas
tened the violets in her waist.
That speech set all the office think
ing. The girls in the office thought
of Seventy-six going down the broad.
bright, f1ower-strewn path almost any
young girl can go at the price of her
soul The men in the office thought OF
all the things she must have stolen
from the firm to buy that box of flow
ers, for when they asked the delivery
boy who ordered them he said, "A
girl, No Seventy-six- So on that evil
dence and on the lack of faith in hui
man nature in general the little sick
girl out on West Twelfth street lost
her reputation and her occupation
Everyone in the Office had few vi Diets
when they went home that night, not
InaL anyone Wahl0d 10 CASdl (n0 right
full owner of them, but it was too late
to attend to the matter of sending her
word about them that night, and they
would be spoiled next day, and it would
be better to them So everyone
took a few, not all of them of course,
but the vioiets never found Seventy-stx
not one of them
Saturday morning she came down to
work, pale and thin, and Mr. Go1dstein
sent her upstairs to private Office to
report to Mr.. Ware, who had her case
all laid out before him, and had no
doubt but she was the coming Nine
Mandebaum, for she surely must be
a clever thief, this thin1y clad, fright
ened little child-woman. After Mr..
Ware opened his mail and looked over
it he turned to her and asked what she
wanted and when she told her num-
Der he said, "Oh. yes. Sit down. Now.
Seventy-six, a large box of flowers
came here for you on the -14th, and as
| they were altogether too expensive for
a girl like you I determined to look
into the matter Now. Seventy-six, do
you know who sent them here2"
Yes, sir. I bought them,'' said the
girl. Mr. Ware started 'tUm, um,' %
he said. who gave you the money!
ST saved it, -*Um-yes-wel1-Sev
ty-six, I'm sorry, but you take this note
down to Mr. Gale and give in your
| passbook and your badge and hope
you'll be a better girl next place you
| work That's all, Seventy-s1x-''
She slowly crept down the stairs,
struggling with tears and pride, got
the quarter for her badge which she
had deposited for 1T, and once more
word went around that '-Seventy-six
was fred
The south side beauty took her dear,
| little 95-cent bunch OF yioIets to her
| own room and kissed it, for she knew
whom they were from" She arranged
some OF them in her pretty yellow hair
and though she got oceans of flowers
she pressed one bunch of vioIets to re-
member that Valentines day.
When a man makes the mistake o.
| marrying too young it is one of the