The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-11-24
Copyright, 1903. by Robert Howard
RuSSell.)

Remember me telling you about de
goil me modder and Mrs. Murphy fetch
ed in off de street, when dey found her
crying just because she VAS getting
punched in de face by a nice young
man who wanted more money dan she
had? Remember dat? Sometimes you
| hear does young men mentioned in de
| papers, and dey is named Cadets"
Well, as was telling you, me modder
and Mrs. Murphy is getting chesty wit
| de success dey has in business. Dey
does fine and fancy laundry for Miss
Fannie and de swells Miss Fannie steers
against en-. 1t isn't dat dey has SO
Doodle bloated; it's because dey was
put wise by Duchess on how TO charge
for de woik.
Listen: dere is noting dat tickles a
French goil SO much as de chance to run
| de money end of a job. When me mod
der takes in Murphy as a partner IN de
laundry Duchess goes to EN- Wit me,
1 LII SlIS obu L 49, N
! says, leave me see de bill you is to
| send out for all dis fine hand laundry
woik,' she says.
So de old lady she shows Duchess de
chaeges she's made. and Duchess she
| laughs, and she asks for a pencil, and
| she says, "Modder Fadden,' she says,
you is flying in de face of Providence"
she says. How long would desc swell
| customers you has got from Miss Fan
| ME stop along wit you if you make desc
i c~harges?" she says.
rs dey too much?" asks lie Ole lady,
| getting a scare. 4 charges for de tings
1 has to buy and use, N enough FOR a
| dollar a day for Mrs. Murphy and me;
| dough we could get along wit half o
dollar"
Duchess she didn't say noting, for she
was getting busy wit de pencil and pa
| per. Pretty soon she shows her figure
| woik to de old ladies, and dey near fell
in a fit.
Sure, Hortence,'' says me modder,
"dey'd send me to jail, if ever / made
such charges as dOse!"
Were not selling EN- fine linen, blu
la~undrying it, says Mrs. Murphy, her
eyes popping at de figures Duchess
made.
"Of a soitainty'' says Duchess, "you
you will not keep desc good customers
if you do DER woik cheap. Charge en-
tree time what you was going to, and
den you will have so many customers
who will hear about de high prices, dat
you'll need help to do de ok
Does de sWells like for to pay Ou1
money!" says me modder.
NO" says Duchess, "dey hates to
But dey likes for to be known to have
de tings dat costs money, and dat is al
dis firm needs to knOW.'
Duchess is right on dat layout, too,
| all right. A felly l knows what's de
| usher in a teeater-say, dat must be a
peach of a job-he was telling me dat
de mug what is to give de opray what
| starts in de middle of de afternoon, and
| runs till de morning, he was up against
| it how to make de people come and take
| a eighteen-hour dose of music dey didn't
| know anything about. If it was ragtime.
and good enough, dey might make de
| audience stop all day and all night
But dis piece was a piece dey call DE
! Fail of Percy"-nO, dat'S not quite it
"Percy-Fall' dat's it. Nobody in little
| old New York could be rounded up who
| cared five dollers wort Wedder Percy
| fell or stood up; and as l was aging
de mugs what had put up de long green
| to fetch Percy here out Of lie tall tim
her Of Germany, dey was wondering
what ell. Nobody couldn't see de use
of Perry at five per. He might be a
| nice young man. and fell far and hard.
but why five per, and an all night SEES
| sion for to see Percy? New York be-
| gan to get funny over Percy, and de
frost was gaddering on de box office,
| where Percy was to fall. Some one
| says charge only tWo-and-a-half a trow,
and see if de lovers of classic music
| won't step up to the captains office,
| But, p'chee, all de folks what loved
| classical music, dey didn't have de
| price at two bones and a half, and deg
was getting ready to leave Percy fall
into his grave, when a slick boy, who
| knew his way around de town as vel
| as Duchess, he says, Go tOi' he avs
You is playing de scale de wrong way
| Play it up. not down." says dis Johnny
on-de-Spot.
"HoW's dat?" says de hackers, whose
feet was most dreadful cold.
Don't drop from five to half dat
he says. Double five. Make it q ten
ner d seat to see Percy fall, and send
for de police to help you keep New YORK.
from mobbing de ticket office, to get
seats for de fall"
Say, l needn't tell you what was do
ing. You seen it in de papers as well
as me. a mont before Percy was due
for a fall. 0 couldn't buy a ten dol
lar paste board for twenty. OATS got
noting to do wit what l was telling you
about, only, say. Wouldn't Duchess
make a Chin Dandy Of a boss for de
opray de next time a gold brick is to be
flung at de dear public! What,
Well, Mrs. Murphy said n could
never go TO confession again if she
| charged de price Duchess put down, Sc
! Duchess, 10 ease de old ladies souls,
she done de charging herself. Every
| time she raised a charge she felt nearer
heaven. De checks came in all right,
and orders for more woik. and de firm
had to get an assistant.
Dat was what l was going TO tell you
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