The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-06-04
STEVE BRADLEY'S CHANGE.
BY H. l.. GROSSMAN.
Copyright. 1905, by Daily story Fuo

(Copyright, 1905, by Daily story Fuo-
 fishing Co.)
 Every body about the concern recog- nized that Steve Bradley was good worker and everybody rather liked him in a negative sort of way. At least nobody disliked him and he formed no factor in the factional conspiracies and cabals always prevalent in pig commercial house. The fact IS nopouy was jealous of him and nobody was afraid of him. In fact nobody thought of him as a possible competitor ana hence he was a comfortable factor 10 deal with.
 Steve had been in the stock room of the heavy hardware department TOT A score of years and was just where he was the day he entered the service. so far as position Is concerned. TO be sure he was now getting httle higher wages than when he went 10 | work there first a stalwart lad or IT. and to be sure he was better posteo | in the details of the business, but pro- motion had not been his share Many men had worked along side Of him TOT 1 a time and then gone away up. The present head of the department had been in the house for only four years and was a dozen years his junior.
 The fact is. Steve seemed to lack ann bition. At least that is what they all said He certainly lacked the capacity to push himself forward. He seemed to feel that he had found his level ana such an emotion as jealousy at anotn- CTS advancement never entered ms breast. He took 1t for granted that the higher places were not for him.
 At periods in his life he had felt that he never had any luck, but figured 1t out that 1t was owing to his natural incapacity. Lacking hope in a busi- ness way he formed the habit of going on occasional sprees which or course injured his prospects. HIS superlors took his sprees as matter Of course' lectured him good-naturedly some | times, swore at him when 1t lncon- yenienced them. but recognized 1t as A part of Steve's personality and all ways took him back when he sobered up. {,
 These sprees, however. had caused the only tragedy in Steve's life. Pretty Polly Dingnan, for whom he formed a warm attachment in his youth anu who waited patiently for him to acnleVe a position which would enable them to marry. found in his sprees such req son for hopelessness that she dis missed him forthwith. It hurt Steve as did nothing else which ever hap pened. But he accepted 1t in the same stoical spirit he did everything else and had not seen Polly for many years
 Now this being the circumstances and this the character or steve II can be readily understood that there was great surprise throughout the house when Steve was gwen tempo rarv management of the department. Both Hoyt the superintendent and Steve himself were as surprised as the rest of the employees of the house Rut Jenks. the department manager had fallen under a freight tram ana went dead. Peterson. the next man naturally to get it. was in dlSlaVot with Hoyt over recent quarrel Sanderson had just been on spree anu the rest of the men were too new Ho Steve was the only man in slght
 Can YOU handle the department fo' a few days or weeks until something develops?" asked Hoyt.
 sure thing" replied Steve, some what startled at the suggestion. but well aware that he had broken In the last half dozen Or more managers
 So Steve Bradley was placed h charge of the department. mat h'E he did a lot of nominating over the situatior The auizzical smiles and good natured surprise eXpresseu oS his fellow laborers. at the announce ment had not escaped him. and nc found himself resentinE their at'l'uoe "Whv should the dubs laugh at tho idea of my being manager. he de' manded fiercely to himself. rye peer In the room twenty years-neariy a' long as most of 'em are old. kno" every piece of stock and what two thirds of the customers want iV' educated all the managers for the pas ten or twelve years-yes, by gosh' ah' live saved their scalps many a uni' after they got the management by put
 fin qthem wise to mistakes they wer' making. Just because I never haV' been manager, these dubs think It l. ) a ioks Tli show 'em that they've go boss now that knows his business He smiled grimly
 . The next day the men certalnl! found the appointment was no 1oke Orders that came in were hustled ou with celerity entirely new to the oe partment and when the closing hou arrived instead of carrying over 10 of thrilled orders till next day tn slate was entirely clean. The mel grumbled flercely but could rind h' fault as the managing was done so ad roitly that they simply found them lGsIveS busy avery HsapAat %sAon' ne