The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-03-19

not wholly the money, which is mine by
rgnt OF dover and service, but it's the
hurt of 1.-THE thought that such de-
eeptlon on his part would mean he could
not trust me with his fortune; that he
could not believe me competent to handle
It or deserving of it.
10 you blame me, then, for refusing
70 believe he did this thing of his own
Vohtlon and in sane mental condition?
Mr.. Plant remember, was eighty years
Old. He had been in feeble heath for
a half dozen years. New York had al
ways been his home. He voted here, paid
taxes here, and we lived together in this
mouse for twenty-six years, calling.~this
home.
Here he made his will and here he
added codicils, making one as late as
thirty days before he died. Then three
Gays before his death he went over to
connecticut to attend to some business,
ana when he got back l met him
He said he was mighty glad to get
nome This, then, was home, not Con-
necucut. Whatever transpired while he
was In Connecticut made no impression
on MS mind. He had no memory of 1t.
Husband Had No Secrets.
I'm all our life together he kept no
secrets from me. ! nursed him to the
been made a resident of Connecticut or
OF having added another codicil to his will
containing wild scheme to tie up his
fortune for hundred years till it should
reach the hundred million mark.
The idea was not Henry B. p ants. 1t
was wholly unlike him. He had no am
oltioas for vast wealth. He worked for
the sake of what he accomplished, not
for the dollars it added to his bank ac-
count. His nature was gentle, honest,
outspoken, generous.
Had he wished to pile up a gigantic
fortune his whole mode of life would have
been different. He would have curbed his
generous spirit and spent less money in
mis- living; and he would have closed his
eyes and purse to the needs of others.
instead, he was always giving. He gave
to- all who sought him when he found
they were worthy; and our greatest relax.
alton was to talk over plans for charities
on a greater, wider scale"
What sort of charities?"
Planned Charities for Women.
For women. I think every scheme we
ever thought of was for the benefit Of
women. If Mr.. Plant had lived he would
have perfected those pans. If l win my
case, and the money comes to me, l will
perfect them for him. AS my whole de-
sire during his life was to please him, so
my wish is still his wish. But l cannot
undertake anything without money, and
the particular charities he wished to
carry on required vast amount of it,
What were they?"
"One was home for working women
that should lack the usual terrors of the
Working-womens homes, without that OBJ
jectionable institution atmosphere; some
thlng more on the hotel plan, such as
Stewart tried and failed.
You see, he tried to make 1t self-sup-
porting. and that is impossible If it is to
accomplish its purpose. 1t must be CHI
lowed. And 1t must be liberal. There
must be no prison rules and regulations
To refuse women latch keys because they
work for a living, to forbid the recep-
ton of gentlemen at the plaoe they call
home, except in the presence of third par
ties, to forbid pianos, musical instru-
ments. sewing machines or even a canary
bird in their rooms-all such rules must
necessarily kill the success of a most
splendid project.
Girls who drudge from in the morn
ing until at night need recreation even
more than they need rest. Their brains
and their spirits are even more tired
than their bodies. They need compan-
ionship. and they need a wholesome, dain-
iy environment.
THE sort of home l would dearly love
to build would be called hotel. It's
rooms would be clean and prettily deco
rated, with good ventilation and plenty
of sunshine; and the price would be low
enough to come within the limits a
shop girls earnings would afford-as low
as a very inferior room in some question:
able locality
"And there would be the advantage of
companionship with other girls and the
entertainments provided for them. Then
restaurant I'm the building. with pure
food, nicely cooked and daintily served, at
very lew rates.
The situation Appalling.
Now, perhaps" said Mrs. Plant, who
was very enthusiastic over her pet pro-
ject, you may not realize at a glance
how great a charity that would be; but
consider The girls who work in the
shops get from SO to So a week on an
average. They must have a room. food
to eat, carfares and becoming clothing,
or they cannot retain their positions. How
do you suppose they can honestly cover
those needs with the money they earn,
and often mother or sisters and brothers
depending on them? 1t is impossible.
Often, too; indeed, too often, they
are very pretty, and into their shops
come the women who spends hundreds on
personal adornment and talk and laugh
over gay times and their happy existence.
What does the shop girl get out of it?
Just work, Her means, with every pen
ny utilized, cannot cover necessaries, leave
alone recreations. She leaves work for
a gloomy room, sometimes a cold one, or
a home where want cries out.
IF the rich would but stop to think
of these things they would realize how
appalling is the situation; they would
realize there is no fairness or justice in
it, and they would appreciate the debt
they owe, the moral as well as the ma
terial debt, to these sisters of the poor. -
Mrs. Plants cheeks giowed and her
eyes shone.
1T has been the dream of my life, .
she said. ito consummate this plan. II
was the hope and intention of his.
hope l shall be able to see this and all
the rest of his noble wishes realized. The
decision rests with the law-with higher
Il, fe in asRxx "a