The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1901-09-12
A Tale OF Five Cents
BY Mrs. Moses p. Handy.
Nkk Xxx XXX +kfhRk
Copyright, 1901, by Authors syndicate)

r EVER, thought Bessie Ayres, had
IN she been in so unpleasant a
predicament. Her purse was gone;
it was not in her muff, nor yet
in either pocket of her jacket.
When, where or how she had
lost it she had not the least idea; moi
that that matterad much, except the
disagTeeable fact that she was in the
street car, miles from home, with The
rain outside falling, in a steady drizzle,
and that She had not five cents where
with to pay her fare. What could she,
what would She do?
evil the conductor put me off?" she
said to herself, "or win he trust me for
my fare, if promise to mail it to him
Is soon as 1 get home. He must know
papa by name" and then she thought
that if he doubted her honesty in one
respect, he would do so in all, anG
might not believe that she was Judge
Ayres' daughter. "We,, he may put
me off If he likes. | cab go to a drug
store and telephone for cab" Then
her face grew blank with the recollec
ton that in order to telephone She
must have twice the amount needed
for car fare. As the thought drove her
sense Of helplessness home afresl, she
looked up invoiuntarily and caught
two blue-gray eyes fixed on her, ana
twinkling with amusement. She turneG
pink with veNation. Thinks it funny.
does hep" she thought. 81 just wish
he were in my place."
The young man, standing near
looked away instantly. When he
boarded the car Bessie had at once at
tracted his attention as an unusually
pretty girl, and he had watched the
little pantomime with interest, think.
ing, meanwhile, that he had rarely seer
so expressive face.
poor little girl" he thought, pity
ingly. "She looks as though she ex-
pected to be arrested. Evidently he is
not used to taking care of herself; be
ated by accident, no doubt, or has haG
her pocket picked"
The fash Of resentment which lit
her eyes, as they caught his, confirmed
Ills ihtdS as ~ litl SNCIdb ST ilhlliR. anu
completed his amusement at her
plight. He turned his back and faced
the conductor, who was rapidly APP
preaching. The sound of the bell. as
the fares were rung up, Jared Ressie's
nerves.
Fare"
She parted her lips, but before she
could speak: "Two," said her neigh
Dor. handing the man dime, and the
dreaded crisis was past.
For a moment Bessie fancied that
the conductor had overlooked her in
the crowd-the car was packed to the
utmost. Nor was it until she saw the
stranger, whose observation had an.
noyed her, making his way towards the
other end Of the car. that, finding hin
alone, she understood tat he had paid
for her as the other one of the two
The discovery not only found her un-
grateful, it filed her with fndigna.
ton. The one thing needed to com.
plete her annoyance was that young
man, with whom she was totally unac-
quainted, should treat her as an OBJ
ject of charity. How dared he do sucl
thing? Fortunately she remembered
thar there was still something worse;
to make a scene and call public atten-
ton to the fact. She had no choice but
to ignore the transaction and appear
unconscious of the mans existence.
She knew that her cheeks were burn
ing, but she clenched her hands inside
her muff and looked neither to the
right nor to the left.
Bessie had always been quick-tem.
pered. AS small girl, when she got
into a passion, her mother used TO
make her repeat poetry until she
quoted down. She had kept up the
practice, Of herself, in later years.
finding it wholesome and easy disci-
pline. She tried il now, and became
so absorbed that her tingling nerves
soon found relief.
BY that time, the stranger who had
come to her rescue had left the car.
to her great satisfaction. Her ride
was long one, and before reaching