The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1900-04-03
TIE Last Break
OF Della Mann
Della Broke n Good Deal of China,
but She Made Up For 1t.

| Ing heart. She had cautioned, Warueu
and scolded, but IL availed nothing. Plates
would slip from haccid fingers to the I'M
| yielding surface of the slate drain board
cups would bump against the brass fau-
Gets above the enameled sink. IL ever it-
animate things were possessed with
rage for self destruction the chinaware
of the Thurstons certainly took the SUI
| cidal palm.
Unfortunately for this theory all these
brcakages were traced directly 10 Delia
Mann.
Della was a good girl and fairly capa.
Bile girl, and she meant to please, but
when Il came to dish washing aud wiping
she seemed marked with smashing ma.
MIA. Alice Thurston was patient and
long suffering. She liked Della and bore
with her weakness in most exemplary
way. Once she fold her she would have to
pay for the ware she had broken. and
Della, who was weak on mathematics.
eagerly consented. But when the end OF
the month came the breakage total was
so large that Alice felt ashamed to take
1t out of the poor girls wages and said
no more about II.
Della was an admirable cook and OF
neat and steady habits. She was us hon.
est as the day and as careful of the
Thurston supplies as IL they were her
own.
But one day poor Della let slip hand
some platter against the cruel slate, and
a shower Of fragments scattered over the
hardwood hoor. Then the wrath Of Alice
| Thurston blazed forth.
Della" she holly said. "this is past all
endurance. II you break another thing
this week, will certainly be obliged to
let you 60"
Poor Della said nothing. She bent low
over her broom and dustpan as she gath.
cred up the debris. She knew the mis-
tress was entirely justified in her out
burst.
Well, for a wonder, she didn't break a
thing for three whole days. Ii required
great self possession and most painful
watchfulness, but she broke her record
handsomely.
Then came Friday, and after the usual
simple luncheon which George Thurston
ate with Alice whenever he could spare
the time to make hurried dash home
and back, but which Alice ate alone on
this particular Friday, she said to Della:
I'm going down town to do some
| Christmas shopping and will probably
wait and come home with Mr.. Thurston.
| Be sure to answer the bell and have din
ner ready TO serve at {"
"Yesm," said Della, and soon she
heard the front door slam aud knew her
pretty young mistress had started forth.
Della was doing up" the dishes, but
! she stopped short and stepped into the
dining room. From the dining room sho
passed into a storeroom that adjoined the
former apartment. 1t was n dark room,
with one window opening on prospect
| OF brick wall. Its only piece of furniture
was the new telephone that stood on its
little table against the west wall
Della didn't like the telephone. She
could use It, but it bothered her. Della
was n slow thinker and the rapid pace OF
a telephone conversation was too confus-
ing to be agreeable. She took from
hook the ancient black shawl which she
was wont 10 toss about her shoulders
when she made hurried excursions TO the
little grocery in the next street and threw
Il over the phone and its table. Then
she went out with smile of satisfaction
and locked the door behind her. She fan
cied she had effectually gagged the an
moving instrument. She certainly didn't
mean 70 hear the warning bell il she
could help it.
To still further enhance the impossible
ty Of telephone interruption, Della, as
she resumed her dish drying labor, lifted
her by no means unmusical voice in a
song of her childhood days. She warbled
on with her back to the door, quite I'M
conscious OF the fact that it was being
slowly pushed open.'
A moment or two later heavy hand
caught her firmly by the shoulder, and a
harsh voice growled fierce threat in her
ear.
The plate in her hands fell 10 the floor
with heavy crash.
"That settles it," said Della Mann.
Then she was dragged into the dining
room and the door closed behind. She
looked up. There were two men, and one
of them held a revolver close under her
nose She looked at them stupidity. Della
reasoned slowly.
"What'll we do with herr" growled the
fellow with the revolver.
Gag her and tie her in n chair and
hide her away somewhere" was the re-
sponse And they did it with incredible
swiftness Her ankles were dashed TO the
chair with stout cord that one Of the
men quickly produced. Her hands were
securely fastened behind the back of the
chair, and then an extra large handker-
chief was tied around her head and over
her mouth. One of the men stepped to
the storeroom door. turned the key and
opened it. He gave the gloomy Interior
hasty glance.
Empty" he said. "Just the place for
her." And they carried her in and left
her there with parting injunction TO
keep quiet or have her head dubbed of.
But Della scarcely minded the threat
nor the click OF the lock as they turned
the key. She was still regretting that she
had dropped the plate.
Then it suddenly dawned on her that
the house was being. ransacked by tive
daring scoundrels, that the beloved treas
ures of her dear mistress were in immi-
nent danger and that she, Della Mann,
was in some sense to blame for their
presence in the house.
She gave violent wriggle. but the
cords held fast. She tried TO cry out, but
the gag chung too closely, Then Della sat