The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-03-22
TIowees Over
6e WaY.

|
Written for the Commercial Advertiser by
Edwin Lefevre.
1t was early summer when the two
clerks moved into the back room Of the
| fourth-story fiat. The landscape on which
| they gazed every morning was not inspir-
| iting-a row of Whitewashed brick tene-
| nlents of the better class that extended
| the length of the entire block a score
| OF black fire escapes exactly alike in con-
| struction, and all more or less Uttered
| with household effects; and below, Fl
! clean-swept. cement-paved yard. But
overhead there was the wonderful New
| York summer sky-like the inside of a
| huge hollow turquoise, vanished with
| molten sunlight and dried with greaS
handsful Of cloud cotton. And then, too,
there was the girl with the hssabic
| cheeks and the nice smile who lived in
the tenement directly opposite their win
| dow. Their lot was hard-like their beds
but every morning, as they went away
| to the store. their faces wore pleasant
| smile. And all that caused the cheerful
| grin was merely the sight Of her and of
! the sky.
She was a model housekeeper; they
could see that she was ever busy about
her rooms, busting, brushing, sweeping,
| cleaning the windows until the panes
were like thin sheets of diamond. She
used to wear cool dresses of neat calico
which showed her trim figure to adVan
tage
They used to wonder, the two clerks.
| what her name was They agreed that
she could not be more than twenty-four,
that her cheeks were like the red, red
rose, and her hair like the bright, blight
gold also that her eyes might be blue
black, brown or violet, and that, what
ever their hue, they could be only adora-
BILE. Put as to her name they differed
radically, almost violently. The elder
clerk, thin. tall chap, with side wh's-
kers and a dyspeptic look said her name
was doubtless Maggie or Mamie, or pos
sibly Liz. But the younger man scorned
such a suggestion her name. he declared,
was certainly Ruth. indicative of meek
| ness and comeliness and cleanliness or
| soul and body. Whereupon the tall, thin
clerk said to him sarcastically:
'Sir Percy Algernon de Montmorency
| de We're, Of course her name is Phyllis
| Gladys Muriel Maud Doris and the rest
of the English novel heroines. But as
your name is plain Bill Smith. so, in all
! likelihood, hers is Maggie Reilly or Rosey
| Flanagan, in the name of Erin go bragh,
| Amen"
| But the younger man refused to accept
Maggie He stood out for Ruth Rivers
until the fatal discovery was made one
| Sunday. They heard her tell her next
| to work on the Third avenue line as con-
| ductor.
Ruth Rivers Maggie-Reilly was mar
ried!
Saddened by the revelation they agreed
that It mattered little what her name
was, But out Of respect for each other 8
feelings they compromised. They de-
| cided to call her Molly.
For a week after the fatal discovery
| neither clerk smiled. Such chances as
! they directed toward her fire escape were
rather sheepish and, in a manner, sur
| reptitious-as though each feared to be
caught at 1t by the, other
| One Saturday haif-holiday, they came
home early. 1t was a fine day; very sun
shiny, but, owing to the fresh breeze. not
| sultry. The thin clerk, thinking of the
green fields and running brooks amid
| which his boyhood had been spent. look
| ed absently across the way. AS his gaza
fell on the romantic fire escape his eyes
| took on decided interest.
/ "Come here, Bill" he said. Look at
| Molly's garden"
Bill looked. On her fire escape were
| two flower potts. one containing be-
| eonia and the other g. Se-geranium, both
| evidently purchased from the itinerani
| yender with the cracked bell and the
husky voice. who drove his wagon
| through the street once a week.
''Begonias," said the thin clerk, ARE
| odd. I like them. They grow easily
! and quickly"
But the rose geranium is SO sweet and
| delicate! I love to roll UP the leaves In
nv hand and smell them. They remind
me-" said the younger man, of my
| mother"
! ''Well, you can have it. Til keep the
begonia," said the thin clerk.
Ever thereafter, they used to watch
/ EIN0 nj
| the morning before they went to work
! and at night on their return home. They
were so fortunate that fully four days or
| the seven they actually beheld molly
in the act of watering the flowers with
q tiny green watering pot-her sleeves
| rolled up to her elbows, showing a
! plump and rounded forearm-gracefully
| reviving the thirsting leaves with the
| five little threads of water that issued
| from the sprinkler.
| Both plants grew apace. The thin
| clerks begonia bIossomed-a polypetal-
! Gus thing in pink. But the younger
mans humble rose-gernaium thrived
| wonderfully and grew rotund, until 1t re-
| sembled, from the clerks room, little
| pavilion Of some green, brocaded stuff
built over the red clay foundation of the
| flower pot.
One afternoon they saw Molly's hus-
band cleaning the windows.
That" said the younger clerk, with an
| air of experience, lis what a husband
| ought to do"
'Confound himr said the thin clerk.
angrily; The ought to have done 1t long
ago. But 1 am glad" he added, forgiv-
| ingly, that he's had the decency to be-
| GIN even If late. That's right, Molly
dear; make him step around lively and
| do his share"
One morning the younger clerk. who
was by the window, called out to his
room mate: 'He is watering the plants
1 wonder what's the matter with Molly?'
What's that? What's that?" said the
thin clerk, sharply, as he went to the
| window.
Moily's hateful husband was watering
| the plants. He had thoroughly soaked
| the geranium, but had only a few drops
| left for the begonia. He deemed them
enough. however. for he set down the
| sprinkler, as soon as emptled, on the
! fire escape. and turned away.
Water my begonia more, darn you!"
| shrieked the thin cerk, wrathfully.
The man looked about in surprise. saw
no one and turned away once more.
You measly apology for a human be-
ing, do you suppose begonias hate water