The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-09-13
BookkEEpgRs MARROW ESCAPE

! dWcQ Uy her presence she was EeaAU-
| ful. Of course, but il was her angelic man
ner. her sweet simplicity her air Of trust
ful belief in everything and everybody
that won for her quick and easy way
into the hearts Of all. Even the other
girls liked her, a homage seldom enjoyed
By pretty women, and as for the men.
The bill clerk couldn't work for ten min
| utes after she spoke To him: the cashier
| got ratified every time she looked his way.
and LOngman. the city salesman. who
had a desk just outside the manager
/ Office. spent so much time about the place
that the old man" asked him Il he'I
| hired a substitute 10 look after the local
trade.
Only Simpson. the head bookkeeper, the
suaye, COOL matter-of-fact. poiseful Simp-
son, alone OF all the Office force. re-
NAMED unmoved. obIivious of her pres
| ence or addressed her at rare intervals
as if she We're a craven image or some
remote and impersonal telephone CORE
spondent- Simpson was a bachelor, Ger
tainly; you couldn't think OF MIN as even
| going with" girl much less marrying
I He was tall, spare, smooth OF face and
voice and so clean that he kept his
/ windows shut all summer and shut OF
! the electric fan for fear SCOT. dust or sand
would mar the spOtless pages Of his
| books. He never swOre, smoked. drank.
| cheWed tobacco. or ate meat. He wore
(
/ his cotton sleeve covers Numbered twice
a week. During two years of the bin
! clerks service in the office Simpson had
| never spoken to him because he had
caught the former smoking cigarettes.
/ In retaliation the resentful clerk always
mentioned the bookkeeper as Miss
Julia. though the epithet was never re-
peated in Simpsons hearing.
When Miss SturtevanC had been in the
| office about six weeks. and the sarJorial
/ splendor of all the men and boys had been
/ advanced to an extraordinary degree of
costly and even assertive perfection. no.
| body could claim to have made any per-
| ceptible progress with her. She vas uni
/ formly polite, very demUre. more lOvable
| than ever. But one morning, the bin
/ clerk having come down about an hour
earlier than usual and having pre-
empted the odd mans morning paper
| TO figure out the baseball percentages. en-
| sconsed himself in the private office be-
hind a screen. He hadn't been there
very long when he heard the patter of
nimble feet in the main office. and peep
ing out. discovered the Incompatible
Jeanette. a fresh bouquet in her dainty
hand, tripping futrively back into the
corner which Simpson called his own. He
heard the opening and closing of q drawer
and when she came back the flowers
which she had carried were gone. The
bill clerk felt cold around the gills, but
he regained his chair, pinching himself
to know whether he was awake. AMI
gasped into his paper:
Suffering Iscauot! Can she be
'mushy' on Miss Juiia?"
Then he set himself to watch develop
ments. When Simpson came in and
marched majestically to his place be-
hind the high desk Jeannette's fair face
w. raT ,ar oh
clerk saw that she was blushing. but
as he turned he saw Simpson hang up
his coat, take off his cuffs and open the
drawer for the cotton sleeve covers The
look of scared establishment that swept
over the cadaverous face was followed
by a furious blush. RE slammed the
drawer shut. and for the first time within
the memory of his associates went to
work in his shirt sleeves. All day he
avoided that drawer. ali day his face
wore a look OF grieved but puzzled
heuteur. He paid no more attention 10
Jeanette than before. lie looked hurt,
affronted. but he bore himself with the
most precise and unyielding dignity. If
he had been anxious to identify the
giver. a glance at the girls shirt waist
would have disclosed a rose and spray
OF gladiOlus that matched his own. But
it was not his habit TO inspect either
the faces, apparel or ornaments of wo-
men.
The bill clerk made practice Of coming
down early after that and he saw the
flower incident repeated. In the evening
he '.rubbered' about the Office till he
found the withered bouquet in Simpsons
waste basket And at last. feeling eXcep-
tionally gay one morning, he wandered IN
behind Simpsons desk before that ascetic
man arrived, appropriated the flowers and
al do in no Ia oF
his vest Ii would be hard 10 tell how
this performance affected the bookkeepcr.
for he never mentioned It. bat FOR rea-
sons that the bill clerk couldn't divine
Simpson thereafter made particular and
unmistakable efforts to make friends
with his late foe. lie began with Good
morning Frank, and finally made a
pointed hint to the effect that he was
going the same way"
Frank he said, when they had walked
a few blocks in silence. what would
you do If a young woman were 10 get
that is, if a girl were 10 put presents in
your desk?"
I'D get back at her. Miss-Alr. simp-
son. II she wasn't fright, I'd go after
her hot FOOT"
"Oh. but I don't want to encourage
her. I'm not a marrying man" this with
a wise shake OF the head. and besides.
though she Is fairly good-looking. she
has no means. I, too. am poor. You
know. so what"
why don't you tell her TO cut # out2''
asked Frank, swallowing an unpriHtable
expression. Why don't you shut her
off?"
.Oh. I'm not supposed to know. She
does it all on the sly. She
But you do know. don't you? or
course. 1 thought So Well II you don't
like her. and you're afraid she'll steal
you. why don't you send her a note--I
was going 10 say q polite note. but the
note wouldn't be exactly complimentary.
would it Tell her you're vestsl. a
celibate. sealed 10 = higher destiny
That's what the MoTmcns call IT,
oh 7 couldn't do that Frank" *
pcstulated the bookkeeper. i don't
want
mo. Of course You don't want to hurt
her feelings. but
1t isn't that altogether but-don't Won
see. I don't want her even u know shat
l know what she's driving a.. -
why don't you get acquainted with
herr That ought To- the biil cisTi.
hesitRted Il was rude speech bur
Simpson didn't hear ITS drift as he went
on.
No that won't do Vow. # you'd con
sent to- Would you9" asked the eau I
tons simpson
would - Break It ono why ia
rather do that than have ny saIarT
ra.sedr laughed Frank. stopping 20 Won /
der g. the situation
Wei. then. Go tiff you can. Il may
20 hard wf,h her-at first But. now
lsten. IN going 70 ter yea her nauef
oh know her name Tli TX this 90
And row there are flowers 90 Ire hlH
-se-Es desk 1rc-r rua-rt-r Ina rhr.