The bee. (Earlington, Ky.) 1889-19??, 1908-05-14

salary, and, unlike her, had been ad.
vanced by easy stages to $26 week.
The advancement was the direct re
suit of a judicious system of humoring
people.
Miss Saunders had long felt aspira'
tons toward a salary of $25 week.
consequently she fell in love with the
idea of humoring people. Falling in
love with an idea-like falling in love
with a man-moves the victim of the
love mania to actions strange and in
applicable to those who think they
know her.
When the Office boy began to move
things about on her desk Miss Saun-
ders snapped: stop that, BENNY 1t
is bad enough to know that you steal
every pencil stub / have without let
ting you do 1t under my very nose"
1T is my business to carry away
truck and amt hunting a pencil-it's
my gum. / stuck it round this desk
somewhere"
ugh! Here it is" pointing to it
dlsgustedly, as if she had seen
mouse. Quick Take it of. If
ever catch you sticking gum on my
desk again"
She hesitated, trying to think of a
threat commensurate with the offense.
Then she was seized by her new idea.
Suddenly her tone became conciliatory
and she said: Gum is not so bad as
tobacco, Benny, but here IS some
r1xrs
She held out box of chocolates.
The boy regarded her with instant
suspicion. Look here" he said, IF
it's note you want me to carry my
price Is rs cents, same as l charge
the men"
This was discouraging, but girl
in love with an idea does not give up
hope at the first rebuff any more than
does a girl in love with man.
Miss Saunders was not In love with
any man, yet there was in the ONCE
a man whom she highly respected and
another whom she abominated. When
the latter sat down by her desk and
became disagreeably pleasant her first
impulse was to annihilate him with
a look. Then it occurred to her that
perhaps 1t was her former brusque-
ness which had attracted him and that
she could better secure freedom from
his attentions by humoring them, so
she did her best. Her active mind
was at work on discovering a way
to humor her employer, since. IL
the salary of $25 week ever material
lied, he must be the medium.
He was a nervous man, but not UNI
manageable except when there were
too many checks to be signed. The
deepest grudge he bore his bookkeep-
er was that she was forever asking
him to pay bills.
Many of the bills bore the stamp:
Net 60 days-if paid within 80 days
three per cent discount" 1t was his
bookkeeper's duty to remind him
when these bills were about to fall
due, yet whenever he saw her adVanc-
ing upon him, bill in one hand, check.
book in the other, he automatically
tried to get away
She usually presented him with the
check for his signature several days
in advance of the last discount day.
but, under the baleful influence Of her
loved idea, she decided to hold a bin
calling for $4,000 until the last mo-
ment. Not till the last morning did
she even calculate the discount and
she was pleased with herself until she
heard some one remark that the head
of the Arm had left town for a few
days.
out of town." she gasped. And
a $4,000 discount bill to be paid!"
Then he'll lose the discount" was
all the comfort she got.
The sufferings OF Miss Saunders be-
fore her employers return caused her
love for the idea OF humOring people
to wane very greatly.
When he came she realized how
nimsy her story sounded as she told
It to him. He smiled sardOnically and
then pronounced her DOOM IF you.
were In the habit OF holding bills tinl
the last discount day l might blameI
myself for not notifying you that III
would be away, but when you are al
ways poking bills at me week ahead
know this omission WAS pure forget.l
iulness, which / cannot tolerate. TheI
discount on this bill is almost equal
% your monthly salary 1 might
,harge that to profit and loss, but this
story OF yours about hating 10 see mel
rave to pay such a large amount
Earlier than was necessary is too
transparent You might rob me. but
lOu viii have to get another boss 70
DOL"