Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1901-01-31
copyright. 1900, by c. B. Lcwis.l

copyright, 1900, by c. B. Lewis.1
The first | knew about Miss Muir
dock, the stenographer and typewriter.
moving into our skyScraper was when
she sent for me to call at room 23.
found her to be a woman Of 40 and l
couldn't say that she was n dream of
loveliness. She was tall and thin and
scrawny. ard her hair would have been
gray if she hadn't bleached it, She
put on sweet smile as She greeted me,
and of course l smiled back.
"Sammis," she began, Il have sent
for you TO say that am all alone-all
alone in this. big world.e
'Yes'm"
Which is a sad thing for a young
girl, you know. like the frank, hon.
est look OF. your face, and hear good
reports of you. and have sent for You
to ask if you wouldn't be my little
brother. once had a brother about
your age. and l thought the world of
him, but he died in my arms Shall we
be brother and sister, Sammis?"
told her | was willing. | think that
every elevator boy who has the inter-
est of his employer at heart is always
willing to be son or brother to any
lonely hearted tenant
You are so gOOdi' she said as she
kissed me on the ear and then stood off
and tried to blush and look coy. Il
shall call you Brother Sammis. and
you can call me Sister Eva, and we
will both have more TO live for Broth
er Sammis do you think your sister a
bad looking girlie?"
You are a dream!" replied.
"And how old would you say WASP"
"About 20"
"Ah, you young rogue. YOU must not
fatter me. am almost %. And hOw's
my walk, Sammis:''
She rose up and wriggled and tip
toed back and forth and smiled and
simpered, and | told her it was the gait
of a 16-year-old maiden. She kissed
me on the other ear for that, and then
she told me in sisterly confidence that
if any one sent her bouquets or invited
her out to lunch | mustn't say any
thing about it. If any one asked her
age, l was to put it at %, and l was to
be very, very discreet in case of little
notes or theater tickets. Sister Eva
and | had a thorough understanding
before / left, but | can't say that | was
highly delighted to have found her.
She didn't offer me a cent extra to help
| pay off that mortgage on the widows
home, and it seemed as if all the bene-
fits were to go her way. A week pass
ed, and no one inquired her age, sent
| her bouquets or invited her to lunch.
She sent for me to know the reason
why, and felt obliged to lie to her. 1t
is no harm for boy to lie to his sister.
l told her that Mr.. Jumper, on the floor
above, was casting sleeps eyes at her;
that Mr.. Johnson, on the floor below,
had praised her walk; that the gentle
man In room 4S said that her face had
reminded him of a Grecian goddess,
and the cotton buyer in room "a was
dying to ask her out to lunch. She
kissed me on the forehead and patted
my shoulder and blushed. and the fam
lily conference broke up in great good
feeling.
Now and then "Sister Eva had a
caller who wanted some work done,
but the days passed. and the bouquets
didn't shower down. | kept lying to
her in a brotherly way. as it seemed
my duty to do. but there came a day
when ! saw that something must be
done or there would be a family row.
I bought her a big bouquet aud wrote
II. 4
and handed it in to her. Mr. Saunders
was the gas engine man on the same
floor He was 60 years old. as dignitied
as a knot on log, and few men dared
! to speak to him. SISTER Eva" was de-
/ lighted When | told her that an invi-
/ tation TO lunch would speedily follow.
she blushed and simpered and looked
so coy and shy that | was really proud
1 of her. | hoped to get out Of il with
the bouquet but she kept asking me
every day if Mr.. Saunders had said
anything more, and | was finally driv-
en- to say that he would call very soon
and ask her to honor him with her com
pany to lunch. | was wondering how
many more lies | would have to tell to
get out of the scrape when a sudden
climax came. At noon one day Mr..
/ Saunders called at her room with some
work he wanted done at once. She had
her Sunday clothes on, and as he en-
tered she smpered and tiptoed around
and put on her hat and said she felt so
| honored. He wasn't over two minutes
destroying that poor girls illusion.
What he said or how he said it / don't
u I J, in iTerr
that all was lost. hid under the stairs.
/ heard him talking about light headed
i women and she answering back about
I fool headed men. and three minutes
+ later was a discovered elevator boy.
''Sister Eva" hauled me out Of my hid
+ ing place, and the way she did thump
me around left me an almost helpless
wreck She hauled me into her room