The Lambertville record., 1908-05-06
THE JUNIOR
PARTNER.
By Madeline Lewis.
Copyright. 1908. by Associated Lit
erary Press.

III III
O=-======-===-==--=---= O=-=====-===-==--=---= =----==-==------===-O
1t was just one of those advertise
ments which hundreds who have an-
swered them In vain term heartless:
Young lady stenographer and typist
wanted In business office. Must be
quick and accurate. State salary want
ed"
or the thousands who read 1t and
the scores. II not hundreds, who an
swered by letter was Kitty Burnham,
daughter of widow living In one of
the suburbs Of the city. She had seen
and answered many such before.
There was grave need that the little
income left by the father should be
eked out In some way.
She had little hope when the answer
was sent Off In Its blue envelope that
1t would be heard OF again, but to her
great surprise and almost to her con-
sternation she received curt message
asking her TO call. To make her way
to a business office. to be questioned by
the abrupt manager, to be tested as to
her qualifications and perhaps told that
she wouldn't do at an-all this was a
nightmare to her. Then she must state
the salary wanted. That In itself
showed II want Of fairness on the part
Of the Arm. 1t was taking advantage
Of the applicants.
Kitty spent an hour figuring, SO
much for street car fare daily, SO much
for lunches, so much left at the end of
the week out of the sum she had made
up her mind to ask. 1t would be only
Il pittance, and yet she must take 1t
and hope for advancement. No man,
| old or young, could put himself In the
place of a girl Of nineteen applying for
a situation for the first time In her life
and being ushered through an Office
where dozen men were at work into
| the sanctum of the manager. She ex-
| pected to meet an ogre and to be shout
ed at. She had only entered the door
when she would almost have given
her life to be flying down the street.
Next moment the feeling disappeared.
There was no ogre. There was no
~ luItu hldu VI lOh-
ty-fve looked up from letter he was
writing and greeted her thus:
"Ah. Miss Burnham, | was expect
ing you. Please sit down. and will be
through In a moment"
The kind words rallied her, and three
minutes later she was answering ques-
tions and saying to herself that the
J... xNrrs .sS txfs
own and was sparing her as much as
possible She had heard over and over
again that there was no sentiment In
business and that the woman who took
mans place in an Office must expect
to be treated like man, but here seem
ed to be proof to the contrary.
my name is Mr.. Gray, and am the
Junior partner in the frm." said the
man when he had finished his letter
"As this will be your first place you
cannot expect the salary of an expert.
enced girl. What figure do you think
will be right?"
IL had thought OF So a week." she
replied. "but If you-you think that ia
too much I'll take &C." She didn't
want to run away now. She wanted
the place, and she didn't want the firm
to think her too graspIng.
| Let me see as to your stenography,"
said Mr.. Gray, with smile. mo need
to be bit nervous. Just Imagine that
| you have been here for weeks"
He was not lightning dictator. He
| did not tramp up and down the room
and interrupt himself every moment to
substitute words. In quiet easy way
he dictated n letter, and when It was
finished he nodded toward the type
| writer In the corner, and the girl sat
down and transcribed her notes.
ut couldn't be better" he said as she
| handed him the sheet To-day Is
Wednesday, but as am bit hurried
you might come tomorrow instead of
waiting till Monday. AS to the salary,
you Will be worth $40 week to start
on. Good morning. Miss Burnham.
About S:45 In the morning, pleasep
Five minutes later she was on her
way home TO tell her mother the good
news, and five minutes later Mr.. Gray
was saying to the head clerk In the
| uuIcT Oulce.
'Mr Benson, / have new stenogra-
pher coming In the morning-Miss
Burnham."
"Yes, SIR"
"It Is her first place."
"Yes, sir"
"She Is to be treated as a lady. Please
see to It that there Is no fishing for in
Productions by the young men. If she
does not bring her lunch with her she
will 20 out alone Should | encounter
her In the elevator or ON the street
shall lift my hat 10 her"
II understand. sir"
Mr. Benson returned TO the outer
The young men OF the bookkeeping
staff wlnkcd at each other and smiled
They were made up of the average
young man. no better or no worse. One
of them went beyond winking and
smiling He said to the mat at his
elbow:
"Llsten to that will you! The old
mans got private stenog and q
good locker. and we must not even
wish her good morning. Got to just
raise our hats and look down ut our
toes"
The "oid man" had come into the
house years and years before as hum
BILE employee and worked his way up
to junior partnership. He had never
married. and so far as any one at the
store knew he had no near relatives.
His home had always been boarding
house or a hotel. When he had come
into the firm 1t was predicted that he
would marry within year. but he hat
made no change whatever. The boys
had wlnked and smiled over the mes
sage from the inner office. but all OF
them knew that the junior partner had
| N ,1oan caotad raanact for womanhoOd.