Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1909-12-03
ROCKVILLE MARYLAND FRIDAY MORNING. DECEMBER 8 1909
InBOrrOWed
PlurnaSe
The College Cloakroom Maid
and the University Porter
By JANE OSBORN.
Copyright. 1909, by Associated Lit
erary Press.

When Thornby college opened last
autumn there was new maid in the
cloakroom. Something about her dark,
close fitting dress, her small, rufiied
apron and her parted hair, tied with
big black bow at the back of her neck,
suggested French maid much more
than student. But the fact was that
Molly Dodge really was a poor south
ern girl working her way through the
woman's department Of this big uni
versity.
During the three or four hours that
Molly was not attending lectures she
had to stay In the stone foored, locker
lined cloakroom and DO ready at any
time to get students hats and coats or
put them away In their owners lock-
ers
At first 1t had seemed pot at all bad,
for Molly had a soft. ld~able, southern
way OF talking and honest brown eyes
that made all the girls like her. hut as
the months passed they became accus-
toned to seeing her every day, and
they passed her thoughtlessly by. 1t
would not have been SO hard IL Molly
had been intellectual, but she was not
had had chance she would probably
have been little frivolous.
But there were two things that made
Molly's life bearable. One was the
daily visit of the university porter, and
the other was the appearance now and
then of new and pretty hats and
wraps. Molly had little mirror over
her desk in the cloakroom, and when
ever any specially charming hat ap-
peared on the clothing counter she
would wait till the girls had left the
room and then with 1t on her own pref
ty head steal an admiring glance at
herself over her desk.
And the porterl Well, he used to
come over from the university every
day with the students mail, which 1t
was Molly's duty to sort and distrib-
ute. or course woman student Of
Thornby college ought not to have
flirted with SO humble parsonage as
the university porter, but Molly was
only half student. The half that was
cIoakroom maid looked forward with
impatience to the daily visitation OF
the porter's cheerful smile and conta-
gious laugh.
On rainy days Molly had to handle
countless damp and muddy rubbers
and galoches and dripping umbrellas
That alone would have made her dis
like the rain, but besides that students
always wore their old hats when 1t
rained.
She was looking out of the iron bars
OF her basement window at the gloomy
sky one dark day in March when all at
once there swept In stately senior, a
veritable billow of soft black furs. She
carelessly slipped them OF, smiled at
Molly and hurried OF to her class.
What dream" thought Molly.
And on a day like this! But what
does 1t matter when one has a car
riager'
Molly raised the soft pieces gently
from the counter and started to put
them In their locker. But the tempta-
ton was too great. She came back and
replaced them lovingly on the counter.
Then very carefully she pinned the
toQue over her piquant little face and
glanced approvingly at her image in
the mirror over her desk. II only she
could see the rest, she wished. In a
fash she jumped over the counter,
closed the door into the hall and slip
ped into the luxurious coat. Then she
stepped up to the students long pier
glass.
'If only It were little longer" she
thought. And then, turning around at
the sound Of the opening door, she
faced the porter. He closed the door
quickly and stood against 1t. Then he
turned to Molly and laughed. But Mol
ly didn't laugh back. She slipped out
of the furs, sprang over the counter
and, with guilty blush, took the
morning mail.
The next day when the porter came
Molly was deep In volume OF Horace.
mice book you're reading, Molly"
remarked the porter, and Molly, the
student, smiled coidiy without raising
her eyes.
After that the porter left of the
MOLLY" from his mornings salutation,
and Molly had no difficulty In repress-
ing him. In fact, she was little dis
appointed that he took his squelching
so willingly.
About a month after the episode Of
the furs there was dance In the col
lege gymnasium, and Molly, as was her
custom ON such occasions, took her
place as maid In the dressing room.
Here she buttcned gloves and slippers
and arranged ruffieS and bows for her
more favored colleagues till her fingers
were numb. Then during the long
hours Of the dance she was supposed
to sit and guard the wraps and lend
her aid in case Of dslapidated couture
or torn ruffie. But tonight strains OF
the dance music took possession OF
Molly's soul and started her dainty
feet tapping on the stone floor. Her
curiosity and her loneliness had the
upper hand, and she slipped out Of the
dressing room, ran along the corridor
and up the wide stone stairs toward
the gallery overlooking the gymnasium
AS she was hurrying timidly along
she had to pass one Of the lecture
rooms, which had been converted for
the occasion into mems checking
room. Three young men were standing
idly smoking. There was something
FARMS FOR SALE.