The San Francisco call., 1906-05-27
Tired Of 1T all

There was no gas in the room. Madame
had no lamp and was afraid Of candles.
The girl would have to do the best she
could without a light till the gas was
put in. Madame always spoke Of it as
though it were a matter of few days.
She spoke that way to her girls five
years ago.
This girl had always looked forward
through a long. hard days work to her
own room and a book and loose slip
pers on the poor, aching feet Still, in
way she was a philosophical little girl.
and so she laughed and said it wasn't
good for ones eyes to read at night any
way.
No girl working for Mrs. Fitz-Pat
ever grew lonely. She liked to sit out in
| the kitchen, with her hands in her lap
Please go back and hang that pan
from the other hook You look hideous
in black; what makes you wear 1t? Don't
let the water drip from that faucet; it
makes me nervous.
Don't hum under your breath like
that. If you think you can sing, sing out
loud Perhaps you'd better let the IRON
ing go till the song is DONE"
| 1t was at the next place, a small ho-
tel that Diana can see where she stands
with her arrow poised. Well, it was there
the girl met Mary.
/ Mary walked with a slouching gait on
|
usually ornamented with red carpet
slippers. Anyway, red was as near as
you could come to guessing the origiEs~
color. They tapped from her heels ass
/ she walked and sounded like the little
wooden rockers the Chinese women wear
as they trot down the Sacramento-street
hill. Her waist and skirt just missed
connecting. Her hands were big and red
and cracked in places. Sometimes the
nj
Her nails could hardly be described.
Usually they broke off II they didn't.
if she found time, she bit them off,
One night the girl was manicuring her
hands, and when the homely little task
was done she held them up in frank ad-
miration. They were pretty hands yet,
plump and pink nailed Mary edged up
closer to look at thems then she looked
at her own, and hid them under her
| apron
You wouldn't be beIavin'," she said
wistfully. '.that me own were as fine as
thin wanst?"
He was not a bad man-In fact. he was
a pretty good one But the girls face
was pretty and fresh, and the girls eyes
had a sparkle; and, anyway. these girls
who scrub and bake-bah,
One evening while his wife was dress
ing for theater he stood by the table
/ While the girl picked up the d1sheS- she
spoke right straight from her honest lit
tie heart 1t was a fascinating novelty
to the man. The women he kissed didn't
have honest hearts. and if they did they
certainly never spoke from them
Then it came like bolt from the blue.
He slipped his arm around her, and.
tipping her face backward, whispered:
kiss me, sweetheart"
Now city girl who had attended many
! 25-cent matinees would have drawn her.
self up haughtily and said. How dare
you, sir?" and the scorn in her eyes
would have w1lted him. But this was a
country girl, and a very ignorant little
one at that. She gave the man one look.
not of scorn. but of fright-the wild
eyed horrible fear that you see in the
/ eyes of dog you have struek-and with
/ a little cry she ran from the room.
Upstairs she was possessed of a mad,
i Iunreasoning mania to get away-far away
anywhere away from that house.
| That night she spent at the hotel the
minister had taken her to when she
came first to the city. Perhaps there was
a little difference between that girl and
this.
And now why must tell you this and
defeat my own point entirely? She really
had saved money. She had s27 toward
the voice fund.
But wonder if it is worth while.